Has anyone been out on the ice yet? Dwight let me know last week that the ice will be good to go before long. I got my house ready last weekend, and spent yesterday afternoon getting all my gear up to par and ready to go. Even put the sharp to the Frostee and Fatboy jigs. Need some minnows and grubs, then heading to Bremer Pond Friday or Saturday. We have had a very mild fall here, but the ice being ready to walk on is typical, on or about the 10th of December. I am aiming to smoke every crappie and perch we get this winter.
Hey Stick I was about to also request an ice report. We are in Lincoln and had skim last Thursday. It's been below freezing for about 48 hours now and will be for the next 36 or so. I'm planning on drilling some test holes at my place Wednesday. I will let everyone know thickness etc. I can't wait for some YP fillets in hot peanut oil!
Aww man, don't rub it in.... My gear's ready, new auger, nice selection of new tungsten jigs.... no ice, and the prospect for any in the immediate future is slim.... 60 degrees this past Saturday
Aww man, don't rub it in.... My gear's ready, new auger, nice selection of new tungsten jigs.... no ice, and the prospect for any in the immediate future is slim.... 60 degrees this past Saturday
Has anyone been out on the ice yet? Dwight let me know last week that the ice will be good to go before long. I got my house ready last weekend, and spent yesterday afternoon getting all my gear up to par and ready to go. Even put the sharp to the Frostee and Fatboy jigs. Need some minnows and grubs, then heading to Bremer Pond Friday or Saturday. We have had a very mild fall here, but the ice being ready to walk on is typical, on or about the 10th of December. I am aiming to smoke every crappie and perch we get this winter.
Lakes 10 acres and smaller are froze here, and I missed out on the early ice stuff, its already over 5 in. The big lakes are still open, but mabeye I can get some birds off of them?? I've been on the ice but just to see how thick it is havent had time to fish a hole.
You smoke crappie and perch?? I thought fish with lots of fat made better smoked meals?
I especially like those "Schooley" rods... kickin' it old school style! They may not be the most sensitive rods out there, but if a muskrat happens to pop out of your hole, as happens occasionally, you could always drive it away by using the rod as a club, without fear of it breaking!
I'm just messin' with you Cecil, I still have 3 Schooley's around here myself.
I am taking off the heads, and removing the guts. Rinsing off the slime. Then laying them in a single layer in the smoker. It is expermental, but there are "how to's" on the internet. I doubt that many of them will get beyond the county line. Sunil, how do you do it right???
If the ice is safe enough, I should be drilling holes on Sunday!
If you do, would you mind posting a few pics of your outing? Perhaps I can get a quick fix by living vicariously through your experiences, maybe it would be enough to tide me over until winter catches up with the calendar out here...
If the ice is safe enough, I should be drilling holes on Sunday!
If you do, would you mind posting a few pics of your outing? Perhaps I can get a quick fix by living vicariously through your experiences, maybe it would be enough to tide me over until winter catches up with the calendar out here...
Will definitely do that spark. Hope the ice is good. Looking forward to TJ's report tomorrow as a good barometer.
We got some snow Saturday, then temps began to plummet. Was below freezing Sunday through today, last night down to 3. So I thought I'd be stupid enough to give it a shot, although I was doubtful we'd have enough.
Drilled a few test holes, just under 3", shuffled a few more feet. listened intently for crakcing, and drilled. This time a little more, closer to 3", shuffle, listen and drill again. Never did exceed 3, but it was hard first ice, so I tied myself off to the dock and ventured out, solo - again, because I'm stupid like that.
Have had a pretty dense planktonic algae bloom for the last several weeks, so visibility was only around 30" and the AquaVu hole had to be pretty close to the fishing hole to be of any use. Last year I had over 8' visibility this time of year...the zooplankton today was so thick I could see them crawl all over the camera lens and swim by in clouds. I suppose they are feasting on the plentiful algae and the cycle will soon crash and visibility will improve? At any rate, very cool to witness this beneath the ice.
Once the gear bomb was set up and my stupid proved stronger than my fear of thin ice I managed to focus long enough to jig up a wee BG. I was able to target on the Vexi, jig it up a foot - he followed, then just barely could make it out hitting on the camera. The plankton and zooplankton is so thick it makes low light viewing pretty fuzzy. Still, it's a cool process using all the toys together when it results in a fish.
Tonight is more single digit temps and I'm hopeful it will add a half inch or more and I'll fish much harder tomorrow afternoon and can afford to be less stupid. Hope to find some YP or HBC. Certainly must improve my single punk BG effort from today.
Snowshoes to distribute your weight more evenly on the ice. Do you have a set of ice picks around your neck? They've got them in Cabelas near the ice fishing stuff - I saw them there last week.
Phone in a zip loc bag? (they don't work so well when wet) Extra set of truck keys stashed somewhere, or do you leave the keys in a place where they won't make it to the bottom of the pond?
Gotta' love that iffy first ice....baby steps all the way out, no sudden movements, staying close to the jet sled, no standing within 15' of another person... I've been there.
Thanks for the pics, TJ. By the way, what do you have tipped on that jig? Plastic, or do maggots come in pink now? I do well with the red ones....
You have officially started the season. I will be digging out my gear from the shed this evening! Hitting up a place in York on Sunday! Know anything about Recharge Lake?
