BOISE, Idaho — The Deadwater ice jam just below North Fork near the Idaho-Montana border broke free this last weekend, marking the beginning of the spring steelhead fishing season in the Gem State.
Idaho Fish and Game says there has been an increase in anglers, with many fishing between the Middle Fork Salmon and Pahsimeroi rivers.
Anglers who were interviewed upstream of North Fork said they averaged 28 hours per steelhead caught, while those who fished upstream of the Lemhi River were averaging about 56 hours per steelhead caught. The number was nearly double that for those fishing upstream of the Pahsimeroi River. Anglers interviewed downstream on the Middle Fork Salmon River did not report catching a steelhead.
Officials encourage anglers to continue to be on the lookout for Floy-tagged steelhead.
The University of Idaho, in cooperation with Fish and Game, is in the second year of a study to look at the influence of catch and release angling on wild steelhead.
Anglers that catch a Floy-tagged steelhead are encouraged to remove the tag by clipping it off at the base, and then report the tag number and catch location to Fish and Game by using either the phone number printed on the tag or by going to the "Tag You're It" website.
