Everything you wanted to know: bull trout

Bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) Species summary and status: The bull trout was once found throughout the Columbia River Basin, east to western Montana, south to northern Nevada, west to California and possibly as far north as southeastern Alaska. The main populations remaining in the lower 48 states are in Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, with…

It’s bull trout time in Idaho

Roger Phillips photo. By Roger Phillips They’re big, they’re hard-fighting, and they’re one of Idaho’s most overlooked trophy fishing opportunities, but many anglers are still confused about whether they can target bull trout for catch-and-release fishing. The short answer is yes.  When bull trout were listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act in…

The elusive Arctic char of the Kenai Peninsula

My heart raced as we proceeded down the almost 15-mile Swanson River Road. We kept expecting to be turned around any minute. Knowing there were so many lake options with confirmed populations of char, I had a lot of faith one would offer me the opportunity to bring an Arctic char to hand. The problem was, the bumpy pothole strewn dirt road was, as far as I knew, the only artery to the lake systems. If this fire got out of control, as the 2019 fire did, I could be shut out.