Tobacco Garden Creek Fishing Guides
A badlands creek draining into the Tobacco Garden arm of Lake Sakakawea, where the bay at its mouth is a well known walleye and pike destination on the big reservoir's north shore.
Guides on the Tobacco Garden Creek
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About the Tobacco Garden Creek
Tobacco Garden Creek runs east out of the McKenzie County badlands and enters Lake Sakakawea at Tobacco Garden Bay, on the north side of the reservoir above Watford City. The creek itself is a typical western North Dakota prairie and badlands drainage, intermittent in its upper reaches and carrying real flow mainly with snowmelt and summer storms. The gauge near Watford City reads discharge, stage and turbidity, and that turbidity record is genuinely useful here, because a badlands creek can turn to chocolate after a thunderstorm and push a plume of muddy water out into the bay.
For anglers the creek matters mostly because of where it ends. Tobacco Garden Bay is one of the better known access points on the upper half of Lake Sakakawea, with a resort, a marina and a launch, and the bay and the creek arm behind it hold fish in their own right. Walleye are the main quarry on this reservoir and they use the creek arms heavily, particularly in spring when they move into the warmer shallower water at the back of the bays, and again in fall.
Northern pike hold in the weedier back ends of the arms. Smallmouth bass have become abundant along the rock and rubble shorelines that characterize much of this part of the lake, and they are increasingly a target in their own right. Sauger, perch, white bass and channel catfish fill out the list, and the reservoir also supports a chinook salmon fishery that runs on a very different schedule and draws its own specialists.
The surrounding country is spectacular and largely empty, with the badlands running down to the water and Theodore Roosevelt National Park not far south. Watford City is the practical base and has grown considerably, so services are readily available.
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Access
Watford City - the town south, with lodging, fuel, tackle and full services.
Tobacco Garden Bay - the bay at the creek mouth, with a marina, ramp and resort.
Lake Sakakawea - the main reservoir immediately downstream of the bay.
Highway 1806 - the road along the north side giving access to the bay area.
Theodore Roosevelt National Park north unit - badlands public land south of the creek.
Little Missouri River - the river entering the reservoir west of here.
New Town - the town east across the lake with additional services and access.
Seasons
Spring: walleye push into the creek arm and the back of the bay as water warms, the best window of the year.
Summer: fish move to main lake structure and rock shorelines, with smallmouth and pike active in the arms.
Fall: cooling water brings walleye back into the bays and produces strong fishing before freeze up.
Winter: a serious ice fishery develops on the reservoir, with the bays among the first places to hold safe ice.
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Questions
What is the current flow on the Tobacco Garden Creek?
As of Oct 18, 5:00 pm, the USGS gauge TOBACCO GARDEN CREEK NEAR WATFORD CITY, ND reads 3 cfs. Conditions update every 15 minutes.
What species can you catch on the Tobacco Garden Creek?
Anglers target Channel Catfish, Chinook Salmon, Common Carp, Freshwater Drum, Northern Pike, Sauger, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass, Yellow Perch on the Tobacco Garden Creek in North Dakota.
Where can you access the Tobacco Garden Creek?
Watford City - the town south, with lodging, fuel, tackle and full services. Tobacco Garden Bay - the bay at the creek mouth, with a marina, ramp and resort. Lake Sakakawea - the main reservoir immediately downstream of the bay. Highway 1806 - the road along the north side giving access to the bay area. Theodore Roosevelt National Park north unit - badlands public land south of the creek. Little Missouri River - the river entering the reservoir west of here. New Town - the town east across the lake with additional services and access.
When is the best time to fish the Tobacco Garden Creek?
Spring: walleye push into the creek arm and the back of the bay as water warms, the best window of the year. Summer: fish move to main lake structure and rock shorelines, with smallmouth and pike active in the arms. Fall: cooling water brings walleye back into the bays and produces strong fishing before freeze up. Winter: a serious ice fishery develops on the reservoir, with the bays among the first places to hold safe ice.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Tobacco Garden Creek?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the North Dakota agency site: https://gf.nd.gov/fishing