Gotta' love that iffy first ice....baby steps all the way out, no sudden movements, staying close to the jet sled, no standing within 15' of another person... I've been there.
Thanks for the pics, TJ. By the way, what do you have tipped on that jig? Plastic, or do maggots come in pink now? I do well with the red ones....
I didn't have time to get waxies so I used Gulp or Powerbait waxie. If the panfish are really aggressive it doesn't matter what you use, but I still prefer live waxies to the plastics.
You have officially started the season. I will be digging out my gear from the shed this evening! Hitting up a place in York on Sunday! Know anything about Recharge Lake?
Nope, nothing on that lake. I'm sure it's loaded with 5-7" BG like every public NE lake. You'll have lots of action at least, hope you find some crappie or bigger gills.
My only experience with ice fishing was at Durand Eastman Park just in-shore of Lake Ontario. Was NOT well-equipped. Knocked a hole in the ice which was over a foot thick and water gushed up through the hole and soaked us up to the hips. Took 2 hours for his mom to come back and pick us up.
I have never been so cold walking around in underpants in boots with no liner. It was about 10 degrees out with a stiff breeze off of the lake.
I have always since remembered to keep matches in a sealed container. It would have been a lot less miserable if they were.
For some strange reason I have not been ice-fishing since. That was about 23 years ago.
I am not Dave Genz. Perhaps it is my age, hangin' with my brother Dwight, or various other natural phenominon, but I like to set the house near but not on top of structure, bait up, mix the ultimate bloody mary with a beer back, and attract the fish to me. I know this is not the way to go to catch the maximum number of fish, but it is ice fishing the way I like.
I am not Dave Genz. Perhaps it is my age, hangin' with my brother Dwight, or various other natural phenominon, but I like to set the house near but not on top of structure, bait up, mix the ultimate bloody mary with a beer back, and attract the fish to me. I know this is not the way to go to catch the maximum number of fish, but it is ice fishing the way I like.
I know lots of guys who feel like you do, stick. They enjoy the comaraderie, the routine, the ambience of the ice fishing experience nearly as much as catching fish. And it sounds like a pretty good time to me.
Myself, I'm a Dave Genz disciple. Give me my auger and a pull-behind, one man flip-up, and my boots won't freeze to the ice unless I'm crouched down over a hot bite. I've got the mobile mindset. Gonna' go find em'.
I am not Dave Genz. Perhaps it is my age, hangin' with my brother Dwight, or various other natural phenominon, but I like to set the house near but not on top of structure, bait up, mix the ultimate bloody mary with a beer back, and attract the fish to me. I know this is not the way to go to catch the maximum number of fish, but it is ice fishing the way I like.
It may not be the way to go to catch the maximum number of fish. It is certainly the way to go to catch trophy sized fish on Bremer Pond.
Fired up the mule with the ice auger, 150 foot safety rope, Ice picks, ice strainer, and ice measuring device on board. Put on all the cold weather gear including ice-cleated boots and headed pond side.
On the pond:
Tied off the safety rope to the Mule and me. Bored the first hole about 6 feet from shore. 5.0 inches Bored another hole about 30 feet from shore, 6.5 inches Bored another hole about 60 feet from shore, 6.750 inches Bored 3 more holes, the last at 150 feet, all 6.0 inches plus
Good to go for walk-on ice fishing, for sure.
While I was out there I put a marker on each of the Xs and the tank structure. The markers are pretty much in a straight line. If one stays away from the marker line in every direction one will be close to structure but not on it. There could be an errant tree clump anywhere on the pond so one is never completely safe from setting up on something.
I dressed way too warm just as I always do that first time out there working. Live and not learn..........
Dwight, do you use your mule to plow snow? I spent this afternoon putting the finishing touches on a homebuilt snowplow for mine. I used a customers mule last winter with a factory 6' blade on it, and the performance was impressive.
Dwight, do you use your mule to plow snow? I spent this afternoon putting the finishing touches on a homebuilt snowplow for mine. I used a customers mule last winter with a factory 6' blade on it, and the performance was impressive.
My neighbor takes care of snow removal as needed with his turbo-diesel tractor mounted snow blower in trade for Internet Access beamed from my office.
A blade wouldn't even get close to taking care of snow removal here.
I should mention that he also blows an 8 foot wide path down to the pond when needed for ice fishing access.
The nice days don't make much difference in the ice this time of the year. 3 or 4 hours in the 30s can't compete with the rest of the day and night being below freezing. I do prefer the warm sunny days with winds 0-5 though.
Dwight, do you use your mule to plow snow? I spent this afternoon putting the finishing touches on a homebuilt snowplow for mine. I used a customers mule last winter with a factory 6' blade on it, and the performance was impressive.
My neighbor takes care of snow removal as needed with his turbo-diesel tractor mounted snow blower in trade for Internet Access beamed from my office.
A blade wouldn't even get close to taking care of snow removal here.
I should mention that he also blows an 8 foot wide path down to the pond when needed for ice fishing access.
I guess I've come full curcle, as I started out with a blade, then switched to a blower which I have used for years, until last year. A dual stage blower will move a lot of snow, however it will also move a lot of rocks if you set the skid shoes down far enough to get the majority of snow cover off. I've had two shattered windows that can attest to that. After using the blade last year, which was a heavy snow year for us, I'm going back to that. I had snow rolling over top of the 18" high blade, and the mule just kept pushing. And I didn't replace a single shear pin, like I would've on the blower.
