Idaho's top spots for big fish; here is where the lunkers lurk

Whether you’ve been fishing a day or a lifetime, we all dream of landing a lunker. Yes, big fish capture every angler’s imagination. But why stop at dreaming? Idaho has many destinations that have produced record fish, both state and world's records, and though we can’t guarantee you’ll catch one, we can point you to some places that are capable of producing trophy-sized fish. 

This list isn’t comprehensive, but big fish of these species are commonly caught at these destinations during spring and summer, which also happens to be when many of these fishing spots are at their best.

So, without further rambling, here are where the big ones lurk. 

Rainbow trout

Lake Pend Oreille: Lake Pend Oreille is kind of a ringer for rainbows and probably produces more 20-plus pound trout than anywhere else in the state. In fact, it was such an undisputed reigning champion that Fish and Game officials split Lake Pend Oreille’s “Gerrard” rainbows into a separate classification in its state records program to allow a sliver of the spotlight to shine on other places that have regular-sized rainbows. 

The lake’s record rainbow also eclipses the state steelhead record. So yeah, if you’re looking for a pot-of-gold rainbow fishery, this is it. Now the fine print. You’re probably not going to catch one with a bobber and worm from the bank. Most of the big trout are caught while trolling from boats, so take that into consideration. 

Runner up

American Falls Reservoir: This massive reservoir consistently produces larger-than-average rainbow trout, and other large species of fish. Part of the fun is not knowing what you will catch, but knowing it could be big. 

Chinook Salmon

Clearwater River: This could lead to fisticuffs between Lewiston and Riggins because both are popular salmon fishing destinations, but it’s hard to argue against the Clearwater River. You get the fish right as they’re entering Idaho, and the Clearwater anglers consistently catch big, ocean-fresh Chinook salmon. The fishing starts in the spring and depending on the run sizes, you can have back-to-back-to-back fishing for spring, summer, and fall runs of Chinook salmon, not to mention the occasional Coho salmon as well.

Runner up 

Salmon River: You can’t overlook it. Riggins is a fishing town, and you can make a strong argument the Little Salmon River is a better opportunity for bank anglers. The Salmon River is also the mileage champ with Chinook salmon fishing waters in hundreds of miles of river that stretch from Hells Canyon to Stanley available for fishing, depending on the seasons. 

Largemouth Bass

Lake Coeur d’Alene: This is another North Idaho heavyweight that has more in common with Lake Pend Oreille than difficult spelling. The lake has excellent largemouth bass fishing with lots of fat-bellied mouth breathers looking like they were transplanted from one of those states with funny accents. To make this destination even more enticing, you also have the option of fishing one of the chain lakes above the lake if you prefer smaller water. 

Runner up 

Lake Lowell: While not known for producing monstrous-sized bass, it’s a consistent producer of good largemouth and just a short drive for nearly half the state’s population. Sensing a little Treasure Valley bias? Duly noted. Let’s move on…

Smallmouth Bass

Dworshak Reservoir: Another perennial state-record producer—and it seems it’s rarely a case of whether it will produce another record-breaker, but when? This reservoir just grows big smallmouth bass (aka, “smallies”), which is always fun to say, thanks to a steady diet of other fish, mostly young kokanee.

Runner up

Snake River: We might be fudging a little here, since the Snake River isn’t known for huge bass. But, it makes up for it by offering high catch rates and a ton of fishing opportunity, stretching from Pocatello to Lewiston. Big smallmouth are often found along the way in Snake River reservoirs including Brownlee, CJ Strike, and Lake Walcott.

Lake Trout

Payette Lake: Your grandpa may have heard stories from his grandpa about how big the lakers were in Payette Lake, and guess what? There may be fish in there as old as your grandpa there, and no surprise, they're big. We're talking potential 50 pounders. And when you consider even half that size is still a trophy fish, lake trout make a very interesting fishing opportunity. Expect to devote some time staring at a fish finder to locate them, and there's still no guarantee they will bite, but they're out there. Catching them is up to you. 

Runner up

Priest Lake: When a lake produces a 57.5 pounder (1971), you’re going to hear about it for decades. While it’s not known for the monster macs of the past, it’s still a popular laker fishery that will keep you busy with mid-sized fish, and you never know what lurks in the depths.

Cutthroat Trout 

Bear Lake: This unique lake not only has big cutthroat, it’s a big cutthroat restoration success story thanks to Fish and Game biologists and many, many partners. This sparkling, big lake straddles the Idaho/Utah border and produces salmon-sized cutthroat trout. After a major restoration project, wild, naturally spawning Bonneville cutthroat populations increased from just 5 percent of the fish population in Bear Lake to a whopping 70 percent, and allowed anglers to catch and keep wild cutthroats from the lake for the first time in more than 20 years.

Runner up

Henry’s Lake: OK, maybe a little explanation is in order. Henrys Lake has rainbows, cutthroats and hybrids. But they all grow big, so we don’t mind if you catch a big trout with a red slash on the jaw and call it a cutthroat, even if it’s technically a hybrid. Just enjoy catching a big trout. 

Kokanee salmon

Anderson Ranch Reservoir: This is the upper most of the Southwest Idaho’s affectionately named “silver triangle” of reservoirs that attract lots of kokanee anglers. The other two, Arrowrock Reservoir and Lucky Peak, can provide some good fishing as well, but Anderson Ranch has earned its reputation. Be forewarned, kokanee are very cyclical, so don’t expect big fish every year, but you have a good chance of finding some there. 

Runner up

Payette Lake: It’s really turned on in the last decade and average sizes can be pretty solid with some real beasts mixed in. 

Yellow perch

Lake Cascade: In case you haven’t heard, let us bring you up to speed. Perch virtually disappeared from Lake Cascade in the 1990s, and Fish and Game did an extensive restoration project that succeeded beyond the most optimistic biologist’s expectations. It now routinely spits out trophy-sized perch, including numerous state and world records, and it has become a national ice fishing destination. Lucky for you, the ice melts, and the big perch remain. 

Runner up

C.J. Strike Reservoir: Lots of other places have perch, but C.J. is the second-most popular perch fishery in the state, so it gets the back-up spot. 

Sturgeon

Hells Canyon: Legend has it a fisherman once prayed to God to grant him a fish so big he wouldn’t have to lie about what a big fish he caught, so God gave us sturgeon. Maybe a stretch, and ironically, the best place to catch these freshwater leviathans is in Hells Canyon. If you don’t have jetboat and some savvy whitewater skills, an outfitter is your best option. 

Runner up

C.J. Strike Reservoir: This fish factory has a good population of sturgeon, and it’s easily accessible by your average lake boat, and you can also catch them from shore right below C.J. Strike Dam. 

Channel catfish

Brownlee Reservoir: Unless you were raised on a steady diet of hush puppies, you may not be familiar with Idaho’s channel catfish. Well, they’re abundant in Brownlee Reservoir (and upstream in the Snake River), and they typically dwarf their fellow fish with two exceptions: flathead catfish, and sturgeon. Channel cats commonly run 2 to 10 pounds and some larger, but few smaller, and you can catch them by the gunny sack full. There’s no size limit or bag limit, and here’s a shocker, they’re shockingly under fished. Harvest rates on channel cats are so low that we humans may be getting outfished by otters. 

Runner up

Snake River: The only place that even comes close to Brownlee Reservoir for catfishing is the Snake River. Channel catfish are common from C.J. Strike all the way to Brownlee, and cats can be caught from the shore and from boats, especially in the spring months prior to spawning.