Dworshak Reservoir is located on the North Fork of the Clearwater River five miles
North of Orofino, Idaho on HWY 12.
The Dam is 717 feet tall. It is the highest straight axis gravity dam in North
America. It is held in place by its own weight. The Reservoir was created in
1973 as a flood control project, by the US Army Corps of Engineers. It also generates
electricity.
The Reservoir is a fantastic recreational resource for boaters, campers, and fishermen.
The water is surrounded by forested mountains. There are numerous campgrounds
around the lake. There are 3 boat ramps near the dam and 4 more upstream.
There are about 100 Mini-Camps located on the shoreline for boaters use.
The lake is 53 miles long, has 183 miles of shoreline, and has a maximum depth
of 650 feet.
The Fish
Kokanee
Dworshak has some of the best Kokanee (Oncorhynchus Nerka) fishing
in Idaho. When Koke densities are up harvest is about 200,000 fish!
The spawning strain of Kokanee is from Anderson Ranch Reservoir. They spawn
in September in the tributary waters.
There has been a lot of concern about the number of Kokes that get sucked
through the dams outlet (entraining). The Fish and Game is experimenting
with strobe lights to scare the fish away from the dam.
The usual fishing methods for the wonderful Kokanee Salmon are
trolling and jigging. Kokes can be caught from the bank as well.
There is a 25 fish limit.
Recommended trolling gear: pop gear (a 3 flasher rig gives fish less weight to
leverage against when they fight), wedding ring, white corn, rubber snubber.
Scent may be helpful.
Canyon Creek, Merry's Bay, and Indian Creek are good bets to try.
Rainbow trout.
Idaho Fish and Game stocks large numbers of catchable Rainbows every year.
Smallmouth Bass
Smallmouths feed on the Redside Shiners that inhabit the lake. Try the rocky
points and cliffs.A deep diving gold Rapala resembles a redside shiner.
Due to the natural decline of water nutrients experienced by aging
reservoirs the redside shiner population is nearly gone. Smallmouths now
feed on a wide variety of forage species, insect, and as bass go, anything
that looks like food.
A Rebel Naturalized Deep Wee R resembles a crayfish.
Plastic worms resemble real worms!
Open year around. Five fish limit for Bass over 12", two fish over 17".
Dworshak Reservoir Fishing Reports
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2/25/05
According to the IDFG kokanee fishing is slow. Trout fishing is
usually good this time of year casting spoons and spinners near
creek mouths.
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3/12/05
Kokanee fishing is picking up with warmer weather. IDFG says this may be
a good year for Kokanee as lots of adults survived the winter.
Trout fishing is reported to be good. Bank fishermen have had good luck
near the Big Eddy boat ramp.
IDFG
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4/04/05
Kokanee fishing reported to be good to excellent.
Many 11 and 12 inch fish and some 14 inchers!
Trout fishing is good.
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5/30/05
Name: Comi
Air Temp: 80 to 85
Water Temp 63-70
Water Clarity and Color Clear
Fishing Report: Our group caught around 25 fish and we only fished for
a couple of hours. We caught trout and smallies. Crank baits and spinners work well.
The trout were average size and most of the bass were small, we did catch
a few bass over a couple of pounds. The weather was hot and the water was
around 70 degrees in the sun.
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May 15
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2006 |
Dworshak Reservoir is usually filling in the spring. Some of the best kokanee
fishing of the year can be had in April, May and June. Kokanee fishing usually
starts to get good in late March, with most anglers fishing between the dam and
Dent Bridge. Our latest kokanee population surveys have shown very large numbers
of fish this spring, so fish size will be smaller than the last few years. Look
for fish to average eight to ten inches. However, limits of 25 kokanee will
likely be common.
Spring-time rainbow and cutthroat trout fishing can be very good in Dworshak
as well. Look for the best action at the mouths of tributary streams. Bass
anglers also start doing well with the onset of warmer weather. Expect most
of the bass to be in the 10-12? range, but quite a few fish over five pounds
are caught every year. The reservoir from Grandad Bridge upstream opens to
fishing the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. The trout limit in this part
of the reservoir is six per day, but only two of those can be cutthroat.
Reported by : IDFG
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May 25
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2006 |
Kokanee fishing is "suprisingly good" for 10 and 11 inches.
That's what I heard anyway!
Fishguy
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