Jamestown Sun
March 1, 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. Watch for fish houses icing in from water with warmer daytime temperatures.
Saturday: Ransom County Pheasants Forever (PF) banquet, Lisbon Eagles, 6 p.m.
March 8: James Valley PF banquet, Jamestown Eagles, 6 p.m.
March 9: Spring crow season opens.
March 9: Lonetree Rocky Mtn. Elk Foundation banquet, Harvey.
March 9: Snowshoes and snowy owls program, Sullys Hill Nat’l. Game Preserve, Devils Lake. Call (701) 766-4272 for information.
Fishing
Devils Lake elevation, Feb. 27: 1,451.43 feet above mean sea level (MSL).
Stump Lake elevation, Feb. 27: 1,451.45 MSL.
Lake Sakakawea elevation, Feb. 27: 1,827.6 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. More anglers are on the ice and better success with more stable weather recently. Try 10 to 16 feet with jigs or hook-and-bobber tipped with minnows or wax worms for perch and walleye. Activity is on area lakes throughout Richland and Sargent counties with Dickey, McIntosh, and Logan county lakes producing as good of pike success as anytime throughout the winter. Try 8 to 12 feet and even shallower on small sloughs using tip-ups with smelt, hot dogs or anything else to experiment. Better access and success in Barnes County is coming on Moon and Hobart lakes. Look for more activity with continuing good weather. Try late afternoon just before dusk with bright jigs and minnows or wax worms. Cass and Traill county lakes continue producing occasional pike, walleye, and perch but overall success there is slower. Try 15 to 20 feet with dead sticks and minnow heads just an inch off the bottom for small perch. Fair pike success on Lake Sakakawea for both spearing and hook-and-line. Hit-and-miss walleye success. Missouri River slow and those walleye taken from the wing walls are small and thin. Lake Audubon fair at best.
Devils Lake, Ed’s Bait & Tackle, Devils Lake: Overall walleye and perch success slowed on Devils Lake with scattered success. Anglers are marking fish but the bite is slower. Try 38 to 42 feet in Black Tiger Bay or East Devils Lake. Locate structure in 10 to 25 feet walleye.
Devils Lake, Lakeview Lodge, Devils Lake: Anglers are finding good numbers of perch on sunny days so look for good walleye and perch success with good stable weather.
Devils Lake, West Bay Resort, Minnewaukan: Fair to good pike success. Walleye and perch spotty. Look for more consistent success with stable weather.
Devils Lake, Woodland Resort, Creel Bay, Devils Lake: Perch remain tight-lipped, although anglers are marking fish. Try early morning or late afternoon for walleye. Continued pike success. Work the traditional areas for all species, although access is limited when going off-trail.
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: Continued activity but success slowed slightly with limited reports.
Lake Ashtabula, Bayshore, Valley City: Access remains poor, although anglers are getting on in some areas. Better success seems farther north toward the midsection of the lake for walleye.
Lake Sakakawea, Cenex Bait & Tackle, Garrison: Lake Sakakawea fair but move around to different bays to locate active walleye. Lake Audubon fair but spotty for walleye. Move around and try shallow water in 4- to 5-feet in low light early morning and late evening hours. No Missouri River reports.
Lonetree WMA area lakes, Harvey: Coal Mine Lake continues producing pike. Hurdsfield Lake fair to good for perch and walleye. Goose Lake fair for pike, perch, and walleye. Antelope Lake fair for perch and walleye. Little activity on Harvey Dam.
Missouri River, Dakota Tackle, Bismarck: Some pike spearing activity on Lake Etta and Alkaline Lake. Stink Lake near Crystal Springs producing perch. Lots of activity on Rice Lake. Access Sibley Lake from the section line. Lake Audubon still has walleye activity.
Pipestem Reservoir, Pioneer Bait Shop, Jamestown: Good crappie success at night.
Pipestem Reservoir, Sooper Stop, Jamestown: Continued activity but success slowed slightly with limited reports.
Red River, River Keepers, Fargo: Limited activity.
Spiritwood Lake, Pioneer Bait Shop, Jamestown: Light activity.
Spiritwood Lake, Sooper Stop, Jamestown: Little activity.
Snowmobile
North Dakota
Sheyenne Valley (Barnes, Dickey, LaMoure, Ransom, & Stutsman counties): 2- to 4- inch base but open trails are in poor condition. Trails M-1 and McKinnes trails remain 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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