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Based on the results of a detailed fisheries survey conducted by the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, rainbow trout numbers in the Big Wood River appear to have increased from previous survey years.

The results indicate that the Big Wood contains an average of 1,329 fish that are eight inches or longer for every mile of river.

"We are anticipating this season to be a good one," Fish and Game fisheries biologist Rob Ryan said. "We have had great fish production for the past few years, and it looks like it is beginning to pay off for anglers."

Last fall, Fish and Game fisheries biologists and local volunteers spent two weeks collecting fish in the Big Wood to determine the condition of the fishery. Rainbow trout, mountain whitefish, brook trout, brown trout, sculpin, and suckers were collected using electrofishing equipment, a Fish and Game press release states.

Electrofishing is a technique used to pass electrical current through the water where fish hide. Fish are not harmed but are susceptible to involuntary muscle reflexes, which allow waiting netters to scoop up the fish and place them in holding tanks.

Sampled fish are then measured, weighed, and returned to the river. Fishery surveys have been conducted on a three-year rotating basis since the mid-1980s to allow biologists to track the condition of the fishery over time.

Results of the 2006 survey indicate anglers can expect good things this year. Samples collected from Hailey to Boulder Creek, west of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area headquarters, were dominated by catches of rainbow trout.

Results of the survey also provided evidence that the number of younger rainbow trout is on the rise in most areas of the river. Estimated numbers of larger rainbow trout between 12 and 16 inches in length appear to be stable, the Fish and Game press release states.

The Big Wood is currently closed to fishing to protect spawning fish.

The fishing season will officially commence Saturday, May 26, and continue through Nov. 30. A catch-and-release season on the river is open from Dec. 1 through March 31 from the Magic Reservoir upstream to the confluence with the North Fork of the Big Wood.

The Big Wood below Magic Reservoir will be open from May 26, 2007, through March 31, 2008. The Big Wood is open all year from the Richfield Canal diversion downstream to the Little Wood River.

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