I'm guessing I might rethink my strategy if I lived in an area with higher snowfall amounts. But, then again, whether I was using a blower, or a blade, I've always approached removal the same way... if the snowfall amount is predicted to be over 8", I don't wait until the last flake falls before getting on it. Going over it twice, or even three times, works well for me and is easier on my equipment.
Looks like the distant shore is the place to get on and off.. surprised to see any open water.
I took the photos standing on the Barge. There is always open water there because the circulator keeps it that way all winter long.
If you look to the left of the ice fishing house in the closer up photo, you can see some YP laying on the ice getting a sun tan. They had been setup for about a 1/2 hour at that point.
I went down there for an hour or so, caught a couple fat-bellied YP and missed a few others. Oh, and had a tall Bloody Mary, Corona with lime and a Mikes BB with a booster.
We had a great time on the ice. Caught a variety pack of sunnies, perch, and crappie. The clarity on Bremer Pond is about two feet. Every other year it has been very clear. Had a couple bite offs, and then got a 28" NP. I was fairly surprised that it was that small since we usually see them at 35"+. Must be a runt, or sterile male. Thanks Dwight.
Since they are going to be smoked. I used the electric fillet knife. Cut off their heads, then about a half inch off the bottom of the belly to de-gut, and wash. A little running water to get the slime off and they are ready. I am reading the fish section of "Home Book of Smoke-Cooking, by Sleight and Hull.
Were out there yesterday afternoon and evening. Good ice, 5", but the lake we were given was a tough one. Extreme depth variations, a ton of structure and when we could find the fish, they were reluctant to bite. And were scattered throughout the water column. Very little luck. Nothing worthy of a picture.
I broke ice today off of the pier in one of my smaller ponds to release a 4 inch perch from one of my RAS tanks. I aclimated him first in a container by allowing it to cool down most of the day.)
He had made his way through the screen around the center drain. Most of my perch are too big to fit through the screen. I found the little rascal in the bottom of my clarifier tank when I pulled the gate valve to purge the center drain pipe of solids.
Call me a softy but considering the time and effort it took me to produce this little guy, and the fact that I think all life is precious, I had to release him into the pond. It took some effort to break the ice and it was pretty dark out there at 9:30 P.M.
There were four other small ones that other day but I forgot about them in the bucket outside and they froze solid.
There some sort of moose in Dwight's pond. Had it on for about 10 minutes last night before it ran into structure and broke me off. Didn't get to see what kind it was although I am assuming NP. Did catch a bunch of other fish, dominated by crappie. One more thing about that fish, I know where it lives, and expect to see it again this winter.
just had to push the first of my annual trips to my dad's house back by a few weeks. Completely unfair, weather. 48 degrees on the 19th of december in Chicago?
What the French, Toast??!!
So the first date has been pushed back to the weekend of jan 21st. Anybody in that area (N. Illinois or S. Wisconsin) please let me know if you get good ice in the near future.
I'm pumped...and I've been itching to drill into solid ice for over a month at this point.
There was some ice early last week, although it wasn't safe to walk on. The rain on Wed. made that disappear and I don't see any ice forming in the next week or so. 53°F out now.
There some sort of moose in Dwight's pond. Had it on for about 10 minutes last night before it ran into structure and broke me off. Didn't get to see what kind it was although I am assuming NP. Did catch a bunch of other fish, dominated by crappie. One more thing about that fish, I know where it lives, and expect to see it again this winter.
Call up the Discovery network and tell them you think it's a lone, surviving plesiosaur. They might put a team together and fly out to film a new docu-drama. I, for one, would appreciate something entertaining to watch.....
Check back on this thread for pictures. It is just a matter of time. I did go to some braid backing, 6 lb florocarbon leader, and reel with a smooth drag instead of the thumb burner I had.
Will do, I'm here at the boarder between Illinois and Wisconsin. Just a few minutes south of Lake Geneva. Skim ice gone again almost everything is still open. Will let you know as things lock up.
Caught a bunch of bass too, that we released. No NP nosing around last night, but she is down there. Fastest action ever on Bremer Pond. Fished from 1530 hours until 2030 hours. Pretty busy. Seven inches of ice now.
Tom Skilling of WGN (awesome for regional midrange weather forecasts and predictions of upcoming snowstorms) says we're supposed to have above average temps down here at my latitude of northern Indiana, Illinois etc., up through part of January. Doesn't look good for ice formation down here. I had some ice on the ponds but it left and the most I get is partial ice or thin ice now.
Picked up an 18" walleye under a tip-up tonight. Medium shiner about 12" off the bottom in about 4' of water, in an area that still has some green weeds. Roughly 8" of ice is on the lake (northern WI).
Hey Cecil, you're spot on about tom skilling. Im in st louis and still watch wgn to hear what the conditions are like @ my parents house. Since you are up near there, what do you think my prospects look like for a hardwater trip to the northwestern part of the chain in the third week of janurary? We had 3" of snow here last night, but warming up near 50 here later this week. What does tom say...is my ice fishing trip going to be a regullar fishing trip?
