McCall Subregion Fishing Information

Winter Fishing Report Please see General Regional Information - Fall 2009 below. Weekly reports will return in the spring. Check out our Family Fishing Waters section with family-oriented fishing opportunities and simplified rules. Anglers must have a valid 2010 license and are reminded to check the fishing rules brochure for any restrictions and limits.

General Regional Information - Fall 2009

Horsethief is owned by the Fish and Game Department and is kept full of water throughout the year and is managed strictly as a family trout fishing water. Large numbers of catchable size rainbow trout are stocked in the spring and fall months to maintain good fishing. Brown trout fingerlings are also stocked to maintain that fishery. Brown trout fishing is good right now with many around eighteen inches.

Typically shore fishing for rainbow trout from ¾ to 5 pounds is fair to excellent in the fall. Anglers using worms will also pick up yellow perch and bullheads.

Trout anglers typically fish the beaches south of the Cascade city boat ramp all the way down to the Blue Heron Campground. Another good area is the shoreline from the main point west of Sugarloaf boat ramp north to the point closest to Sugarloaf Island. Park at the old highway that goes into the water (1/2 mile or so before you get to Sugarloaf boat ramp) and walk up over the hill to the west and fish these beaches. Other good shoreline fishing areas would include the point just out from the Boulder Creek , State Park Day Use Area and Boat Ramp and the bird refuge area on the west side of the lake a mile or so south of the Poison Creek Boat Ramp. The typical baits include marshmallows and worms, powerbait, salmon eggs, cured egg clusters, etc. Local sporting goods shops in Cascade can be great sources of information on what baits are hot that week as well as areas to try.

Sampling this summer and fall indicate good numbers of coho salmon and kokanee in Cascade this year in addition to good rainbow trout numbers. Trolling with pop gear and worms can be very productive in the fall for both trout and salmon. Tipping a triple teaser with a maggot or a kernel of white shoepeg corn is usually very productive for kokanee. Anglers need to experiment with different lures, depths and trolling speeds.

The yellow perch fishery is still in the restoration phase but things are looking really good for their return. Good catches of perch up to 13 inches have been reported this year and into the fall if you can find the schools of fish. IDFG sampling indicates that there is a very large age class of one year old fish. In fact it's the largest we've seen since the decline of the yellow perch in the mid 1990's. This large age class should be the basis of excellent perch fishing in the next three to four years!

The outlook for ice fishing this year is fair to good for yellow perch and good for trout and salmon.

Corral Creek Reservoir is still being stocked with catchable size trout in the spring.

Smallmouth Bass fishing can be very good in the fall as water temperatures cool off. However, fish usually move to deeper water (30 to 60 ft.) typically off points. Therefore heavier jigs and vertical jigging techniques are needed to find the fish. Bass tend to school up on these points so if you find fish stick with them.

Also, remember that Oxbow Reservoir has a special bass regulation of "no harvest until July 1, after July 1st the limit is two bass, none of which can be between 12 and 16 inches. Jigs with plastic grubs and tubes in smoke with red flake or smoke with green and blue flakes are the some of the more preferred colors for smallmouth bass.

Probably the most enjoyable time to fish for steelhead is in the fall. The fish are fresh from the ocean, the water is warmer so the fish are more aggressive, the fight is great and the weather is typically mild. Steelhead will actively take plugs and spoons this time of year as well as corkies w/bait . The fall 2009 hatchery steelhead run into Idaho is the largest ever recorded. Check out the IDFG website for the latest fishing reports.

There are usually a fair number of steelhead that move into the lower Little Salmon River in the fall before water temperatures get real cold. Most fish will be found below the Pollock area.