More Reservoirs Opened for Salvage

[duksnfish]

Even though I cant get out fishing any longer due to my Pulmonary Fibrosis, I keep in close review of what is going on to some of our best fishing areas. I just saw this morning that ALL of the Consolidated Canal Company reservoirs near Preston are now going to be opened to salvage fishing. A couple of these reservoirs are and have been HOT for slabs, gills and not to mention trophy size Large mouth Bass. But now, F&G is once again bowing to the wants and needs of the Consolidated Canal Company. For years there have been many uproars between the public, F&G, and the canal company. All started years ago over the boating fees (I was involved in that one and we lost) and now, F&G over many years has established probably one of the best crappie, blue gill and large mouth bass fisheries in East Idaho. But now, due to the canal company draining the reservoirs, we are going to loose one h***l of a fishery. And now how long is it going to take to get at least Glendale back to a reasonable fishery that has good trophy size LM Bass and pan fishery?

I think it's time now for the F&G and the public to really rethink the fishery that is put back into the several reservoirs owned by Consolidated Canal Company. The public and F&G are at the beckon wants and desires of the canal company and we, the public and F&G always loose because of the private ownership of several reservoirs. 

The article I just read said that Glendale had Walley in it. I had fished Glendale for many many years and talked to many public and F&G and never once heard of any Walley, let alone a viable Walleye fishery in that reservoir. And now with almost all of the water being drained from Glendale  they are not going to allow any motorized boats on this body of water due to the boat ramps supposedly out of commission due to low water. A lot of money goes into the facilities, fishery, and other items by F&G and it's our tax money that goes into it. Stocking of rainbows and in the past crappie has resulted in one heck of a great fishery and about anyone can catch fish there by just getting on the water. But now, when the supposed work on the reservoirs is done, what is it going to take in time, labor, and just plain money to get any one of these reservoirs back to a reasonable fishery? And will F&G do anything to re-establish the pan fishery in Glendale, Lamont, Johnson etc? These luscious fish had one heck of a great impact on the public and what they could do let alone the LM bass populations there. It was not uncommon to land trophy LM bass when not even trying out of Glendale and now, that is most likely going to be gone. Sad but true.

So, what does the public want as far as a decent fishery out of the reservoirs owned by Consolidated Canal Company and what they will let F&G and the public due once almost all of the fish are going to be gone and gone soon?

I for one think it's time to put some really hard pressure on F&G to either stop planting trout into these reservoirs and I have no idea about restocking at least Glendale with LM bass, crappie, blue gill, perch and other awesome fish. And remember folks, when the water is gone this summer and the fish are gone, dont even try to ice fish there this winter. Draining these reservoirs are going to have a much larger impact on the fisheries around Preston than one thinks. The impact on the $$$$$$ spent in and around Preston by folkls fishing these reservoirs is going to have a much larger impact that what anyone thinks. But, we, the public, are going to loose and loose big time and I dont think I will ever see the fishery in at least Glendale back to what it has been in my lifetime anytime soon. And I'm 71 so what is going to happen? We dont know, but, the work etc it has taken to put all of these reservoirs into what they were, I'm not sure it will ever come back anytime soon to what it has been.

Here is the link to the article that I just read. Read it and weep  because it's gone and gone for one long time.

https://idfg.idaho.gov/article/fish-salv...%2C%202025.

And here is what I ued to catch in Glendale on slabs.

[wiperhunter2]

Well that is some  news there. It sure looks like your catches in years gone by were of some great fish. Thanks for the update.

[meancuznalfy]

Dam, that's too bad, be awhile before they are going to be fishable. Also Mackay reservoir will be drained and a salvage order for it also.

[duksnfish]

Thanks for the comments, but, once again I just read this morning (8-29-25) that F&G is now putting Macky reservoir on their list of salvage operations. I'm tellin ya folks, if something doesn't change in how and what F&G is doing on waters managed or owned by these canal companies, we're gonna loose every bit of our fishing that we as sportsmen and women have worked so hard to get to. Macky has been one of the last quietly fishable Kokanee fisheries around. I think a lot of ppl fish there and dont say a whole bunch about it, but they have done well in the past from what I have heard. And now, its going to be down the drain for one of our last Koke fisheries in all of East Idaho.

When is it going to stop? Anyone have an answer? I dont F&G has one because they just keep allowing canal companies to dictate how, when, where the public can fish at all and they allow the canal companies to put already stressed financial restrictions on something that the public has no control over. 

I've actually lost track over how many reservoirs this year are under salvation orders but I know that there are at least 8 or 9 that I can think of. And everyone of them are awesome fisheries with a huge history of managing for trophy type fish. But now, it's down to a fight between F&G, public, land owners and their livelihoods, and who gets to control who.

Just think of all lof the public money that literally is going down the tubes this year with the dry water year all the way around. Can this continue for the sportsmen and women of Idaho and a fight with canal companies to keep land and crop owners going with their harvests? 

I dont know how much money F&G has put into planting fish on a yearly basis for eveyone of the reservoirs on salvation orders, but, I do know that with Kokes, the past couple of years made everyone scratch their heads as to what happened to that fishery statewide. And now, it's open season with them and in most cases where kokes are located, some of those fisheries were just starting a comeback and now, they are going away due to matters not under their command, but, at the beckon whim of these Canal companies Statewide.