Hey peepaw....sounds like you are neighbors to my parents...they're right south of johnsville (sp), by morraine hills, in a roundabout way. Where are you?
I live between Mchenry and Wooodstock. Not far at all from Moraine hills.Skim ice in most areas of the chain and surrounding waters. Your trip should still be good to go???
I hope so. just a few weeks away, and although at least one cold snap in there, there are still temps looking in the 40's on the 15 day outlook.
They are just north of island lake, south of a town that i think is called johnsville, right off of 31 & twelve in a tiny little neighborhood. Glad a neighbor is on the forum. sounds like a ten minute drive from their house to yours.
You bet, Johnsburg is the town, know right where it is. Warm and rainy today/tomorrow but water is about 33 degrees. will lock up next week let's hope for good. Will keep you posted.
Ditto. I've got my whiteboard calendar set up with the projected temps for the next 15 days. Only 7 will stay under 34. A few, though, are very cold with highs in the low 20's from the 13-16. If that pans out, i think my trip on the 19th-22nd should be okay.
However, if you look at the preceding week to that, from the 5th to the 11th we have highs from 40-45. Lame. Uber-lame.
Fortunately the lows each night drop below 30 every night. With short days, I would assume we're spending more time freezing than thawing. Fingers crossed it stays locked up starting on the eighth (right after the warming spell starts to go away on the 7th).
Keep me posted, PeePaw. -mike
disclaimer: I know that a 15 day forecast can be ridiculously inaccurate. I've been banking on that for weeks, and unfortunately, they have been spot on. It hurts, but looks like accuweather is actually accurate this time.
with a daily average 2 degrees Celsius below freezing (28.4 degrees F), from an open pool of water, it takes roughly 4 days to make 10cm of ice (3.9 inches), assuming that the very bottom-most point of the ice layer is exactly 0 degrees, and the topmost layer maintains -2 degrees on average, and the heat transfer of the water temperature below the bottom-most point of the ice layer relates evenly across the entire body to average observed conductivity of solid state h20 (ice) in its natural, observable form. Meaning, in the next two weeks, you should hope for at least 8 consecutive days where it remains below 25 if you would like to hit 6 inches of ice, assuming the upper control limit of baseline plus (2.5* the standard deviation of temperature fluxes) in the chicagoland area on an average, observable janurary.
So i got a new job where i am surrounded by scientists all the time, and one of them in our milwaukee office who knows my plight of no ice, came back to me with that answer this morning. To all you biologists, chemists, physicists and everyone else out there...i love you for being smart enough to improve our lives....but sheesh....couldn't you have just said "if it averages at 25 for at least a week you'll be okay"?
disclaimer: I left out the excel chart where he plots average janurary temperatures...without it that equation looks wonky...
I don't know about scientists, but I had an instructor once who was fond of picking on engineers:
"If you asked an engineer to define the process of taking a leak, he or she would come back in an hour with a set of blueprints, a bill of materials, a list of required permits, and a notepad filled with mathematical equations showing you why taking a leak was utterly impossible. Geez, when are these guys gonna' learn that it's not always so difficult!"
My apologies to any engineers present......... kinda! There are days where I can appreciate his sentiments.....
(and not pictures of JHAP....just heading that off early).
I'll assume another +1.
At the moment, I could give you an open water pic of dad's pond. that's about it.
On a side note, anyone here ever tried the "rubber band trick" with a tip up? I've seen that it is amazingly successful with some trout species, what about LMB?
On a second side note, who's got plans for an easy home-made tip-up? I would really like to catch something on something i have made. I have two that i've put together so far this year waiting for ice, buit am having spooling problems with both of them. One is a hook-set, a spring-loaded arm sets the hook once the line is pulled out. The other is a basic swinging arm. Once i get a few minutes, i'll take pics and maybe you guys can improve my design. -mike
Dear Weather: What the hell? So i track you for a few weeks, and it all looks good for the weekend of the 29th, and then, all of a sudden, out of nowhere, contrary to the spreadsheet of projected temps i've been keeping and updating, the WGN forecast says "But hey! If we can make it through this snow, it looks like next week we will have a warmup in the middle of the week again that will have our temps back up into the mid 40's for wednesday and thursday!"
Sorry man, still thin up here. Supposed to get cold starting tomorrow, I still think you'll be fine. Lot's of backwater holding slabs. Keep the faith....
So, in my boredom and frustration waiting for a solid freeze, I started meddling with scrap wood in my basement, out of a desire to catch something on something I built myself. I dunno, call me crazy, but in a Hemingwayesque sort of way, I think that is a pretty cool way to test yourself and your abilities. Furthermore, I think that something like this could apply to the "if the SHTF" thread, and it might help with this issue:
Originally Posted By: Sunil
This thread needs more pictures
So, after I get through explaining my overly complicated and unlikely to work device, maybe other posters could join in and discuss crazy contraptions they have made. At least it will kill time until we finally get ice.
So here goes nothing.
Thar she blows. Sorry for my grainy image, there isnt too good of light in my work area of my basement. The idea is simple, the line is guided out of the spool by an eye-screw set right in front of the spool, and then goes up to the eyelet on the arm, and down through the eyelet at the base.
