2022 catch log: recording a great year of fishing – and valuable data – in Idaho
One of my favorite things about fishing is the opportunity it gives us to learn, improve and refine our skills. Every trip is a chance to stock your knowledge tackle box with valuable information that can pay dividends for years to come.
With that in mind, I tried something new in 2022 — keeping a logbook of every fish I caught. My buddy Jon and I have been tracking how many species we catch for several years. I expanded my data collection this year, and as 2022 draws to a close, here’s a look back at some of the highlights.
Species tracker: 31, a new personal best.
Bass (30% of 2022 catches): Bass are my favorite species, so it was no surprise to see them make up nearly a third of my catches. Soft plastics were my top largemouth catcher; for smallmouth, it was crankbaits. It was a good year for big fish, with a 22-inch urban largemouth topping the charts, along with two 20-inch smallies. I also caught bass in every month of the year except February, including my first-ever bass through the ice.
Trout (23%): Rainbows were my most common trout catch, but diversity abounded. I landed eight trout species in total: rainbow, brown, brook, Mackinaw, cutbow hybrid and three subspecies of cutthroat (westslope, Yellowstone and Lahontan). Trout also led me to a lot of cool destinations, including Island Park, alpine lakes, the high desert wilderness and my first-ever trip to Bear Lake for Mackinaws through the ice. Big fish honors went to Walter, a 30-inch Henrys Lake ice monster, with honorable mention going to a pair of 26-inch rainbows caught in the Hagerman Valley.
Panfish (38%): This is the biggest piece of the pie, but it includes a bunch of species that are often caught in large numbers—bluegill, crappie, perch, pumpkinseed, redear sunfish, green sunfish and tilapia. Two big fish stood out: a 2-pound Frisbee of a redear sunfish caught at Lake Havasu in Arizona, and a 2.25-pound jumbo perch from Lake Cascade, my new personal best.
Other (9%): The rest of the list includes kokanee, striped bass, three catfish species (channel, bullhead and blue), carp (some of which I shot with a bow-and-arrow), pikeminnow, redtail surf perch, black rockfish, alligator gar and white sturgeon. The last two on the list were giants — a 7-foot-7, 150-pound sturgeon and a 6-foot-7, 130-pound alligator gar that ranks as one of the coolest fish I’ve ever seen. Overall, 4% of my catches happened outside Idaho: the gar and blue catfish (Texas), redear and striper (Arizona), surf perch and rockfish (Oregon Coast) and Lahontan cutthroat at Nevada’s Pyramid Lake.
Fish of the Year: Walter. A 30-inch trout is the catch of a lifetime. Catching Walter through the ice, after a challenging weekend of fishing at Henrys, was the cherry on the sundae. Honorable mention goes to my wild alligator gar adventure in the Texas bayou.
Most surprising catch: Two catfish at once. While trolling with crankbaits on the Snake River, I hooked a 7-pound channel catfish … that just so happened to be attached to a second, 5-pound channel cat. They had broken off an angler fishing a double bait rig, and presumably been attached at the lip ever since!
Biggest takeaway: I think the most valuable thing about keeping a catch log is the extra planning that goes into your trips. Rather than just heading down to the lake to see what’s biting, most of my outings have a specific target species (and, often, a backup plan). That extra level of preparation often leads to more success. It was also really fun to look back on each trip to see how catch rates stacked up, and to have a year’s worth of new data to learn from. As we turn the page to 2023, I’ll definitely be keeping the catch log rolling. I can’t wait to see what surprises it has in store. Happy New Year, and tight lines!
Jordan Rodriguez has been fishing Idaho waters since he was a teen. Share your fish stories, adventures and questions with him at tightlinesboise@gmail.com, or visit www.tightlines208.com for the latest local fishing reports and upcoming class offerings.