Anderson Ranch Reservoir fishing: Rainbow Trout, Smallmouth Bass, Bull Trout

Target species: Rainbow Trout, Smallmouth Bass, Bull Trout
Best months: Jul, Aug, Oct, Nov for Rainbow Trout
Second window: Aug for Smallmouth Bass
Boat: 4 ramps and launches on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at Curlew Creek.

The reservoir

Anderson Ranch Reservoir covers 4,463 acres in Idaho, across Elmore County. It is a reservoir: 90.8% of it is 200 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is ≈297 feet (90.5 m). Our records hold 4 species for this water.

Anderson Ranch Reservoir 2.jpg
U.S. Forest Service · Public domain

Depth and bottom

Deepest measured point: ≈297 ft (90.5 m). 90.8% of the water is 200 feet or shallower. We hold 101 depth contours for this water, drawn from 85,780 soundings.

Anderson Ranch Reservoir 1.jpg
U.S. Forest Service · Public domain
  • 0–20 ft: 15.3% of the water
  • 20–40 ft: 12.7% of the water
  • 40–60 ft: 12.4% of the water
  • 60–80 ft: 10.2% of the water
  • 80–100 ft: 11.7% of the water
  • 100–120 ft: 8.7% of the water
  • 120–140 ft: 6.6% of the water
  • 140–160 ft: 5.1% of the water
  • 160–180 ft: 4% of the water
  • 180–200 ft: 4.1% of the water
  • 200–220 ft: 3.3% of the water
  • 220–240 ft: 2% of the water
  • 240–260 ft: 2.8% of the water
  • 260–280 ft: 1.4% of the water

Stocking: 9,871,546 fish, 1997–2026

Idaho Department of Fish and Game records list 9,871,546 fish released into this water from 1997 to 2026.

Anderson Ranch Dam and Reservoir.JPG
Riverwild · CC BY-SA 3.0
  • Rainbow Trout: 4,242,361 in 1995–2020
  • Smallmouth Bass: 78,862 in 1972–1975
  • Bull Trout: 17,160 in 1979

4 more species on the stocking list.

3 target fish, led by Rainbow Trout

  • Rainbow Trout — Best months: Jul, Aug, Oct, Nov.
  • Smallmouth Bass — Best months: Aug.
  • Bull Trout — Best months: Jun, Jul, Oct, Nov.

Also recorded here: Atlantic Salmon.

Water and conditions

Our water temperature readings average 53°F; they do not cover the whole year, so this is not a yearly average. The coldest single reading we hold is 32°F and the warmest is 75°F; the warmest monthly average is 61°F. pH averages 7.5. These readings span 2016–2025.

4 ramps and launches on this water

On this water we hold 4 boat ramps.

  • Curlew Creek — US Forest Service. website fs.usda.gov/recarea/asnf/recreation/recarea/?recid=5091
  • Deer Creek Boat Ramp — US Forest Service. website fs.usda.gov/recarea/asnf/recreation/recarea/?recid=71094
  • Elk Creek Boat Ramp — US Forest Service. website fs.usda.gov/recarea/asnf/recreation/recarea/?recid=81122
  • Fall Creek — US Forest Service. website fs.usda.gov/recarea/asnf/recreation/recarea/?recid=81123

Fee and opening hours are blank for all 4 places in this list: a blank means we hold no such field, not that it is free or always open, and this list may not be complete.

What is hard here

Winter water drops to 41°F, and the warm-water species stop feeding well before you do.

Where this data comes from

  • US Bureau of Reclamation — USBR reservoir sedimentation surveys: class A, a survey of the bottom, 1998.

Part of these depths rest on an averaged water level, so they are approximate (≈).