Here's another grainy pic of the base, where you can see the eyelets in front of the spool and at the base,
Basically, the contraption takes the path of least resistance. Since the arm moves easier than the spool would when the arm is up, the arm moves first. then, once the eyes line up better when the arm is down, the line spools off pretty smoothly. I need to take that fluoro off and put a spool of braid on, but other than that and some spray paint to pretty it up, It's pretty much done.
Finally, when doing the dry run to make sure i had the spool tight enough on the wood screw (but not too tight), i noted that if the fish were to stop running away from the hole and start circling, or coming back, the arm would drop back down, making it way too easy to gut-hook when you dont see the flag up. So i did this:
The refrigerator magnet holds the arm up easily, and doesnt get in the way of the line moving smoothly between the 3 eyes.
Anyway, i dont think this is a new design by any means, so this might not be any surprise to anybody, but i would love to hear any suggestions on it, and i would happily hear any ideas anyone has for different construction.
Total cost: $0...it is all scrap and hardware i had in my workspace. Total Time: 2 hours, mainly trying to fidgit with where to put the line guide and find the right length of the arm, tighten the spool properly and whatnot. After initial construction, i built another in the same dimensions in about 20 minutes. Just need a miter saw, drill, and 2 drill bits (thick one for the swinging arm, small one for pilot holes for screws).
Materials: 3 small L brackets, 2 of which are just for the magnet piece. 5 wood screws; 2 for the main construction, one for each magnet L Bracket, one longer one for the spool 3 wide washers, all used to make the spool turn and space it away from the vertical piece 1 machine screw for the swinging arm 1 nut for machine screw 3 washers for machine screw and swinging arm. 3 eye screws 1 1x oak material for base 1 1/2" dowel for swinging arm (long end is 15", dont remember how long the eyelet-end is) 1 2" wide piece of trim for the vertical piece, the scrap i cut off the top was used to reinforce the vertical piece.
May be a little cumbersome getting it out on the ice
the benefit of fishing in my dads back yard
One thing i am worried about is the flag not staying up. If that magnet falls off, or gets knocked off, The flag will only be up if the fish is actively pulling on it.
It's been 2 years of trying to get the bass to grow, and now that I have Walt the 3lb Bass, I'd hate to mistakenly kill him.
WhooHoo! Bring on the warm weather! I'd rather have open water than 1" of ice all winter.
I hate you so much right now.
This is me walking up to your computer and leaning on your desk and giving you a stern, menacing look. ('_') |\\-------
('_')// . | ___|_|___
And that was me going hulk on you and flipping the desk right over.
Sorry. Sometimes I get a little carried away. ('_') Let me just straighten that back out --------//|
Disclaimer: I don't actually hate anybody, nor will I be tossing over tables, desks, or other pieces of furniture or computer-holding devices. Furthermore, I am unsure of my ability to look either stern or menacing, any attempt would probably just appear ironically jubilant.
Yeah, maybe not caring is the wrong statement. Im not trying to execute them by cruel and unusual punishment, but the pike are a problem species in dads pond, so we do want to make as many pikecicles as possible.
That brings me to a detail I didn't mention earlier, though, sliding and movement. On the back end of the base of the second one of these I made I put two drywall screws through it so they poke out of the oak base by about a quarter to a half inch. They work as cleats, which should keep the thing from moving around or being tilted into the hole.
So here's the temp chart that my scientist friend made for me. The blue horizontal line is 30.15 degrees, which represents the lower control limit for making an inch of ice per day. It doesn't look so hot from here, with 4 days breaching the line between now and when my trip is scheduled.
Add to that that the temps reported on the longterm forecast have been trending up as they get nearer, and it looks like the ice will be just under the "safe enough for my wife not to worry" line of 5-7 inches. We still might be cool with 4-5 inches, but with all of the warm springs in my dad's pond, looks like i will, at best, spend the day sitting on the dock and only venturing out to chase flags as far out as a safety rope can lead me.
You can go on thinner ice if you spread your weight out over a larger footprint, such as using snowshoes.
When I was a teenager, the fishing on the lake was HOT. There was about 5" of ice on the lake. A warm front came thru with rain, turning the lake into honeycomb ice. We had an aluminum jon boat. I put the boat on the ice, stood in the back of it, and slid it out on the ice by using an ice spud to shove the boat along. I caught many fish that day thru the same holes I was using before the rain came thru and messed up the ice. The boat spread out my weight enough so that the ice didn't even sink enough to bring water up on top of it.
I can't even imagine what people were thinking if they saw me out there!!!
I've used the Jon boat trick many times myself. I like to kneel on the rear bench seat, hang one leg over the back, and kick my way out. If you're wearing cleats, and the surface is swept clear of snow, you can really get up some speed.
I m still going up on the 25th, safe ice or no, so ill just play it safe @the first and fish right off the dock, the dropoff to 12 ft is only about 5 yards away from there, so I can at least set up a few flags that are only a few steps away. Ill take a life line and tie it to the dock, and at least until I can be sure ice is thick that far out, only drill as far as the line can reach. Worst case scenario @ this point is that the long range forecast keeps bumping up the temps, or that the last few days of forecast im waiting for (so far have it out to the 25th), says that the actual days I will be fishing keep warming up too.
Take an old pair of boots and attach them to a pair of 2” x 12” boards about 36” long with deck screws. You will have roughly 700 square inches of area supporting you on the ice. If you weigh 200 pounds, that is less than .3 pounds per square inch. 2 inches of good ice – good to go!
