Dakota Recreation Report: Feb. 7, 2022

Outdoor notes:

*Ice is never completely safe. Avoid areas with vegetation, moving water, pressure ridges, and springs. Check conditions as you go along on the ice and don’t move around at night.

*Remember to keep fish caught in 25 feet and deeper; they rarely survive coming up from deep depths.

*Feb. 16: Spring turkey applications due.

*Feb. 18 – 21: Great Backyard Bird Count. Go to (www.birdcount.org) for details.

Tournaments:

*Feb. 12: Stump Lake, Lake Williams.

*Feb. 19: Jamestown Reservoir.

Fishing:

*Devils Lake elevation, Feb. 1: 1,447.22 feet above mean sea level (MSL).

*Stump Lake elevation: 1,447.16 MSL.

*Lake Sakakawea elevation: 1,827.95 MSL; 15,900 cubic feet per second average (CFS) Garrison Dam daily releases.

*N.D. Game and Fish Dept. Dist. game wardens: No reports from Devils Lake or east-central area lakes. East end of Lake Sakakawea remains generally slow for walleye. Better access is around Centennial Bay with occasional walleye. Anglers finding an occasional walleye in late night bite on Lake Audubon with best access around the west end.

*Devils Lake, Ed’s Bait Shop, Devils Lake: Creel Bay and Woods Resort has improved access. Lots of activity with fair success.

*Devils Lake, Lakeview Lodge, Minnewaukan: Generally slow walleye and perch success depending on weather.

*Devils Lake, West Bay Resort, Minnewaukan: Access difficult unless on a plowed trail in many areas of Devils Lake with some activity on East Bay and around the casino.

*Devils Lake, Woodland Resort, Devils Lake: Weather fronts creating inconsistent walleye and perch success. Try 35 to 45 feet for perch, working shallower for walleye in the morning and mid-afternoon.

*Foster County area lakes, Dry Dock, Carrington: Anglers with tracked vehicles are moving around throughout area lakes, but limited reports on success.

*Jamestown Reservoir, Pioneer Bait and Tackle, Jamestown: Activity remains light with poor access across many area lakes. Tracked vehicles a necessity.

*Jamestown Reservoir, Sooper Stop, Jamestown: Lots of activity for perch and walleye on Jamestown Reservoir.

*Lake Ashtabula, Ashtabula Crossing, Luverne: Weather limiting activity with access more difficult after wind and rain last week.

*Lake Ashtabula, Bayshore, Valley City: Improving access on Lake Ashtabula with anglers better able to get around with and without tracked vehicles. Fair to good success for a nice mix of walleye and perch. Pike remain slower.

*Lake Sakakawea, Cenex Bait and Tackle, Garrison: Not many reports from the east end of the Lake Sakakawea, but some anglers are finding occasional walleye from Douglas and Steinke bays. Lots of anglers on the west end of Lake Audubon with good access of the Totten Trail boat ramp. Spotty walleye success, however.

*Lakes Audubon and Sakakawea, Hwy. 83 Lawn and Leisure, Garrison: Work shallow water in the evening; deeper in the afternoon for walleye on Lake Audubon. Fair bite but not steady. Fair for walleye on Steinke Bay and the south shore at Wolf Creek in 20 to 25 feet on the east end of Lake Sakakawea. Water is clear enough for pike spearing in those areas. Look for a better pike bite on the east end of Sakakawea, but inconsistent yet. OK access onto Audubon from the Totten Trail boat ramp and getting on around Wolf Creek on Sakakawea.

*Lake Sakakawea/Lake Audubon/Missouri River, Scott’s Bait and Tackle, Pick City: Spotty walleye success on the east end of Lake Sakakawea. Try 30 feet. Missouri River remains slow. Lake Audubon somewhat slow for walleye.

*Pipestem Reservoir, Sooper Stop, Jamestown: Lots of activity, but limited reports on success.

N.D. Parks & Recreation Dept. trails:

*Grahams Island, Devils Lake: Trails open and in fair condition.

*Turtle River, Arvilla: Ungroomed trails open for hiking, snowshoeing, or fat tire biking. Sledding hill also open with snow cover. Warming house open daily, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Downhill skiing (conditions can vary).

Contact for updates and days of operation:

*Bottineau Winter Park, Bottineau, (701) 263-4556: 18-inch base with one chair, two magic carpets, four runs, and all tubing runs open. Terrain Park closed.

*Buena Vista Ski Area, Bemidji, Minn., (218) 843-2231: 24- to 48-inch machine groomed base. 14 runs open with terrain features available on Snowflake.

*Frostfire Ski Area, Walhalla, (701) 549-3600: 24-inch base. Trails open Saturdays and Sundays.

*Huff Hills Ski Area, Mandan, (701) 663-6421: 12- to 28-inch machine groomed, packed powder base with two lifts, one tow, and seven groomed and ungroomed runs open. Table tops and rail jump terrain features open on Green Lift area.

Snowmobile N.D. (conditions can vary):

*Cattail (Barnes, Cass, Steele, and Traill counties): 11- to 17-inch base with trails open and in fair condition.

*East-central Valley (Cass and Richland counties): 10- to 15-inch base with all trails open and in fair condition.

*Lake Region (Nelson and Ramsey counties): Trails open with 12- to 20-inch base. Fair condition.

*Missouri Valley (Emmons and Burleigh counties): 4- to 8-inch base with trails open and in fair condition with some drifting.

*North-central (Benson, McHenry, Pierce, Ramsey, and Towner counties): Trail open with 10- to 20-inch base. Fair condition with some drifting.

*Northeast (Cavalier, Pembina, and Walsh counties): 12- to 23-inch base. Trails open with exception of portions of Sandhills trail. Trails in fair condition.

*Peace Garden (Bottineau and Rolette counties): 16- to 28-inch base. Trails 1, 1A, 2, 2C, 3, 4, 4A, 4B, and 7 open, but beware of slush and ice.

*Red River North (Walsh and Pembina counties): 12- to 16-inch base. Trails open and in fair condition with some drifting.

*Red River South (Grand Forks and Walsh counties): 12- to 20-inch base with all trails open. Some drifts on trails.

*Sakakawea (McLean and Ward counties): 6- to 12-inch base with trails open and in fair condition, but many drifts and some rough areas.

*Sargent County trail closed for the season.

*Sheyenne Valley (Barnes, Dickey, LaMoure, Ransom, and Stutsman counties): 12- to 16-inch base. Trails open with the exception of McKinnes trail.

*Sno-trails (Bottineau, McHenry, Renville, and Ward counties: 6- to 12-inch base. Trails open and groomed when possible. Some drifting in areas.

*Southern Valley (Richland County): 12- to 16-inch base with trails open and in fair condition with some drifts.

Numbers to know:

*N.D. Game and Fish Department, main Bismarck office: (701) 328-6300, website: (http://gf.nd.gov).

*N.D. Game and Fish Department, Devils Lake office: (701) 662-3617.

*N.D. Game and Fish Department, Jamestown office: (701) 253-6480.

*Report All Poachers: (701) 328-9921.