I recently had the good fortune of landing in the Idaho state record book. I was ice fishing at Grasmere on December 12 when I caught a 20-inch, 2.27-pound Lahontan cutthroat trout. It is an honor and a blessing to catch such a beautiful fish!
Lahontan cutthroat are very rare in Idaho—they are only found in a small handful of lakes, primarily in the desert mountains of Owyhee County. The Lahontan is Nevada’s state fish, and they are known to grow to enormous sizes in places like world-famous Pyramid Lake. But in Idaho, my catch nearly doubled the previous state record.
The record has made local and national headlines, and I wrote a column about the experience for the Idaho Statesman.
I’d also like to congratulate Gatlynn Mayes, who caught a state record tiger trout—another rare Idaho species—through the ice on December 16. Check out the full list of Idaho’s state record fish on the Idaho Fish & Game website. Tight lines!
Took your advice went to Grasmere Lake had a great time but didn’t have luck though (except for a few crawfish) Any bait recommendations ? We used worms and marshmallows and had it placed about 2 ft off bottom
Hi Steve. It can be a tough lake, for sure. Very technical, especially through the ice. I had a slow day there myself about a month ago, only caught two fish in five hours. The biggest thing is keeping it off the bottom to avoid the crayfish. We have found that sometimes the fish are very shallow, right under the surface. Trout-colored spoons, worms and cut bait have all been productive for me at times. It appears to be one of those places that can be very good on certain days, but generally requires more time and effort than many other fisheries.
One word to the wise–as of yesterday, the ice is breaking up and no longer fishable. A friend of mine went out and found out the hard way. So unless we get another cold snap, ice fishing is probably over until at least next winter. Hope that helps, Steve. Tight lines!