Bitterroot bass

[AlaskaHunter]

Smallies are awesome fish. Far smarter and better fighting than largemouth. That being said, this is no place for smallies.

Lot of smallmouth bass to the north in the Flathead River below the Flathead Lake Dam.

 

[seeth07]

Classic American fish eating German trout.

I didn't want to say anything because I knew it would rub some people the wrong way but you are absolutely correct in that just about all the trout people are chasing in western streams are not native to them!

 

[westbranch]

I didn't want to say anything because I knew it would rub some people the wrong way but you are absolutely correct in that just about all the trout people are chasing in western streams are not native to them!

Those areas are also be tailwaters, so the dams have a big impact on the size of the trout.

Don't get me wrong, I would love to fish them. Was talking to someone recently that has a cabin on the river there about doing a trip next summer.

 

[Hem]

My opinion..trout are impacted more by over- fishing than by questionable competition.

 

[Flatbrimmer]

My opinion..trout are impacted more by over- fishing than by questionable competition.

Maybe so, but adding aggressive predatory species like bass and pike are detrimental

 

[Hunter4Life78]

Lot of smallmouth bass to the north in the Flathead River below the Flathead Lake Dam.

Yes there are.

 

[ismith]

Smallmouths in Canyon Ferry too per FW&P.

 

[Southern Elk]

I have a strong disdain for bass and do not understand the appeal of bass fishing. It feels like a passion chiefly belonging to easterners to me. Maybe it was the Saturday Morning fishing shows I grew up watching. It's a damn shame, and I wonder if there is anything to be done.

Many likely won't agree, but I think bass fishing is more fun than trout fishing. I did, however grow up bass fishing. I have grown to have somewhat of a disdain for trout fishing, as I think that it and skiing are the two main drivers of overcrowding and overpricing of the mountain west. That said, I don't want bass in trout streams.

 

[mtmuley]

My opinion..trout are impacted more by over- fishing than by questionable competition.

The Root gets hammered hard by guides. Kinda sad. mtmuley

 

[Hem]

Maybe so, but adding aggressive predatory species like bass and pike are detrimental

Since the ONE bass was caught up by Gardiner I haven't heard of another.
Pike have shown up in the Bitterroot, Jefferson, Bighorn, Gallatin on occasion in previous decades. No indication of the species taking hold.
And what can be done, other than futile attempts to purge by shocking, or a bounty?
Current declining trout populations is more directly associated with warmer water temps, ( read, climate change/decreased water flows from irrigation), lost spawning habitat, and IMO over-fishing.

 

[LuketheDog]

@Nameless Range - any 18" smallie on a fly is every bit TWICE the game fish a similar sized trout is. They're fun, stupid and bite often.

And they make excellent fish tacos. Kill 'em all in the Bitterroot.

FIFY

 

[Irrelevant]

Since the ONE bass was caught up by Gardiner I haven't heard of another.
Pike have shown up in the Bitterroot, Jefferson, Bighorn, Gallatin on occasion in previous decades. No indication of the species taking hold.

We sorta have that going on too. They're in the Columbia but I've never seen or heard of one caught up any of the tribs.

IMO over-fishing.

Yep, I appreciate seeing other fellow anglers acknowledge this.

 

[Nameless Range]

Since the ONE bass was caught up by Gardiner I haven't heard of another.
Pike have shown up in the Bitterroot, Jefferson, Bighorn, Gallatin on occasion in previous decades. No indication of the species taking hold.
And what can be done, other than futile attempts to purge by shocking, or a bounty?
Current declining trout populations is more directly associated with warmer water temps, ( read, climate change/decreased water flows from irrigation), lost spawning habitat, and IMO over-fishing.

Pike have absolutely taken hold in the Bitterroot.

I agree that the reasons for Montana’s recent precipitous decline in our western River fisheries has way more to do with lack of water and warm water and ridiculous amounts of use than anything. Still no bueno to have another thing that piles on to the few remaining native fish( I’m not talking about browns and bows).

For a long time I have felt that the folks pushing for minimum streamflow legislation were unreasonable, but the longer this goes on the more amenable I am to that incredibly unlikely nuclear option.