Lol.....actually im going to wait on strapping 3' boards to my legs, and will likely tie the safety line to my belt instead.
The thing that I'm waiting for is the official "wife wont freak out at me for trying" thickness, which i have arbitrarily set at like 6". Right now, if that spreadsheet were to remain exactly how it has forecasted thus far, that is pretty much what I will be dealing with. Unfortunately, if i look at the past few weeks and how the initial forecast has played out in actual temperatures, things will be much warmer than that.
And fortunately.....we havent gotten to the point where they are "her" new oak floors. I paid for them, installed them, sanded them, buffed them, stained them and clear-coated them. Them is my oak floors.
And fortunately.....we havent gotten to the point where they are "her" oak floors. I paid for them, installed them, sanded them, buffed them, stained them and clear-coated them. Them is my oak floors.
If it is part of her home, it is hers. How long have you been married, anyway??
No, i didnt provide her the number. She, however, has come with me on a number of occasions, and has never been out on less than 8" of ice. She knows that most people say 4" is all good, but at that point she freaks that the depth of ice wont be consistent across the pond. So.....I assume that she would be okay with 6 (hence saying i have arbitrarily set the thickness level for the "she won't freak on me" depth).
Whether or not that is true, i will have to find out. She will be there as well, since she and my mom have some plans for the same weekend (hence me not being able to re-schedule, and why i am going up on the 25th safe ice or not).
And last of all...we're not actually married. Engaged at the moment, but we've been living together for almost 6-7 years at this point. "wife" though, is a lot easier to type than "long-time committed partner of the female variety to whom i plan to marry in the not so distant future." In either case, she probably deserves better than "fiance" after our extended engagement.
Gotcha. So you've been together for 6-7 years, she ice fishes, she gets along with your mother..... and she recognizes that ice thickness can vary dramatically over a short distance.
Responsible, outgoing with a probable sense of humor, compassionate, and pretty dang smart. Sounds familiar. 22 years and counting, married to a girl just like that. Pretty awesome stuff.
Gotcha. So you've been together for 6-7 years, she ice fishes, she gets along with your mother..... and she recognizes that ice thickness can vary dramatically over a short distance.
Responsible, outgoing with a probable sense of humor, compassionate, and pretty dang smart. Sounds familiar. 22 years and counting, married to a girl just like that. Pretty awesome stuff.
spot on for all accounts, especially it being pretty awesome stuff. Maybe she's not huge into ice fishing, but supportive of my northerly addiction. Plus she's a southerner, so she can cook and knows that gravy is supposed to be white and be made mainly of bacon grease. In fact right now she's slow cooking a potato bacon and corn chowder for tomorrow, which is making me want to drop my computer and hover over the crock pot.
And she knows more about plants and animals than I could learn in a lifetime..I think why she fishes with me is so she can study the ponds, turtles etc. She's a "biogeographer" by education, and currently operating as a part herpotologist and part microbiologist/botanist in a study she's working on. Yeah.....probably a keeper. Even if she keeps me off the ice in 3 weeks.
After that explanation, maybe I will let her own the floors after all.
It kills me when the waitress asks, "Would you like gravy on that?" What kind of question is that anyway?
You bring me a fondue pot full of gravy and some of those pointy wooden skewers and I'll show you how it's done. You're talking to someone who could use white gravy as a topping for ice cream.
I'm sorry, what was this thread originally about, again?
Nice tips, Mike. Enjoy using them next year. No way the lower 48 are going to see ice again this year. I hear even Dwight had to suspend all ice activity due to lack of the afforementioned.
We have two subzero days and all next week it's back to 40s and 50s. I have never witnessed a Winter like this in my memory. I have 1000 waxies turning black. I have a new Eskimo tent still in original package, and a four way aquavu screaming to be used. More's the pity...I'm going open water next week. If you can't beat em....
Tj, accd to the meteorologists, well have a few inches @the the end of this weekend, 2 days of 37 and 41degrees respectively and then back down to below freezing again. Just need it to be around 25for for a few days and were good.
Well have ice, or im flipping over tom skillings' desk.
Don't know about nebraska, but the chi WILL produce hard water.
Here they are talking about highs in the mid 20's and the low in the lower teens until the weekend, then highs in the lower 30's. It'll make ice, but with the snow, I don't know how good it'll be.
Chicago area 5"-8". Here about the same, but then lake effect kicks in and nobody's saying how much will come down.
The last storm we were supposed to get 3"-4" and I had 14" here. It all disappeared about 4 days after it fell.
Macguyver challenge 1): Create a tip up including at least one common mousetrap (which must be a functioning piece, not just dangling off the side), other materials are common bits and pieces...dowel rods, 2x4, screws, spool of line etc
Macguyver challenge 2): create a hook set tip up with common household items
Also, whatever materials you have or anybody could easily get a hold of is fine, it's a macguyver challenge, so if you can stop a bank robbery with some fishing line, two gum wrappers and two thirds of an ounce of kitty litter, SWEET!
Whatever you have is great, just macguyver it up. I think that simplicity is the key, though. However much i wouldn't object to seeing things spot-welded together or with a complicated electrical system, cogs, gears, hamster-wheels, chemical and bio-neucleic reactions, I think it would be more fun to see things that anybody could make.
