Jamestown Sun
Dakota Recreation Report
Feb. 22, 2013
Patricia Stockdill
Outdoor Notes:
Ice is never completely safe. Avoid areas with vegetation, moving water, pressure ridges, and springs. Check with local bait shops for any ice condition information.
March 2: Ransom County Pheasants Forever (PF) banquet, Lisbon Eagles, 6 p.m.
March 8: James Valley PF banquet, Jamestown Knights of Columbus, 6 p.m.
Tournaments:
Saturday: Coldwater Lake; Lake Sakakawea, Pick City.
Sunday: Silver Lake.
March 2: Devils Lake, Minnewaukan Flats; Youth Fishing Derby, Mooreton Pond.
March 3: Lake Coe.
Fishing:
Devils Lake elevation, Feb. 20: 1,451.42 feet above mean sea level (MSL).
Stump Lake elevation, Feb. 20: 1,451.45 MSL.
Lake Sakakawea elevation, Feb. 20: 1,827.7 MSL; 23,000 cubic feet per second average (CFS) Garrison Dam daily releases.
N.D. Game & Fish Dept. Dist. game wardens: No reports from Devils Lake. Activity remains slow in Richland, Sargent, Ransom, Cass, and Traill counties with snow making access difficult. A few reports of smaller perch and panfish, however. Try wax worms or minnows on bright jigs and plain hook or bobber combination later in afternoon and early evening. Golden Lake remains good for small perch – a good lake to take kids. Try crappie minnows, wax worms or Genz worms in 8 to 10 feet. Pike are still coming off dead stick tip-ups with smelt across Barnes, LaMoure, Dickey, & McIntosh county lakes. Most are small but a few bigger pike are being speared in Stutsman and Barnes county lakes. Mixed walleye and pike success on Lake Sakakawea. Hit-and-miss success on Lake Audubon. Crooked Lake continues producing small perch and pike. Access is becoming more difficult on area lakes so be prepared in the event of getting stuck.
Devils Lake, Ed’s Bait & Tackle, Devils Lake: Try Black Tiger Bay, East Bay or East Devils Lake for perch in 35 to 45 feet. Look for walleye around the Minnewaukan Flats, Doc Hagen’s or the Casino in 10 to 20 feet6. Limited reports, however, after last weekend’s storm. Access is more difficult with more wind and snow.
Devils Lake, Lakeview Lodge, Devils Lake: Last weekend’s stormy weather limiting activity, although those anglers still going out are finding walleye with a few perch and fair to good pike success. Anglers are working harder for walleye, however.
Devils Lake, Woodland Resort, Creel Bay, Devils Lake: Last weekend’s stormy weather limiting activity, although those anglers still going out are finding walleye with a few perch and fair to good pike success. Anglers are working harder for walleye, however.
Jamestown Reservoir, Pioneer Bait Shop, Jamestown: Continued walleye and pike activity with most pike success on upper end of the reservoir. Good crappie success at night. Access becoming more difficult on the reservoir as well as small area lakes.
Jamestown Reservoir, Sooper Stop, Jamestown: Cold and snowy weather limiting activity.
Lake Ashtabula, Bayshore, Valley City: Access becoming increasingly difficult across many areas of the lake. Overall fishing activity is slow, in part because of limited access.
Lake Sakakawea, Scott’s Bait & Tackle, Pick City: Weather permitting, anglers still finding some walleye down river of the Missouri River tailrace. Try jigs and minnows. Some shore success. Wing walls remain fair for walleye. Lots of pike throughout the river. A few trout in the tailrace. Lake Sakakawea fair for pike for both hook-and-line and spearing. Try 30 feet for walleye. Overall angler numbers are light on both the river and lake.
Lonetree WMA area lakes, Harvey: Coal Mine Lake continues producing pike. Hurdsfield and Antelope lakes fair to good for perch and walleye. Goose Lake for perch, walleye, and pike. Harvey Dam has little to no activity.
Missouri River, Dakota Tackle, Bismarck: Goose Lake continues producing small perch with occasional nice-sized on. Lots of activity Rice Lake, Linton, for walleye and pike. Somewhat improving walleye and pike success on Alkaline Lake. Lake Audubon fair for walleye. Most spearing on Lake Sakakawea is around Wolf Creek. Some have been more than 15 pounds.
Pipestem Reservoir, Pioneer Bait Shop, Jamestown: Good crappie success at night.
Pipestem Reservoir, Sooper Stop, Jamestown: Limited activity.
Red River, River Keepers, Fargo: Don’t snowmobile on the Red River in the urban Fargo-Moorhead area with open water in some locations. With nearly 2 feet of snow in the area, access is difficult with limited fishing activity.
Spiritwood Lake, Pioneer Bait Shop, Jamestown: Light activity.
Spiritwood Lake, Sooper Stop, Jamestown: Not many reports.
Hunting:
Predator hunters in the sandhills areas of Ransom County through the border counties continue finding good coyote numbers.
Downhill skiing:
Bears Den Mountain, Fort Ransom: Ski area now open Saturdays and Sundays.
Frostfire Ski Area, Walhalla: All runs open with 24-inch base and nearly 6 inches new snow. Open Thursday through Sunday.
Huff Hills Ski Area, Mandan: 18- to 20-inch base with 11 runs and 2 lifts open.
N.D. Parks & Recreation Dept. cross-country ski trails:
Fort Ransom, Fort Ransom: Trails groomed and in good condition.
Grahams Island, Devils Lake: Trails open and in good condition with 14- to 16-inch base.
Icelandic, Cavalier: Several inches new snow with trails groomed and in excellent condition.
Turtle River, Arvilla: Trails open and in good condition with 4- to 6-inch base.
Snowmobile North Dakota:
East Central Valley (Cass & Richland counties): 4- to 28-inch base with all trails except Rural Cass North open and groomed.
Lake Region (Nelson & Ramsey counties): 4- to 6-inch base with all trails except Trail 4 open.
North-central (Benson, McHenry, Pierce, Ramsey, & Towner counties): 3- to 6-inch base with all trails open.
Red River South (Grand Forks & Walsh counties): 3- to 5-inch base with all trails open and groomed.
Sargent( Richland & Sargent counties): 3- to 5-inch base with all trails open and groomed.
Sheyenne Valley (Barnes, Dickey, LaMoure, Ransom, & Stutsman counties): 2- to 4- inch base but open trails are in poor condition. J-2, J-3, V-3, O-2, M-1, M-2, & McKinnes trails remain closed.
Sno-Trails (Bottineau, McHenry, Renville, & Ward counties): 6- to 8-inch base with all trails except Glenburn and Surrey open and groomed.
Southern Valley (Richland): 4- to 6-inch base with all trails open and groomed. Mayville-Portland, Cattail, & Missouri Valley trails closed.
Numbers to know:
N.D. Game & Fish Department, main Bismarck office: 328-6300; website: (http://gf.nd.gov).
N.D. Game & Fish Department, Jamestown office: 253-6480.
RAP, Report All Poachers: (800) 472-2121.
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Bismarck, website: (www.fws.gov/northdakotafieldoffice).
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