It's becoming a no win situation for fish in this state and a no win situation for the public who use these fisheries and who put one heck of a lot of money into a program that just because water is in such demand that no one but the land owner really benefits. The public sure isnt winning this war and it's gonna be a long time before we do.

I'm not sure what the answer is, but if someone has any ideas, I'd love to hear them as well as I bet other folks would like to hear as well as the Idaho Fish and Game. They are caught in the middle on all of this, but, even though they have put thousands of tax dollars into trying to maintain a program for the public, they loose because of the demand for water for crops vs demand for public enjoyment.

Here's the link I saw on Macky the morning:

https://idfg.idaho.gov/article/salvage-o...-reservoir

[meancuznalfy]

The koke fishing hasn't been good up there since they drained it a couple of years ago, perch in Magic are non-existent since they drained it, I agree our tax dollars are being wasted on ruining most all the fisheries in the southern part of the state

[MMDon]

Not much can be done. The money spent by the F&G is just basically month to month rent for fishermen using waters that don't now and never did belong to us. Those lakes are owned by the concerns such as farmers who paid to build the dams. While I feel bad as an end user, I understand that we are, as fishermen, secondary users are just lucky to have the lakes to fish that we do.

[duksnfish]

Not much can be done. The money spent by the F&G is just basically month to month rent for fishermen using waters that don't now and never did belong to us. Those lakes are owned by the concerns such as farmers who paid to build the dams. While I feel bad as an end user, I understand that we are, as fishermen, secondary users are just lucky to have the lakes to fish that we do.

I agree MMDon, but, how long and for what cause can F&G keep dumping untold amount of public dollars into these systems knowing full well and good that at some point the waters that are being populated with fish that the public pays for are going to be dried up and the fish die? Ya, I just read an article that said that the decisions made by the F&G fisheries managers ultimately are the best decisions that can be made. But, at cost? F&G is always complaining about not having enough money to fund even the simplest of items and finding funding to keep the hatcheries going yet, this salvage fishing happens almost every year now days.

I know, as you state, and many others know that we are just an end user that gets to use (and not all the time) these waters that are owned by others (canal companies) and we are at the beckon whim of the owners of these waters. Good, bad or ugly, but, I think we recognize that but what do we do and what can F&G do to minimize the overall impact of these salvage operations? Especially when you take a look at the restrictions and rules of use implemented on most all of the waters in South East Idaho in and around the Preston area? I've said it before, and I really think it's time to put a little more economic emphasis on what fishing impact has on the local economy.

I argued this point many years ago when we were trying to minimize the impacts from restrictions being put on the reservoirs owned by the Consolidated Canal Company but Preston and Franklin County just didnt grab the point and run, but, with the number of out of staters using the waters there, it was determined that there was a significant economic benefit to the waters owned and operated by the canal companies. But, that push died and died hard because we just couldn't get anyone to stand behind that push that had any pull.

But, I'll get off my soap box now and let's just see how long and what kind of impact the salvage fishing that's taking place this year, how long it takes to get back to what the fishing was like just prior to this years operations.

[MMDon]

Not much can be done. The money spent by the F&G is just basically month to month rent for fishermen using waters that don't now and never did belong to us. Those lakes are owned by the concerns such as farmers who paid to build the dams. While I feel bad as an end user, I understand that we are, as fishermen, secondary users are just lucky to have the lakes to fish that we do.

I agree MMDon, but, how long and for what cause can F&G keep dumping untold amount of public dollars into these systems knowing full well and good that at some point the waters that are being populated with fish that the public pays for are going to be dried up and the fish die? Ya, I just read an article that said that the decisions made by the F&G fisheries managers ultimately are the best decisions that can be made. But, at cost? F&G is always complaining about not having enough money to fund even the simplest of items and finding funding to keep the hatcheries going yet, this salvage fishing happens almost every year now days.

I know, as you state, and many others know that we are just an end user that gets to use (and not all the time) these waters that are owned by others (canal companies) and we are at the beckon whim of the owners of these waters. Good, bad or ugly, but, I think we recognize that but what do we do and what can F&G do to minimize the overall impact of these salvage operations? Especially when you take a look at the restrictions and rules of use implemented on most all of the waters in South East Idaho in and around the Preston area? I've said it before, and I really think it's time to put a little more economic emphasis on what fishing impact has on the local economy.

I argued this point many years ago when we were trying to minimize the impacts from restrictions being put on the reservoirs owned by the Consolidated Canal Company but Preston and Franklin County just didnt grab the point and run, but, with the number of out of staters using the waters there, it was determined that there was a significant economic benefit to the waters owned and operated by the canal companies. But, that push died and died hard because we just couldn't get anyone to stand behind that push that had any pull.

But, I'll get off my soap box now and let's just see how long and what kind of impact the salvage fishing that's taking place this year, how long it takes to get back to what the fishing was like just prior to this years operations.

I've lost some of those big battles myself. Do yle Be ck in IF lost the first round as he had diverted the Snake River through his private housing tract for boat docks and then sued us for trespassing while ice fishing and accessing the water from the ice using a public boat dock on what could only be navigable water as you could float a log in and out and the water was actually federal. Since he was chairman of the Republican State Commi tee, guess how that eventually worked out even though it broke state and federal law.