Please be advised that ice conditions can change daily so please call the contact person in the area you are planning on fishing for current daily information. Also use extreme caution on the ice at all times. Good Luck Fishing from the Montana Outdoor Radio Crew.

***Bill -Rock Creek Marina 1-406-485-2560

Ice is 5-10 inches in the Back Bay. “ Still not many fishermen here.” reports Bill of Rock creek Marina.  If you come here bring your own minnows. I am not sure what is biting here right now.

***Bob-Bob’s Bait Shop 1-406- 429-2086:  Crooked Creek Fort Peck Reservoir

The catch at crooked creek has slowed down some. They are still catching Northerns, perch and crappies. The walleye have a softer bite right now so you really have to pay attention to catch them. The walleye bite is really slow. Fishermen are using minnows but if they are going after crappie or perch they are using nightcrawlers. “ I have seen the average crappie at 3-4 with a few at 5.” He says. “The ice is 13 inches and growing in the Bay” Bob says. Flat Willow Creek from Petrolia just past the spillway is open. . Many are fishing with minnows which He has at the Bait Shop if needed. Bob says do not go to the Missouri river Channel we have had three people go through. It just is not safe!

***Bob Peterson- Tongue River Reservoir

Park Manager, Bob Peterson says not much fishing going on at tongue River Reservoir. We did have ice to 2 feet but the few fishermen who went out said it has dropped to 10 inches with the warm weather . Fishermen have told him they have caught a few perch and a few walleyes. “The fisherman who have gone out have fished hard, fished long and had poor results,” Bob said.

***Clint Thomas- Hell Creek Marina 1-406- 557-2345

Hell Creek-Fort Peck Reservoir

The ice on Hell Creek is 8 inches thick at the Bay. Walleye fishing is starting to pick up. Fishermen are catching a lot of northerns. At the tournament this weekend they saw alot of 7 to 8 pound walleye with the biggest walleye coming in at 15.8 pounds. They are also catching a lot of perch. No matter where you go on fort Peck people need to use good judgement on the ice. There are definitely places where you will go through.

***Gene Moore Lake ridge Motel 1-406-526-3597

Fort Peck Reservoir Dam/Bear Creek/Pines/

Gene Moore, of Lake Ridge says the Dry arm of McGuire Creek is fairly good fishing. McGuire and Nelson have ice 10 to 11 inches. ”. They are catching walleyes and perch on tip ups using minnows and jigs. Conditions going down to the Dam are “iffy”. There is open water at Boy Scout bay and at the State Land Access ramps. It is good fishing with nice trout being caught. I suggest people call first to find out condition with the temperatures changing.

***West Side Sports –Dan 1-406-654-1611

Dan at West Side Sports tells us.” There is fishing at Nelson. Ice is 12 to 18 inches depending on the area,” he says. Northerns and perch fishing is still good. Walleye fishing is slow. People are using live minnows a lot. He suggests not taking pickups on the ice.  On Fourchette Bay the ice conditions are not too bad. Ice is 10-12 inches in the Bay. “The farther out you go it gets thinner.” Dan says.

***Canyon Ferry Silos Marina Sharon 266-3100

Ice at the Silos is 13 to 14 inches. There is a new pressure ridge on the North South direction to the center of the lake. Fishing is slower than last week. Perch fishing is good. We are seeing a lot of fishermen trying to catch but it is either “feast or famine”.  We will show you on the map where not to go as conditions are constantly changing as the temperatures changes.” Generally the ice is fine but come in and we will share with you what we know” Sharon said. People have to be smart when going on ice.

***Lake Elmo Billings

This past week because of warm temperatures the ice on Lake Elmo is 3 ½ inches for ice fishing. They have seen very few fishermen but some have caught a couple fish. Be careful by the peer area and under it as it is precarious.

***Cooney

“Ice is a bit thicker. It is at one foot on North and South Shore at the point by the boat ramp” Nick says. He checked 25 fishermen and saw only one fish, It was a nice rainbow 2-3 pounds. So the fishing is definitely slow. Most are using an imitation crawdaddy body. The Willow Creek arm , RL Creek campground and fisherman’s point are still good. The ice is thinning especially close to shore in some places. At this point it is still strongly discouraged to use vehicles on ice because of fluctuating temperatures.

***Deadmans and Martinsdale

Fishing has been good at Deadmans. It has been slower on the East side towards the boat ramp. That ice is better because it has been ice longer. It never melted. They are using 4 wheelers and the ice is 8 to 12 inches thick. They are using a worm with some kind of color and catching mostly rainbows.

Martinsdale is fishing better. There is open water on the West end. There is just not a lot of ice there. The boat ramp to the Dam is iced over with harder ice. The ice is 8 to 12 inches thick. The last fishermen checked limited out on rainbows.