Hagerman opener fruitful for fishermen

JEROME - Anglers fishing the Hagerman Wildlife Management Area opening day had a hard time keeping the rainbow trout and sturgeon off their hooks. "It was a pretty amazing day of fishing," said Rob Ryan, Magic Valley Fish and Game Regional Fisheries Biologist. "We interviewed 131 anglers, which caught 902 rainbow trout. That averages out to about 2.75 fish and hour. These figures include a large number of rainbow trout that were caught and released." "We also contacted 13 anglers that indicated sturgeon were their primary target," he said. "They caught 16 sturgeon, with a catch rate of 0.5 fish per hour. All in all it was a great day of fishing." Fishing for sturgeon in Idaho is catch-and-release only and the fish can not be removed from the water. Along with the great fishing at the Hagerman Wildlife Management Area, anglers have also found great success at Crystal Lake, Emerald Lake, and Salmon Falls Creek Reservoir. "We have been stocking a lot of fish over the past few months," said Doug Megargle, Magic Valley Fish and Game Regional Fisheries Manager. "Private hatcheries have donated thousands of trout, which have been stocked into Crystal Lake and Emerald Lake. As for Salmon Fall Reservoir, fishing has been tremendous there for the past year." Over the past few months, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and the private hatcheries have stocked nearly 30,000 fish averaging 11 to 16 inches long. Over 4,000 trout were stocked into Emerald Lake, and around 22,000 have been stocked at Crystal Lake. "With the ice nearly gone on both Emerald Lake and Salmon Falls Creek Reservoir, the fishing should continue to get better and better as it continues to warm up," Megargle said. For more information on spots to go fishing, checkout the Idaho Department of Fish and Game website http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/fish/stocking/