Thayne Barrie's Greatest Sturgeon Trip

EDITOR'S NOTE: Outdoorsman Thayne Barrie, an experienced sturgeon fisherman, owns the Sunset Sport Centers in Boise, Idaho. He and the employees who work at his store can help anglers obtain information on sturgeon fishing on the Snake River.

Question: Thayne, tell me about the greatest trip you've ever had catching sturgeon.
Answer: Probably the most fun trip I've ever been on was with Wayne Gendron, a friend of mine from Springfield, Missouri. We didn't have very long to fish. We were a little late getting out in the morning and didn't arrive at our fishing spot until about 10:00 a.m. instead of 7:00 a.m. We had to be back in town by 3:00 p.m. We figured we had about 4-1/2-hours to fish. We set out. I rigged one rod to show him how to do it, cast it out and started rigging the other rods. We couldn't even get the other rods rigged before we banged one. Wayne landed that one -- about a 5-footer. After we got that one in, Wayne wouldn't let me put any of the rods out until his were all ready. I believe we ended up hooking six that day and landing five in about five hours of fishing. The longest time we had a rod in the water was 14 minutes. We would have caught more sturgeon, but we were fighting fish all the time.

Question: What do you do when you catch a sturgeon? Do you release him?
Answer: Yes, it's all catch-and-release. The one thing you need to remember about a sturgeon is once you get him in, and you're sure he's on his last run, make sure he's ready before you reach down and grab the leader. Be real careful because you're using those big hooks that are extra-sharp. Since sturgeon have no teeth, you can grab the fish in the mouth and turn it to its back. The fish will go dormant when you do that. You can remove the hooks easily, get some great pictures and then turn the fish back over.

If the sturgeon is really long, you'll need someone to help you. Hold the fish by the mouth and the tail, and have the other guy let the mouth go. Revive the fish, and make sure he's in good shape before you let his tail go. Generally the guy holding the tail is going to get a bath when the sturgeon takes off because sturgeon have hellacious tail flips.

To learn more about sturgeon fishing on the Snake River in Idaho, call the Idaho Department of Fish and Game at (208) 334-3700, or click here to contact any of these sporting stores in Boise, Idaho.

TOMORROW: Hiring a Guide for Sturgeon Fishing