The transformation is complete. I have changes myself from a fisherman to an archery hunter, at least I am looking the part dressed in camo from head to toe. I have not put down my fishing rod just yet an the boat is ready to go because there is some good fishing days ahead the rest of this month. This week however is all archery hunting. I am after an elk over in Eastern Montana in Hunting District 620. As I have the past few years I am hunting with Kelly Burke from Burke Ranch Outtfitters. After weeks of preparation of getting in shape and shooting arrows at targets its game on. I know the odds are not in my favor, the last I heard archery hunters had less than a 10% chance of filling their elk tag, but for some reason I feel a little more optimistic this year. By the time this column is read by you, I will have already bagged an elk with my bow. It is my second elk taken by a bow since I began archery hunting in 2011.
As I wrote earlier my fishing gear is on stand-by for this week anyway but that doesn’t mean the fishing isn’t any good. Middle to late September is one of my favorite times of the year to head over to Holter Reservoir and stay at the lower campground above the dam. The campground is less crowded and the trout fishing is always very good. The larger rainbows are on the bite and boat anglers trolling can have a fun time reeling in these fighters. I like to troll around 2 miles per hour with a variety of lures in varying depths of water. The 9-15 feet water column over 60-90 feet of water seems to be the best depth reach the fish. Fire tiger colored syclops, Viking spoons, J-7 rapala lures in orange/white, fire-tiger , and gold/white have worked well in the past. I also have had luck with a green needle fish and Macks lure’s- walleye wobbler or cha cha tipped with a nightcrawler. I fish with downriggers so I normally put those lines down in the 9-15 foot depth and if I have another fisherman with me I long line a couple of
The 9-15 feet water column over 60-90 feet of water seems to be the best depth reach the fish. Fire tiger colored syclops, Viking spoons, J-7 rapala lures in orange/white, fire-tiger , and gold/white have worked well in the past. I also have had luck with a green needle fish and Macks lure’s- walleye wobbler or cha cha tipped with a nightcrawler. I fish with downriggers so I normally put those lines down in the 9-15 foot depth and if I have another fisherman with me I long line a couple of rapalas 85 to 110 feet in back of the boat, which I figure puts those lures in the 6-12 foot depth, if I want the long lines to run a little deeper than I will put a banana weight on the set-up ahead of the 3 feet leader. I have also fished with leaded line and find that normally 1 ½ to 2 colors is sufficient depth to get to the trout. September on Holter is also a good time to catch some walleyes and of course perch. I always make sure I have.
I have also fished with leaded line and find that normally 1 ½ to 2 colors is sufficient depth to get to the trout. September on Holter is also a good time to catch some walleyes and of course perch. I always make sure I have take nightcrawlers with me and of course my walleye gear. Normally the best time to fish for walleyes is early in the morning or early evening, if it is overcast they might be on the bite all day. The walleyes tend to be spread out a little more so hitting a few key spots is normally what I try to do. Split Rock, Cottonwood Creek, and the clay banks across from the boat loft have produced walleyes for me. Depths for walleyes in September range from 15-25 feet of water on the bottom. The perch fishing is always good and for most of the day. Just finds the schools of fish and jig’em up.
