If you were worried about ice conditions, have no fear. This week’s cold
snap has been a regular ice-making machine, adding as much as six inches
of new ice to the good base that we already had. We fished Lake Trout this
weekend on one of the deep clear lakes that usually freezes late and even
out there, the ice was solid, clear and about 14 inches thick. In fact, I
was surprised to see that several of the Trout anglers had driven trucks
out onto the ice.
The Lake Trout opener is getting to be kind of a tradition with a buddy
and me so we went even though the conditions were kind of tough. It was 15
degrees below zero when I drove into the lake and we had to use the
portable fish houses on every hole we drilled. My Otter really comes in
handy when it gets cold like this, but even the greatest portables slow
you down when you’re trying to drill lots of holes looking for active
fish.
In spite of the tough fishing conditions, there were glimpses of hope that
kept us out there fishing into mid afternoon. I broke one nice fish off at
about 9:30 AM and had several sightings on the Vexilar. Matt caught two
smaller fish that he released and also had several sightings. Even though
we felt like the chances were good to pick up a couple of "keepers", we
never wound up connecting so I am currently fish-less and photo-less. I’m
hoping to take advantage of the warm up during the next couple of days and
hopefully I’ll catch my annual quota of a couple of local Lakers for the
frying pan.
Even though folks are still picking up some decent Walleyes, especially
early in the morning, the hot bite that we enjoyed earlier this winter has
slowed down. Many of the ex-Walleye aficionados have now turned their
attention to Crappies and a few others have turned to Bluegills to take up
the slack. Reports for both are coming in fairly good, although fishing
traffic is still fairly light compared to past seasons.
Crappie anglers are doing best by seeking out isolated deeper holes and
capitalizing on the fresh, albeit smaller schools of fish. 25 to 35 feet
of water, softer bottom with the presence of insect larvae seem to be the
ticket for finding these fish. If you catch a couple of fish that have
been feeding on bugs, you’ll know it because you can see evidence of the
larvae in their throat, the roof of their mouth or you may even see mud or
other soft material in their teeth. If you haven’t got any fish to
examine, but you still think you’re in good territory, watch your Vexilar
for a while and make note of any signs of action. Often, you’ll see fish
that look but won’t eat, return to these areas at prime time, dusk or
early morning.
Conventional Crappie methods and presentations are working fine. I like
blade baits like the Frostee, Demon and Swimmin’ Jigs. Tail hooked minnows
are general best and I like to run the hook parallel to the dorsal fin.
Fish these small groups of fish for a couple of days until they get
thinned out, when the action slows it’s time to move on.
Bluegill anglers are finding their fish shallower and closer to weed
growth. The big trick with the ‘gills is to keep the bait as nearly
motionless as you can. Hold the bait almost still a few inches over the
bottom and set the hook at the first sign of a bite. Heavier than average
baits work well as long as they’re small. If your selection isn’t quite
that sophisticated, you can use the conventional ants, glow bugs or even a
plain hook and add extra split shot sinkers a foot up the line. Tip your
hook with a wax worm and you’re in business.
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