Lake Superior whitefish fishing reports are starting to trickle in. The annual bite usually starts this time of the year on Flathead Lake.
Anglers look forward to the jig method of fishing for these tasty fish. And you can catch a bunch of them when the bite is hot.
Don Peters and his wife Nikki from Florence had a degree of success fishing for the whitefish recently. “The bite went on at 11:30 a.m. and only lasted or about a half an hour,” said Peters. Before that they were catching perch.
The whitefish seem to stay in a little deeper water than the perch. Then, when the whitefish go on the bite, they move in to depths closer to the perch.
Whitefish normally are in depths ranging from 35-55 feet of water. You need to find them first, then anchor down and give it a try. I recommend a LMR baited with maggots or a Kastmaster or Rattle D Zastor tipped with maggots.
Flathead Lake lake trout fishing is still doing well. Dick Zimmer, from Pablo, reports that he fished recently at Rock Point using a jig-fly combination.
“Sometimes we had two fish on at the same time,” said Zimmer. “We used a pink LMR baited with maggots most of the day and we fished in depths that ranged from 205-235 feet.”
The annual Mack Attack tournament will take place August 7-8 on Flathead Lake. The tourney is headquartered out of Del’s Bar in Somers. Call 857-3351 for more information or to enter.
Last year, nearly 500 anglers took part the two-day event.
Bass have been attacking rubber baits in Pablo Reservoir. Early morning and evening fishing have given anglers success with bass up to five pounds being caught. Anglers have also been doing well fishing for bass in Ninepipes and Kicking Horse reservoirs, according to Zimmer.
River fishing has been spotty at Rock Creek for the past few days, according to Doug Persico from Rock Creek Fisherman’s Mercantile. Grasshoppers are starting to become the fly of choice. There is still a lot of caddis flies out in the evenings, however, and nymph fishing is also very good at times.
“There are still a few Pale Morning Duns out in the mornings and the fish will take them, though not as readily as they did just a week ago,” said Persico. “When the sun warms things up, the hoppers start to move and the fish seem to take any hopper that lands within their reach.”
Evening fishing has seemed to be the best, and nymphing might be your best bet at that time of day. Prince, Pheasant Tail and Copper John will be your most productive patterns.
The Blackfoot River remains a haven for floaters with tubers taking over to enjoy beautiful bobbing down the waters, especially during the hot weekends.
The Lower Clark Fork River might be a good bet if you like to fly fish or use hardware. Jerod, from Western Waters at Superior, reports early morning and in the evening are your best times to fish.
