To reach it, you drive east from Carson City on U.S. 50 to Silver Springs. At Silver Springs, take U.S. Alt. 95 north to Fernley. At Fernley, take I-80 east, all the way to Elko. In Elko, take Nevada S.R. 225 (The Mountain City Highway) north to Wildhorse Reservoir.
This is a trip of 364 miles (one-way) and it will take you approximately 6-7 hours to drive, dependent on how fast you drive and how many stops you make along the way.
On our way up there, we left at 9:40 a.m. on Thursday and arrived at the resort at about 4:15 p.m. Along the way, we took a big lunch break at the Red Lion Inn in Winnemucca.
On our return home, we left Wildhorse at 6:55 a.m. and arrived home just before 2 p.m., after a big lunch break and playing video poker (we lost!) at the Truck Stop in Fernley.
While on our four-day trip, we saw a wide variety of birds, animals and fish, including numerous pronghorn antelope, coyote, rabbits, wild horses, Canada geese, ducks, coots, pelicans, sea gulls, crows, dove, hawks, rainbow trout, bass and perch.
In addition to that wildlife, we also saw two pink, plastic Flamingos that someone with a great sense of humor has placed on the bank of the Humboldt River between Elko and the Carlin Tunnels on I-80.
Yep! we even saw pink flamingos!
The primary purpose for our trip to Wildhorse was to scout for mule deer, as my son Jim and I both drew rifle, buck tags for that area for the upcoming deer hunting season which opens in early October. Our tags are for Big Game Management Area No. 7, and the boundary between Area Nos. 6 and 7 runs right down the middle of S.R. 225.
For those folks who have been to Wildhorse, the reservoir side is in Area No. 6 and the area on the Wildhorse Resort side is in Area No. 7.
When Elaine and I arrived at Wildhorse on Thursday afternoon, we checked in and spent quite a bit of time visiting with Dennis Dunn, the owner of Wildhorse Resort.
Dennis has been a good friend for many years and has invited Jim and I to stay with him while on our deer hunting trip in October.
While we were enjoying a Manhattan (or two) at the bar, Dennis said not to bother doing any scouting.
He informed us that the crew at the resort knows where the bucks are located and they will guide us to them during the hunting season.
Steve Epling (one of the bartenders) even told us that he has a big buck staked out, just for us. I sure hope so!
Dennis recommended that instead of scouting for deer, we spend our time, having fun, fishing at the reservoir and we instantly said, "You bet!"
Jerel Carr, the bartender (and I might add, an excellent Manhattan maker!), told us that he and his significant other, Dianne Ledbetter, would show Elaine and I where to fish from shore the next morning.
As a side note, Wildhorse Reservoir contains rainbow trout, German brown trout, Tiger Trout, black bass, smallmouth bass, catfish, crappie and perch (lots and lots of perch!).
The reservoir limits are five trout, 10 mountain whitefish and 15 warmwater game fish, of which not more than one may be black bass (the minimum size for black bass is 15 inches).
There is no limit on perch.
The fishing season is open year round, any hour of the day or night.
From March 1 through June 30, only "catch and release" fishing is allowed for the black bass.
When we left the bar and checked into our motel unit, we also had the chance to meet some great folks staying in one of the nearby units. They were John Cefalu, John Gianotti and Dr. Paul Fry, all of South Lake Tahoe, Calif.
John Cefalu is the father of Joby Cefalu, who has been on our television show (The Outdoor Recreation Show) several times in the past. Joby has Mile High Fishing Charters at Tahoe Keys Marina at South Lake Tahoe.
John Gianotti is retired from Harrahs Hotel and Casino.
Dr. Fry is semi-retired (actually mostly retired!)) from his surgery practice with Tahoe Fracture and Orthopedic Medical Clinic.
The three of them were fishing at Wildhorse for the first time and they had just as much fun as we did, plus they had a boat and could cover more water at the reservoir.
On Friday morning, Elaine and I joined Jerel and Dianne at the reservoir at "Secret Hot Spot No. 1."
Heck, you didn't think that I was going to tell you exactly where we fished, did you? I don't think so!
I will tell you we fished from shore on the highway side, somewhere between the Resort and the Dam.
Our magic combination on Friday was a small, white, lead-head jig with a plastic tail and a single, red Salmon egg.
We caught a "ton" of perch (up to 11.5 inches in length), several nice bass and one rainbow trout.
We released everything except about 20 perch which were filleted for perch dinners at a later date.
In fact, we actually outfished our guides, Jerel and Dianne.
On Saturday, believe it or not, the fishing was even better!
We used the same combinations, except we substituted a tiny piece of worm for the single Salmon egg.
Between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., Elaine and I caught and released more than 200 perch! That's correct: 200 perch!
We kept the largest 25 perch of the day, which were also filleted for future, tasty fish dinners.
The fishing was awesome!
On cast after cast, we would have 3-4-5 hits per cast. We even caught fish with no bait on the hooks. It was unreal!
And, best of all, that same kind of unbelievable fishing is up there, right now, just waiting for you.
You don't even need a boat because the two of us outfished the three gentlemen from South Lake Tahoe on both Friday and Saturday, while they fished from their boat.
So, if you like to catch fish (lots of fish), head for Wildhorse Reservoir in Northeastern Nevada.
You can bet that when Jim and I return in early October, we will also have fishing equipment in addition to our deer hunting rifles.
For information, call Dennis Dunn or Steve Epling or Jerel Carr at the Wildhorse Resort at (775) 758-6472.
-- Bet Your Favorite Pigeon
Bet your favorite pigeon that he can't tell you all of the places where you can stay overnight, while at Wildhorse Reservoir.
If he grins and says, "You have the choice of staying at the motel units or the RV park at the Wildhorse Resort, the Nevada State Park Campground, the Native American Campground, the Bureau of Land Management Campground or the U.S. Forest Service Campground," he has been to Wildhorse Reservoir in the past.