In other words, if you are a nuclear engineer, that is awesome, but not everybody can get depleted uranium to power the flux capacitor your tip-up requires.
To get us started, this is the one they taught us to make in the boy scouts. I didn't have a spring doorstop at home, which is why i made the one that i did.
Someone needs to get out there and catch some fish and post some photos! That is the real challenge.
Wouldn't that require ice, first?
Or have we opened this thread up to include open water, winter fishing? If so, I have caught fish every weekend since Christmas. I caught a few yesterday morning before work. Thinking about heading out for a few right now. Very windy however, and starting to snow.
We have freezing temps here, all day yesterday, last night, today and tonight - of course it's still howling around 20-30 mph winds. Perfect timing. We needed just ONE calm night for an inch to be established...no such luck.
dad just called, they had a skim of ice survive the warm spell to last night, and ridonkulously cold so far today, his neighbor drilled off his pier and they have 1.5-2 inches, varying from 3 holes drilled, 2 holes @ chuck's house, one at dad's.
Ice is solid across the middle of the pond, just not at the shoreline. Snow is coming down, but ridonkulous wind isnt letting it stay on the ice, and is blowing and drifting into yards and up against houses.
3 more days of temps only getting to a high of 27, then one day above freezing projected on monday, then we are back into highs in the mid 20's - low 30's, with the possibility of an isolated thawing 2-day period (37 and 42 degree highs) in the next 2 weeks, and plenty of single-digit lows coming up.
I think not this weekend but next some BOW's in the chain will be safe. The following weekend is my trip.
It's on, tom skillings!
Dear Weather, thanks. -mike
Edit, here's the temp chart updated. I dropped the "freeze" line down to 28.4 degrees (-2c).
now you guys are starting to look like the ol' boys I talk crappie fishing with in Mississippi.Eat first, then fish. Have faith Mike, it'll have ice for your trip!
now you guys are starting to look like the ol' boys I talk crappie fishing with in Mississippi.Eat first, then fish.
I know those guys here in st. louis too.....sometimes i wonder, though, are they actually willing to eat what comes out of the mississippi? I've seen enough saugeye and channel cats with weird bumps and sores to know not to do that.
Originally Posted By: sprkplug
Sweet mercy.....
Mike, you and I are going to have to fish/eat/fish together this summer.
It's on. Actually, PeePaw can probably help out with this too. Up by him and my parents' house (in Johnsburg) is this ridiculously awesome place....the Epic Deli.
We hit a portillos, get an italian sausage (with sweet peppers and juice), get to fish, go to the epic deli, fish some more, sleep, have some breakfast covered in white gravy, and then fish some more.
Let's go!! I know both spots and your right on the mark. I still think the ice will be fine. You guys can come fish Wonder Lake too. Only Have to blindfold you when going to the "secret" crib locations for a mixed bag of eyes,gills,perch and bass!
My ice comes and goes. We probably had four inches a week ago, and two inches yesterday. We got about 2 inches of rain overnight. The pond is 100% open today. It is 53 degrees outside right now, but they are calling for "thunder snows" later tonight, with a high of 18 two days from now.
I'm glad I've got some fillets in the freezer. That may be my extent of "ice" fishing.
That sounds about like yesterday here in Oklahoma. It was 60 F at 2 pm and it was snowing at 7.30 pm. Today was 39 F. Tomorrow it will be 50 F and Sunday it will be 60 F. But we don't do any ice fishing here.
I've actually never hit wonder lake before...fox, pistakee, bangs, grass, independence grove, butler, lakewood, deerpath, big bear, forest, channel, defiance and griswold with varying levels of success, but never touched wonder. Don't know why, I've always heard good things.
Do you have a personal pond in the area? Maybe sometme I can get you out on my dads pond for our everlasting pike hunt. Its right by griswold and defiance.
Skinny, a true challenge has boundries, thought it would be a good challenge to try and incorperate the Mouse trap.... Just for some thing to screw around with. and the self hook set one, there are tricks, that people have been nice enough to share.
I do have a very practical tip up I've been working on for a while. But dont have the proto type done yet.
Hopefully this week as its my week off, but the trip to visit the inlaws... WHat do they say. When life throughs you a curve ball, make lemonade, or yellow slushies!! hehe.
<sigh> 15 day forecast updated this morning so that the entire preceeding week to when i am supposed to start fishing has highs in the mid-low 40's. With rain and thunderstorms, too.
Went fishing at Dwight's and listened to the games. Didn't get a picture, but got some perch, bluegill and crappie. Got a half dozen nice healthy bass we released. The time around sunset and an hour past dark are usually hot, but slower yesterday. I am putting it down to after effects of a large cold front that went by, or one of those big NP hanging around driving the panfish away. Ice at 7", clarity about the same at 36".
Just got the report from my favorite bait shop in crystal lake, IL, dead center of crystal lake is 5" thick, with highs in the 20's for the rest of the week.
However, that does not make it safe, as a strong reminder to everyone as impatient as i am, a man died in long lake, IL, this past weekend, fishing on 4-5 inches of ice, but his son did report that they found areas where it was only 2-3 inches thick, fell through as it melted in the afternoon, and drowned. Please, everybody, be as careful as possible.
