Henrys Lake Ice Fishing Gives a Glimpse to the Future

The Henrys Lake fishing season went out with a bang a couple of weeks ago, generating some lively discussion about the effects ice fishing may have had on the famed trout population. In 2006, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game extended the fishing season through November to give anglers and extra month of fishing. Though only lasting a few days, the ice-fishery was quickly discovered by anglers. The final two days of the season saw several folks enjoying some pretty spectacular catch rates and harvesting some very nice fish. Damon Keen, the department's hatchery manager at Henrys Lake, closely monitored the fishery in November and counted 124 anglers during the brief ice fishery. Most anglers harvested at least one fish, but were no instances of over limits. The total harvest was fewer than 250 fish. Was it enough to affect the population or the quality of the fishery? Jim Fredericks, regional fishery manager with Fish and Game, says no. "The number of fish harvested in November was insignificant in the big picture," Fredericks said. "During a typical year, anglers harvest around 20,000 trout, so 250 more certainly aren't going to break it." But the ice fishery was short and only beginning to be discovered when the season closed, he said. The lake typically freezes over in mid-November, but it can happen in late-October, Keen said. "If every year was like 2006, with about a week of ice fishing, it would be just perfect," Keen said. "But a full month of ice fishing would certainly bring out a lot more anglers, and we'd have problems we didn't see this year." At this point, Fredericks says the issues are more social than biological. "Trespassing and parking will likely become a problem that we need to deal with, and highly productive fisheries can certainly bring out the greed in people," he said. Fish and Game has long maintained that the harvest rates in Henrys Lake are less than 15 percent, which is very low for such a productive, fast growing population. "Over 85 percent of the fish in the lake die of old age or other natural causes, so we'd have to see a lot more effort and harvest than in 2006 to be concerned about the population," Fredericks said. Depending on when the lake ices up and how the word gets out, that just may happen, he said. "We're looking at the data, keeping open minds, and looking at various options for maintaining ice-fishing opportunity without compromising the quality of the fishery or creating access problems," Fredericks said. "This year gave us an ideal opportunity to identify what the problems may be in the future and begin thinking about how we're going to address them." In the spring of 2007, Fish and Game will be looking for public comments on ideas for the 2008-09 fishing regulations. Anglers who have thoughts and opinions on the matter should stay tuned.