Fishing and Fireworks For The Fourth Of July

What could be more American than taking the kids, grabbing the fishing poles and heading down to the local swimming hole to catch some fish while the fireworks explode overhead? The Idaho Department of Fish and Game and Jefferson County have teamed up to make this star-spangled dream a reality for this Independence Day holiday. On July 2, Fish and Game stocked about 5,500 catchable rainbow trout in Jefferson County Lake in preparation for the three-day holiday weekend. Jefferson County Lake, known to many as Rigby Lake, is actually a gravel pit created when fill was needed for the construction of state Highway 20. Groundwater seeps in to fill the "lake" when the water is running through nearby irrigation canals. Fish and Game has never stocked the lake before, but thanks to the working relationship with the Jefferson County Commissioners, regional fishery manager Dan Garren was able to locate some catchable fish that could be planted this year. Because the lake is not natural and relies on irrigation water to fill, this fishery is intended to be purely put and take. "The conditions at the lake will make it perfect for kids to catch fish, and thanks to the collaborative efforts between the department and the county, we were able to make things happen quickly," regional fish biologist Brett High said. Just this past week Fish and Game supplied the materials to screen an outlet that spills water at high flows back into a nearby canal and county crews constructed and installed the fish screens. The stocked fish came from the Hagerman Hatchery and were available for this unscheduled stocking because late spring snows prevent hatchery trucks from reaching other sites that had been previously scheduled. While all the fish stocked were rainbow trout, as a bonus 500 of them were the fabled "banana trout." "These trout are rainbows, but they have a genetic mutation that causes them to have a yellow color," High said. Anglers shouldn't worry, the banana trout may not taste like their namesake fruit, but they are OK to eat and actually a lot easier to see in the water. "A lot the fish planted were of catchable size, mostly in the 10-inch range, but others were as large as 15 inches, and even some of the banana trout reached the 18-inch mark," High said. The cool water that enters from below ground should allow the fish to survive through the heat of summer until they can be caught, and the lack of natural foods is not a concern for fish whose planned destination is the dinner plate. "Fish can last a long time without eating," High said. Anglers heading to Jefferson County Lake are reminded that general fishing season regulations apply and that all appropriate licenses are required. Information about regulations and even purchasing fishing licenses can be done on the Idaho Fish and Game website at: http://fishandgame.idaho.gov.