Flathead Wildlife, INC.

Although hunting seems like a hazardous activity, it is actually rated safer than sports like football and even golf. In part that is due to the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Hunter Education Program, required for new hunters since 1957 and taught by hundreds of dedicated volunteer hunter education instructors who emphasize safety, ethics and responsibility. Hundreds of aspiring hunters will soon be in Hunter Ed classes across the Flathead.

Another crucial safety factor is the requirement to wear at least 400 square inches of hunter orange above the waist. Safety vests have been shown to reduce injuries and death due to mistaken identity by 94%. Flathead Wildlife has once again partnered with Flathead Electric Coop’s Roundup For Safety Program to buy a hunter orange vest for every graduate of the Hunter Education Program. It’s a real treat to see beaming young hunters coming through check stations with their game and sporting their hunter education vests.

Thanks to Roundup For Safety for supporting this great program. if you are a Flathead Electric customer, consider rounding up your utility bill. Just a few pennies a month can help make the Flathead a safer place.

Bruce Gipe and Jim Vashro helped the Hedges School Hooked On Fishing (HOF) classes plant rainbow trout in Dry Bridge Pond yesterday. This is a unique opportunity started about 20 years ago. The students walk over from school, the plant is arranged by Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Creston National Fish Hatchery brought over 500 2-1/2 year old rainbow trout averaging 11”-12”. The students first got a talk on fish biology, fish identification, proper catch and release techniques and were warned against illegal fish plants. The fish were then transferred to five gallon buckets, the students carried the fish down to dump in the pond. Bruce and Jim and another adult helped to make sure just the fish went in the pond, not buckets and students. Afterwards the students picked up litter in Dry Bridge Park (the Sledding Gully) and were treated to ice cream treats courtesy of Flathead Wildlife. Dry Bridge is a Family Fishing Pond, many of these students live in the neighborhood. You’ll see them hiking or biking in after school or coming down after dinner with their family to fish. Fishing is open to everyone, adults catch and release, kids fourteen and younger can keep o!

Bruce Gipe recorded a video, Casey Kreider with the Daily Interlake got a great action shot (link below). Article in the Daily Interlake

Chancy Jeschke of Chancy and Dave’s Fish Camp, presentation, Ice Fishing 101:

Ice Safety you are ”Never too Safe”: Chancy told stories of falling through ice even when drilling holes as he worked his way from shore. Dark spots in ice might be a sign of weak ice, especially if the lake has underground springs.

Safety Equipment:

30 ft Rope with life preserver or a loop at end -used to throw to victim and keeps rescuer (Chancy & Jim) from falling into hole with the victim.

Ice picks attached to string that is worn around neck on outside of coat-used by victim to help pull themselves from the water onto the ice.

Ice Cleats with strap over the boot- used to walk out on slippery ice which prevents falling injuries.

Extra set of clothes kept at vehicle incase you fall through the ice, you can then change from wet to dry.

Hand & Toe warmers- place inside gloves or boots for extra warmth

Good quality Outerwear- prevents hypothermia and frostbite

Technology and Ice Fishing:

Vexilar fish finder – will show water column and fish activity, batteries last longer if recharge often and keep in warm environment. Prices range from $300-$400. Very reliable.

Fish finders -all kinds: Garmin, Hummingbird. Garmin just came out with the “Garmin Live Scope” which shows different perspectives under water, downward, 60 ft in all directions to 120 ft in forward perspective. $3500.Can, also, be set up in a boat.

Augers – Most ice fisherman are using lithium battery powered augers now. Quiet, light weight and reliable, can drill a lot of holes on one charge. $400- $500. Also, a K-drill which uses a hand drill attached to the auger shaft to drill ($200).

JawJacker – this device holds an ice fishing rod. A loop at the end of a fishing rod is hooked to the mechanism and will release the rod when a fish bites and thus setting the hook. The law allows one person to use two rods…so they can hold one rod and the JawJacker will hold the other or simply one rod in each hand.

Lures/Jigs – Chancy showed several, but there are as many jigs as there are fisherman, probably more! Tungsten jigs are new and popular. Hali jigs are good and run $7, or a pkg of three Celsius jigs for the same price. Support local businesses that make jigs…Zimmers, American Tradition, Back Water Boys.

