Ice Fishing in Cascade Idaho: Catching Jumbo Yellow Perch Just 2 Hours from Boise
Most people have no idea that some of the biggest yellow perch in the world come out of Cascade, Idaho.
I’m not exaggerating. Multiple world records have been pulled through the ice on this reservoir, and yet most people drive right past it on their way to McCall without realizing what’s sitting under that frozen surface.
If you’re looking for the best ice fishing in Idaho, especially for jumbo yellow perch, Cascade needs to be on your radar.
Not many people know this, but Cascade has some of the best ice fishing for yellow perch in the entire world. Several of the most recent world record yellow perch have come out of Cascade, and once you fish it for yourself, it’s not hard to see why.
I started ice fishing up in Cascade last year and got hooked immediately. This trip was the third time I’ve been up there, and just like the other trips, it was an absolute blast from start to finish. There’s something about loading up the gear, heading into the mountains, and spending a full day on the ice that’s hard to beat.
I loaded up my four-wheeler and ice fishing sled with a handful of ice fishing poles, tackle, my fish finder, and the basics. If you’re heading up to Cascade to ice fish, you really do need to prepare for the conditions. Dress warm, layer properly, and bring sunglasses. The glare off the snow and ice is no joke when you’re driving around on the reservoir all day.
Before hitting the ice, I always recommend stopping at Tackle Tom’s. Those guys know the reservoir inside and out. They can give you up-to-the-day fishing reports, tell you what depths fish are being caught at, and point you in the right direction on tackle. They also carry just about everything you could need for ice fishing and even rent equipment if you don’t want to invest in all the gear right away. From ice augers and fish finders to snowmobiles and other essentials, they’ve got it covered.
On this particular day, we didn’t hit the ice until about 8:30 or 9 in the morning, which is honestly a late start. Even with that, the fish were biting almost immediately. I tried a variety of vertical fishing lures early on, switching things up and experimenting, but I ended up coming right back to the method that’s worked best for me. A tungsten jig head tipped with a small piece of nightcrawler was the ticket. I really love the Skandia Tungsten Jigheads
Fish after fish, almost every drop. It was one of those days where you barely had time to reset before another perch was on the line. This year there was a really strong population of 10 to 11 inch yellow perch, which are perfect eating-size fish and a blast to catch.
Within about the first hour, myself and one of my buddies each caught 15-inch yellow perch. By world standards, those are massive perch. For Idaho standards, they’re not totally uncommon. Cascade is famous for producing perch that push past the 17-inch mark, which are what we call true jumbo perch.
After snapping a few quick pictures, one of the newer fishermen we brought along was completely blown away. He’s from the Midwest, where a 15 inch perch would be a once-in-a-lifetime fish and borderline record material. Watching us catch fish like that and then casually drop back down the hole like nothing happened absolutely blew his mind.
If you think I’m exaggerating about how special Cascade is for yellow perch, I’m not the only one saying it.
The crew over at MeatEater came to Cascade to ice fish for perch and documented the whole thing. When a nationally known outdoor brand makes the trip to a small Idaho reservoir just to chase perch, that should tell you something.
They experienced the same thing we do every year thick schools of perch, aggressive bites, and fish that would be considered trophies in most other states.
If you want to see what ice fishing on Lake Cascade actually looks like, check out their video below:
Watching that video gives you a good feel for just how unique Cascade really is in the ice fishing world and really shows that I'm not exaggerating this.
We kept fishing throughout the day, and by the time it was all said and done, I had a cooler full of perch. Once everything was cleaned, I ended up with about two pounds of beautiful perch fillets. Hard to complain about that.
Being able to drive just a couple hours from Boise and ice fish for world record sized yellow perch is an experience that’s tough to put into words. Cascade really is something special when it comes to winter fishing, and I honestly think everyone should try ice fishing for yellow perch up there at least once in their life.
If you know, you know and if you don’t, Cascade, Idaho might just change that.
Until Next Time
I'm Isaac Crace
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