 

[seeth07]

Once Montana FWP decides that native Cutts and Bulls are the most important thing about the Bitterroot and attempt to completely eliminate the bows and browns (the native fish's worst enemy) I'll myself consider the Smallies a real threat.

 

[seeth07]

There are just so few places left compared to where those two native species used to live...but no, we care about the tourism and peoples ability to chase huge bows and browns too much!

 

[Ben Lamb]

I didn't want to say anything because I knew it would rub some people the wrong way but you are absolutely correct in that just about all the trout people are chasing in western streams are not native to them!

Except the Root is a westslope cutthroat & bull trout fishery as well. Those are nboth native, and the bull trout is listed as threatened.

While I get the sentiment that those advocating for rainbows, browns and brookies are standing up for non-natives, there's also a much bigger issue at play relative to the ecology of these rivers. Low temps, increased stress for trout and more favorable conditions for smallies will have an effect on other systems as waters warm and become degraded.

The fight to preserve coldwater fisheries is far, far more than making sure a big rainbow takes your poorly presented skwala.

 

[seeth07]

Except the Root is a westslope cutthroat & bull trout fishery as well. Those are nboth native, and the bull trout is listed as threatened.

While I get the sentiment that those advocating for rainbows, browns and brookies are standing up for non-natives, there's also a much bigger issue at play relative to the ecology of these rivers. Low temps, increased stress for trout and more favorable conditions for smallies will have an effect on other systems as waters warm and become degraded.

The fight to preserve coldwater fisheries is far, far more than making sure a big rainbow takes your poorly presented skwala.

I'm just curious, are you involved with anything trout related where you live now in MI? I get a little heated about bows and browns being from WI where a world class Brookie fishing naturally exists that has just been absolutely devastated by those two non native trout and a lot of people around here support the bow/browns because they are bigger and more fun to fight and catch. I think most just don't know what it used to be here.

As a very young kid my great uncle used to take me a spring fed lake and creek with natural brook trout still in it. There are photos of us holding up 5lb brookies, something truly special. He also had one mounted from back in the 70's I think that has to be in the 7-8lb range. I think the state record is near 10lb. I've tried a few times over the last decade and can't even catch one over 14 inches.

 

[Flatbrimmer]

Since the ONE bass was caught up by Gardiner I haven't heard of another.
Pike have shown up in the Bitterroot, Jefferson, Bighorn, Gallatin on occasion in previous decades. No indication of the species taking hold.
And what can be done, other than futile attempts to purge by shocking, or a bounty?
Current declining trout populations is more directly associated with warmer water temps, ( read, climate change/decreased water flows from irrigation), lost spawning habitat, and IMO over-fishing.

No doubt, I can’t argue that partner.

 

[Ben Lamb]

I'm just curious, are you involved with anything trout related where you live now in MI? I get a little heated about bows and browns being from WI where a world class Brookie fishing naturally exists that has just been absolutely devastated by those two non native trout and a lot of people around here support the bow/browns because they are bigger and more fun to fight and catch. I think most just don't know what it used to be here.

As a very young kid my great uncle used to take me a spring fed lake and creek with natural brook trout still in it. There are photos of us holding up 5lb brookies, something truly special. He also had one mounted from back in the 70's I think that has to be in the 7-8lb range. I think the state record is near 10lb. I've tried a few times over the last decade and can't even catch one over 14 inches.

Not really, I'm still learning the scene here, quite frankly. MI is an amazing place for anglers but it's pretty darned complicated between the cold water and warm water aspects, consent decrees with tribes, etc. For now, it's a lot of reading and supporting groups like MUCC.

I think you can tear yourself apart trying to justify why you like to fish for whatever species, but for me it always comes down to water quality, especially for trout - because that means healthy, functioning ecosystems for so many other species, terrestrial and aquatic. Previous generations made big mistakes across the board on a host of wildlife issues. Brookies in the west, browns in the east, etc.

 

[Dougfirtree]

The fight to preserve coldwater fisheries is far, far more than making sure a big rainbow takes your poorly presented skwala.