Other tips for Ice fishing:

Techniques to attract fish- Lunker Lotion is good with Kokanee. Stir up bottom by bouncing jig will attract perch. Small mouth bass are curious about sound…banging rocks together, crinkle bottle will attract them. Kokanee excited by big sweeps or sometimes barely moving the jig.

Time of day – Early morning to about 11am is best bite. Crappies are light sensitive so best bite is late evening or fishing in brown water. Pike bite is better in the afternoon when sun begins to dip.

Line – Ice line is just marketing…same normal fishing line in smaller amount for higher price. Berkley Solar line seems to work in cold water. Braided line is good for depth. Use 3-4 lb. test line for pan fish.

Reels – Just transfer open water reel to ice rod.

Rods – Match rod to fish you’re fishing for…heavier fish/heavier rod…lighter fish/lighter rod. Chancy’s business sells a “Perch Assault rod”. Good for pan fish and sells at $25. Comes in 32”, 38” and 40”. Can have a spring bobber built into the rod for light bites. There are many brands out there.

Bait – Kokanee fishing, 3 or 4 maggots are added to the hook on the jig with the last maggot covering the point. Maggots can be red or white. Also, grubs, waxworms and mealworms are popular for Kokanee. Chancy likes the Northland Forage Minnow to catch perch, walleye and whitefish.

This is why we fight for wildlife habitat and public access.

Over the last three years Flathead Wildlife, the Montana Wildlife Federation and a host of other groups supported the acquisition of the Bad Rock Wildlife Management Area (WMA). Located near Columbia Falls, the 772 acre parcel was owned by Glencore/Columbia Falls Aluminum Company. Bounded by the Flathead River, the property was relatively undeveloped and hosts a variety of wildlife. The Flathead Land Trust led the effort to raise the $590,000 matching funds for the purchase, FWP’s Habitat Montana contributed $2.5 million and LWCF made up the remaining $4 million. The acquisition was approved by the FW Commission and received final approval by the State Land Board in November, 2021. So instead of becoming a high priced subdivision, the area will remain as wildlife habitat and a migratory corridor.

Due to the relative small size and proximity to Columbia Falls, FWP manages the general hunting season for youth hunters by reservation only to control pressure. Here’s one of the first youth hunters, 13 year old Schafer VandeVoort, in the new WMA with a beautiful bull elk.

Photo provided by Schafer’s proud mom, Rachel Schmidt.

Waterfowl are starting their migration north. Freezeout Lake is a spectacular stop-over but there are many smaller important resting places,200 acre Church Slough in the Flathead Valley is one.

10 years ago a developer petitioned Flathead County to move a county road along Church Slough to develop waterfront property. Flathead Wildlife intervened, arguing the county road was the best place to watch wildlife and the only option for the public to launch a boat. After negotiations, a 1.75 acre parcel was donated to the county to develop a public boat access and viewing spot. Flathead Wildlife then successfully petitioned FWP to close Church Slough to boating from March 1 to April 10 so resting waterfowl would not be disturbed.

A group of 7th graders from Evergreen School are viewing waterfowl aided by Denny Olson from Flathead Audubon and Laura Katzman from the Flathead Land Trust. Waterfowl included tundra swans, Canada geese, redheads, pintails, mallards and widgeon along with bald eagles with the Swan Mountains as a backdrop. Watch for waterfowl numbers to increase soon, the peak at Freezeout is usually around March 25th.

Download the complete FWI February Newsletter by click on the link below.

FWI February Newsletter

I shot a buck 3 days before Thanksgiving, 57 years to the day since I shot my first deer. That thought brought a flood of emotions. I can still picture that first buck bouncing through the timber into an opening, then turning broadside and stopping. You’ve got to love mule deer. There have been a lot of deer since then and this one wasn’t a whopper but I’m happy to say my heart was pounding while I waited for this one to step into the clear. I hope I never lose that thrill.

I was hunting on some Flathead Ridge Ranch property. We’ve seen some seismic shifts in land ownership the last few years in northwest Montana. Thank goodness private landowners like Mark and Robyn Jones were willing to put most of their 127,000 acre Flathead Ridge Ranch into Block Management. There are many other landowners who are willing to grant access if you do your homework. And corporate timber companies like Stimson Lumber, FH Stoltze Land and Lumber, Green Diamond Resources and Southern Pines Plantation are cooperating to provide access through Block Management and conservation easements (more on that elsewhere in this newsletter). I also hunted a lot of Block Management in the Missouri Breaks this fall. When you think about it, it’s a big leap of faith for landowners to open their lands to people toting firearms, driving vehicles and building fires. We need to thank them when we can, treat the land like our own and respect the privilege we’ve been given because the thoughtless actions of a few can make that all go away.

