Has anyone fished the Snake River in Idaho Falls? Just wondering how the fishing was around that area. Pineviewfisher
Suggest you post this on the Idaho forum.
Might get a little more info there. he he thanks kent pineviewfisher
Read my S Fork report. From Swan Valley, not ID Falls, but it should give you an idea of what’s up.
It’s on the UT board.
I was born in IF and still have relatives in the area. I fished it all the time as a kid, and go back whenever I can. The river has changed, with all of the development along the banks, but there is still some good fishing to be had right in town…if you are stuck there and can’t go elsewhere.
The river is full of chubs, suckers and whitefish. But, also lots of rainbows and a few cutts and browns. Bouncing a piece of worm down the current with a sinker above a plain hook will catch everything. Using a grasshopper during the summer will increase the odds of catching trout.
Not much fly fishing water within city limits, but there is a low diversion dam upstream of the city that has some long shallow rocky bottom that sometimes produces decent hatches.
Most of the river is deep and heavy flow. Fishing Rapalas or spinners can be good. But, tossing 1/4 oz. black marabou jigs can be outrageous. There are some big cutts and browns in the deep runs and holes.
On one of my last trips, I was watching some kids fishing right below where one of the “falls” comes over the ledge into a hole. They were pulling whitefish and chubs out as soon as they dropped in, and they hooked a monster rainbow that broke them off when they tried to hoist it out like they did the other fish.
It takes some driving and looking to find the access points and some experimenting to find the best bait or lure for the day, but there is definitely some underutilized fishing in the Snake River in Idaho Falls.
Unfortunatly I have never been able to fish the Snake, but have a very good friend that does so on a regular basis, for Smallmouth Bass. It is virtually untaped and you can catch 50 to 100 fish a day. He uses brown and green tubes on 3/16th -5/16th jig heads, with 1/4 being the most common. Get in a run, cast upstream and work it down like you would for trout. Use 6-8lb test line on a 6-61/2 ft. Med action spin rod. If I were going to set someone up, I would have them take a dozen each of Brown Pepper tubes, Avocado tubes, and Smoke/Chartruse w/ red flake tubes. A dzn of 1/4 oz. jig hds, and 1/2 dzn 3/16th and 5/16th hds. That should last you a couple of days. You will loose a lot of jigs till you learn the difference between the bottom and the fish. If the run is extra fast or deep, use the bigger jig, if slower or shallow, use the lighter. The 1/4 oz. will work for most situations whenthe water is 2-4 ft deep, moderate flow.
ENJOY !!
I moved to Blackfoot last year from Roy. I fell in love with the Snake and know all the access points below IF and most of the spots on the south fork. If you just want trout I would recommend up on the south fork above Heice. Mostly cutthroat but liberal limits on cutbows and rainbows. But the main Snake is also awesome. But you mite catch more suckers than trout. You could also catch a 20 lb. Brown or a 10 lb. Rainbow. We use minnows or worm and corn. Left over egg row from stillhead fishing is great. Yes, corn is legal here in ID. I am retired at a young 55 and can always find time to fish if you or any Big Fish members are up this way. I have a 20 ft. pontoon fishing lounge boat with downrigers.
Randy Thompsen
Wellhello Randy, glad to have you abord and glad to see you still checking out the UT board even though you have moved to ID.
I am just discovering the South Fork, I guided the Hells Canyon section and Sturgon fish near Hagerman, but I had not fished the south fork until this weekend. I have found trout nirvana.
Do you know anything about Palisades Res.? I looked it over while I was in Paridise this weekend and it looks to be a pretty good size lake. With all the trout in the upper snake I imagine it is good fishing, do you know how it is?
I have my drift boat in storage on the south fork, maybe we can swap a trip. One day drifting the river and one day on your boat on a lake.
Unfortunatly I have never been able to fish the Snake, but have a very good friend that does so on a regular basis, for Smallmouth Bass. It is virtually untaped and you can catch 50 to 100 fish a day. I have only extensively fished one section of The Snake River, but in the area that I have fished it one could easily catch multiples of the quantities that you listed in a day of fishing for smallmouth bass.
Troll, if you need info on the South Fork, Snake or Palisades, check out the Idaho or Wyoming boards, there are always guys with reports from those waters.
Troll,
I am heading to Palasades today for the weekend. I will be camping on the East side across the dam by Bear Creek. You are welcome to come up. I am planing to look for gold tomorrow and fish Friday and Saturday and Sunday morning.
I have a lifetime license for Utah so I get back there and fish and hunt both. My favorite fishing place in the world is Utah Lake and those cats. With Willard and Starvation and walleye and wipers a close 2nd and 3rd.
I don’t fly fish much but would love to float with you if I can spin fish.
Lets plan a day of trolling and a day of floating. I would also love to try Sturgeon.
I can fit your schedule anytime you want.
Randy
Spin fish? Randy, just so you know, while I did have a flyrod at the ready at all times, the majority of the time was spent with my spinning rod in hand with 3 split shot, a #10 hook and 1/2 a night crawler.
I caught 2 fish on the flyrod, the other 30 or so over the 2 days were caught on crawlers. I’m no purist, I fish with what is working best. We started my son out with 1/2 crawler 10’ below a slip bobber.
As for this weekend, Not for me. I am a not yet retired self employed fisher and my time off is un predictable, sporadic, or planed well in advance. Thankfully, it is early yet and Fall fishing is the best anyway.
Sturgeon are a hoot! Dinosaur fishing! I am just learning, but it’s not that hard once you learn the spots.
Coming from a gal that Does fish the Snake around Shelly/ Idaho Falls area, while I do target the Carp…I do hook some MONSTER browns and this year a 19" Bronzeback. I do catch allot of white fish up by Island Park but not as many down in the IF area. But when I do, they too are HUGE.
But, I am a fly flinger.
Buy some of these for the snake (countdown/sinking)
Thems some good size flies, and triple hooks…thems kewl 
That allot of debarbing 
I did not see one stone fly carcass, not one.
Better fling a garden hackle.
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I had the privelege of living in Mt. Home for a while and I really love the people and the fishing there. The crappie fishing was great as well as the perch which sometimes exceeded 15", the rainbows were extremely healthy and rarely under 16", and the smallmouth were extremely abundant and agressive, though I caught the largest ones in the reservoir and not in the river. Never caught a brown there but I heard a few stories. I got labeled for my pan fishing abilities and sturgeon fishermen started to look for me when they were out of bait. Eventually, I was taken out for a day of sturgeon fishing and had a great time. I still have the biggest of two that I caught on my camera phone and he was 6’ long. It was an incredible fight and I actually wondered if I was going to get yanked out of the boat by this behemoth. What a cool place to fish!