Dakota Recreation Report

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Outdoor notes

- Saturday: Elkhorn Ranch Tour. Meet at Theodore Roosevelt National Park visitor center, Medora, 8 a.m. MDT.

- Saturday: MULEY youth day camp, 10 a.m., Moffit Gun Range. Sponsored by the Northern Badlands Chapter of the Mule Deer Foundation. Pre-register by emailing ndchair.mdf@gmail.com.

Tournaments

- Saturday: Lake Sakakawea; Van Hook, Lake Sakakawea; Wolf Creek.

- July 20 and 21: Lake Sakakawea; Fort Stevenson State Park, North Dakota Governor’s Cup.

- July 21: Lake Sakakawea; Fort Stevenson, Junior North Dakota Governor’s Cup.

Fishing

- North Dakota Game and Fish Department District game wardens: Some crappie starting to show up on Lake Tschida along with continued small walleye success. Sheep Creek Dam fair to good for bluegill. Van Hook Arm, New Town and White Earth Bay fair to good at times for walleye on Lake Sakakawea. Look for a mix of species along the south shore. Try variety of depths depending on wind. Missouri River remains consistently good from both boat and shore. Lots of recreational boating in the Bismarck-Mandan area.

- Beulah, Dakota Waters Resort, Lake Sakakawea: Lots of walleye success. Try Beulah or Beaver bays in 12 feet and deeper.

- Bismarck, Dakota Tackle, Missouri River/area lakes: A few salmon reports from Lake Sakakawea. Try downrigging and needle squids. Try a mix of spinners and bottom bouncers with leeches or crankbaits for walleye on the lake. Missouri River tailrace remains good for walleye with best success at night. Anglers are finding some bigger walleye on the river in the Bismarck-Mandan area but most fish still remain on the small side.

- Dickinson, Andrus Outdoors, Lake Sakakawea/area lakes: Continued good walleye success on Lake Sakakawea throughout most of the lake. Move a little deeper in 7 to 15 feet using leeches or nightcrawlers with a variety of presentations. Good numbers of 20-inch fish. Van Hook Arm also producing success. Try shallow out to 9 feet with nightcrawlers. Bowman-Haley Dam fair to good for small walleye with lots of activity. Try nightcrawlers in variety of depths. Indian Creek Dam good for walleye pulling crankbaits along the weed beds. Several fish were 18 to 20 inches. Camels Hump Dam continues producing trout and bluegill. Lake Tschida remains good for small walleye using minnows or nightcrawlers. Lake Patterson continues producing some pike from shore with a few perch mixed in.

- Dickinson, Runnings Farm and Fleet, Lake Sakakawea/area lakes: Lake Sakakawea remains good for walleye throughout much of the midsection and Little Missouri Arm. Camels Hump Dam continues producing trout. Indian Creek Dam fair to good for walleye.

- Garrison, Cenex Bait and Tackle, Lake Sakakawea: Continued good walleye success on Lake Sakakawea with lots of small fish. Work shallow out to as deep as 18 feet using spinners with nightcrawlers. Lake Audubon fair to good for walleye. Missouri River continues producing small walleye.

- Garrison, Indian Hills Resort, Lake Sakakawea: Continued good walleye success. Try crankbaits or spinners and nightcrawlers with some leeches, as well, around the flats and west of the resort in 6 to 15 feet. Water is clear. Anglers are consistently seeing small fish and 20- to 24-inch fish with a gap in the mid-size range.

- Glen Ullin, Fitterer’s Inc., Lake Tschida: Continued fair to good for walleye on Lake Tschida using nightcrawlers.

- Mandaree, McKenzie Bay Marina, Lake Sakakawea: Continued good walleye success in 6 to 15 feet throughout much of the Little Missouri Arm, the big water of the main lake and in the bays. Try spinners with variety of bait, although nightcrawlers stay healthier in the heat.

- Pick City, Scott’s Bait and Tackle, Lake Sakakawea/Missouri River: Lake Sakakawea continues to be good for walleye. Try Steinke Bay, northeast corner of Mallard Island and areas along the Highway 83 embankment. Also try Douglas Bay but look for success scattered throughout the lake. Try 20 to 30 feet with Lindy rigs and nightcrawlers, plastics or spinners and bottom bouncers. Salmon starting to show up working Government Bay to Deadman’s Bay but depth fluctuates. Try using flashers and squids or herring, if available. Some salmon are 6 pounds and bigger. Continued good for pike. Try traditional pike rigs or they’re biting on walleye set-ups. Look for smallmouth bass along the face of the dam and rocky points of bays. Missouri River remains good for small walleye. Slower from shore during the day with better success later at night. Try the rocks or 4th campground loop access. Boat success continues throughout the day but best success is in the morning. Try jigs or Lindy rigs for walleye with better success coming drifting with rigs in the honey hole or chutes, coal veins and new spillway channel. Also try the cable crossing. Chutes are producing trout and salmon with a smattering of catfish. Wing walls good for catfish. Lots of pike, as well, using traditional pike tackle. Lake Audubon also producing walleye but with Lake Sakakawea so good, more anglers are fishing there and not Audubon.

- New Town, Scenic 23, Lake Sakakawea: Continued fair to good for walleye throughout the Van Hook Arm. Try spinners with nightcrawlers or crankbaits in 10 to 18 feet on windier days. Work shallower on calmer days.

- Watford City, Tobacco Garden Resort, Lake Sakakawea: Improving walleye success. Try variety of presentations in shallow water with most anglers working east of the resort. Fish are looking healthy and nice-sized.

- Williston, Scenic Sports, Lake Sakakawea and area lakes: Continued catfish and pike success on the river area around Williston. Lake Sakakawea producing walleye from Lund’s Landing over to Little Beaver Bay using spinners and nightcrawlers or crankbaits. Work shallow in the morning and 20 to 25 feet during the heat of the day.

North Dakota rivers streamflow and river stage

- Bear Den Creek, Mandaree: Creek stage, 3.6 feet; streamflow, 0.69 CFS.

- Cannonball River, Regent: River stage, 4.7 feet.

- Green River, New Hradec: River stage, 6.1 feet; streamflow, 0.92 CFS.

- Heart River, Richardton: River stage, 4.97 feet; streamflow, 19 CFS.

- Knife River, Manning: River stage, 6.17 feet; streamflow, 1.5 CFS.

- Little Missouri River, Marmath: River stage, 2.42 feet; streamflow, 151 CFS.

- Little Missouri River, Medora: River stage, 2.16 feet; streamflow, 68 CFS.

- Little Missouri River, Trotters: River stage, 1.88 feet; streamflow, 4.1 CFS.

- Missouri River, Williston: River stage, 16.97 feet.

- Missouri River, Stanton: River stage, 9 feet.

- Missouri River, Bismarck: Streamflow, 25,700 CFS.

- Yellowstone River, Sidney, Mont.: River stage, 6.69 feet; streamflow, 11,800 CFS.

Numbers to know

- NDGF Department main Bismarck office: 701-328-6300; website (http://gf.nd.gov).

- NDGF Department Dickinson office: 701-227-7431.

- Report All Poachers: 800-472-2121.

- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bismarck, website: (www.fws.gov/northdakotafieldoffice).

Patricia Stockdill

Tags: rec report, dakota recreation report, outdoors