CASCADE, Idaho — Lake Cascade is known for its great summertime recreational opportunities, but you may not know it's one of the country's best places to fish for Yellow Perch— on the ice. But this year's mild start to winter has pushed things back for anglers.
"We get tons of people from all over, even Canada, but mostly Midwest people, a lot from Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa and Kansas." Matt Weber is manager of Tackle Tom's in Cascade.
Idaho News 6 Senior Reporter Don Nelson asked Matt why is Lake Cascade one of the best places in the country to fish for Yellow Perch.
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"That is probably the million-dollar question everybody wants to know why, and [the] why is tough," replied Weber. "Really, the answer to that is age; they get older than anywhere else in the country."
It has been a late start for ice fishing on the lake, but Weber says things are improving — and there may be a silver lining.
"It gives our Perch a little bit of a rest, they're out there naturally foraging but we haven't taken many Perch out of the lake in the last month or so, so there's more fish in there for the next upcoming months."
Hear from Matt at Tackle Tom's about what makes ice fishing at Lake Cascade so special
Under these conditions, Weber says safety should always come first. "We're going to wear these around our necks, they're magnetic, so they stick together and you'll see a lot of fishermen with these around their necks. If you do find yourself in a tough situation and you're in the water this is going to grip on the ice and help pull yourself out."
Weber adds that one of the best things about fishing in Cascade is there is no bag limit, no possession limit, and no size limit for Yellow Perch, provided anglers follow state regulations.
"If you catch a Yellow Perch and you look at it and say I can get a good filet of this to put to use, you can take it home and give it a shot," said Weber.
When asked if Perch are good to eat, he replied, "Oh, it's delicious."
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