This was a tough year with record high temperatures and little or no snow. I’ve only heard of rutting buck activity in the last week. I hope your hunts were fun and safe, created memories with friends and family and maybe even put some venison in the freezer. As I look at a forecast for temperatures in the 50s tomorrow and my lawn greening up, I’m contemplating whether I’ll be using my lawnmower or snowblower first.

Jim Vashro
Flathead Wildlife President

Download the link below and read the FWI November Newsletter

New attached file

There are numerous bears and mountain lions close to residential areas around the Flathead. People should always be aware, carry bear spray when appropriate, and keep attractants such as dog food, bird feeders, garbage, and chickens out of reach.

By Jim Vashro

I’ve lost three hunting spots on corporate timberlands in the last two years. I’ve always appreciated the privilege of hunting those lands but knew they could be sold. One sale blocked a road leading to thousands of acres of US Forest Service where I’ve hunted for over 30 years. The hunt for new spots is hindered by a rash of new “No Trespassing” signs.

Public lands, owned by you and me, are our ace-in-the-hole for recreating. A couple of proposed bills on Fish, Wildlife and Parks’ Habitat Montana program this legislative session would ban fee title purchases, put conservation easements under final State Land Board approval and require no net gain of state lands. Who thinks we have too much, much less enough, public land?

For 30 years Habitat Montana has been a win-win for recreation and timber management. F.H. Stoltze and Stimson Lumber have been leaders in negotiating conservation easements that maintain their logging while protecting water, wildlife and access. The recent conservation easement with Southern Pines Plantations on Dredger Ridge more than doubled the effectiveness of the Lost Trail National Wildlife Refuge. Over the years non-governmental organizations acquired and transferred tens of thousands of acres of timberlands to agencies in the Stillwater, Swan, Clearwater, Lolo and lower Clark Fork. Two parties just purchased over 400,000 acres of Southern Pines Plantation west of Kalispell, fortunately, they seem open to discussing options. Purchase of the proposed 800 acre Bad Rock WMA near Columbia Falls would protect deer, elk, grizzly bears, waterfowl and provide hunting access for youth and persons with disabilities. The alternative is a subdivision where wildlife and the public aren’t as welcome.

FWP owns 388,000 acres of land and has 563,000 acres under conservation easement under Habitat Montana, along with state parks and fishing access sites. That is 1 percent of Montana. That is a sore spot for some who don’t believe agencies should own any land. FWP has never had a lot of money for lands so it has had to be very strategic. Acquired lands had to provide exceptional habitat and/or substantial public access and undergo extensive public scrutiny.

To start, a willing landowner must step forward. Landowners may want a conservation easement to keep the family ranch afloat. In some cases, they no longer want to own the lands but want the lands they’ve nurtured for a lifetime available for wildlife and public access. Proposed lands have to pass extensive analysis, two votes by the Fish and Wildlife Commission and have broad public input and support.

We’re talking about places like the Sun River Game Range, Freezeout Lake, Wildhorse Island, Lewis and Clark Caverns, Makoshika, Madison Buffalo Jump, Bannack and the Thompson Chain of Lakes. These special places are part of the fabric of Montana, preserving history, geology, wildlife, access and drawing visitors who spend money and support jobs.

Governor Gianforte lists protection of public land and increasing access among four core principles guiding his Administration. Outdoor recreation is a $7.1 billion force in Montana with Habitat Montana lands a major contributor. But to grow our economy, protect public land and increase public access, Habitat Montana needs additional revenue and no new restrictions on land acquisition or burdensome bureaucracy on conservation easements. Habitat Montana is an intersection of private and public property rights that works to benefit all of us. Montanans are paying attention and should fight any bills that would crimp or undo our best conservation and access program.

Jim Vashro is a retired fisheries biologist, president of Flathead Wildlife and Board member of the Montana Wildlife Federation

Read an article from Flathead Beacon:

New Rule Finalized to Protect Lake Koocanusa from B.C. Mining Contaminants Montana Department of Environmental Quality’s board of review voted 5-1 in favor of protective selenium criteria for fish

By Tristan Scott // Dec 12, 2020

Selenium Limits in Lake Koocanusa/Kootenai River