This man's failing, i believe, was that he let his son leave him out there alone for an hour or two. When the son came back he found the hole his father had fallen through, but his father had been moved by the current and drowned.
Wow, sad story. I haven't grown a big enough pair to give my ice a test. I always wonder about currents under ice chewing away where I cannot see.
BTW how does one test ice thickness without getting out on it? Do you chuck larger and larger rocks until you find that a 210 pound rock chucked to 40MPH doesn't go thorough? (j/k but still?)
Only thing I can think of is going out on skis or snowshoes to distribute weight when ice near the edge is at least 3 inches. I am still too chicken though. Unfortunately I cannot find any politicians in DC to test my ice.
Yeah, I usually stand on the dock, drill straight down and measure. Then, if i feel that is safe, i go about 10 yards out to where the first of many good fishing spots are located, and i test it there. Wherever i am planning on going, unless i know the ice is a good 8 inches, i drill at least one test hole along the way, stop and measure. You can never be safe enough.
Also, it helps to know where your upwells of warm water are. Like my dad's pond bubbles water up from a variety of deep springs, so water that in the summer feels ice cold comes up, and the ice is always last to form there, and remains clear longer than anywhere else. If it is in any way shaky ice, stay away, stay far away from those spots.
Looking for "honeycomb" ice is a good indicator too.
We have a small lake 2 miles away for perch and rainbow trout. 2 years ago it was late march with heavy snow cover. There was alot of methane gas(I think) bubbling up from the bottom. Every 4-5 seconds a big bubble(half the size of a gallon pail) would come up the fishing hole. Went back the next day and the hole was almost twice the size at the top of the ice and big below the surface. The ice was over 2 feet thick before but the bubbles had lifted enough water to eat ice like aeration. Temps were around freezing.
It was still safe to fish in but a truck driving over that hole would have put a tire through.Never know what happens in some lakes to make poor ice. Dad fell through one winter up to his armpits on our way out fishing. The ice was normally good but he stepped in a weaker boil looking spot and went through. The next weekend driving a 88 gmc regular cab long box drove over a snow drift and the back end fell in. Good thing it was only 3 feet deep. He has learned his lesson(I hope)
Here they are calling for highs in the 20's and nights in the teens/single digits until Sat. Then 30's for a high and 50's for a high this coming Sunday.
First time on ice on a larger lake, I let others be the testers. If they are out there, then I think it's safe to go out. On my pond, I take a few steps and drill a hole. Couple more steps and another hole until I get to where I'm going. The Lazer auger drills holes fast.
Another thing to do is carry the auger horizontal to the ice. It will act as a wide wedge, and shouldn't go thru the hole with you as long as you keep holding onto it.
Good call, esshup! I almost forgot my trusty walking stick. I use it the same way, carrying it horizontally when walking on the ice. I never even considered using my auger the same way. Genius! 2 birds 1 stone.
Well, cross your fingers everybody. This morning I get to tell my boss that when I postponed my trip to next weekend, yeah I was lying about that, im leaving tomorrow!
Think the bossman will be okay with 18 hours notice?
That is huge! Well done! Just as impressive is recognizing that the camera was rolling in hopes of sharing it here and not swearing when you pulled the fish through the hole!
Finally got on the ice this afternoon. Only picture worthy fish was a 16" LMB that broke off just as I lipped her.
That's not a fish, that's a battle-station! My God, you could have set that thing out for Thanksgiving.
Oh, finally grew a pair, and tested the ice. We are at 6" over most of the pond except where there are springs along one edge. So... WENT ICE SKATING! My son's first time and he did well, just one bruise on the knee, but he passed out at 7:30 from skating over 3 hours today. He loved it.
Finally, finally, finally got on the ice today. Only three inches. The pond yielded five nice BG and a YP. The YP's stomach was full of small snails. Is that a good or a bad thing for my pond? It is supposed to get in the 40's again tomorrow.
CoachB, do you have RES or PS in the pond? If not, you may want to look into getting some. You are at the Northern edge of RES survival, so they may be a crapshoot.
I have RES and they are doing well. I caught two today that were nice and healthy and my friend caught a small one. I would like to get some PS but have not found a supplier. Maybe I should stock some more this spring.
was out all weekend. Shallowest ice we found was 4.25 inches. By the time i left on sunday it was 6 in spots, but chicago's looking for a warmup in the near future.
Caught a few, mostly BG, but also a few small bass and 3 small pike, I'll post some pics once i get them uploaded. Look for them in the next few days.
My homemade tip-up made it out on the ice but never got hit.
So.....thursday was mostly a bust. Got one pike that was 19 inches (all measurements are from after they froze into pikecicles) on a tip up in about 9 ft of water, large shiner 3' off the bottom.
Second pike was the biggest i have a picture of, at 24 inches, in 6' of water on a medium shiner, 2' off the bottom.
My friend matt, with his first ever ice fish, and his first ever pike, at 21.5 inches. Great story here, flag popped, by the time he got to it, nothing was on the end. He pulled the line in, saw the minnow still alive, placed it back in the hole and allowed it to sink while re-spooling the line. He said he watched as the minnow started to freak out, then watched the green rocket cross the hole, then the line started screaming off the spool in his hand, he dropped the tip up and brought the fish back in. And here is one of the bass. we didnt take too many pics, because we like to get them back int he water asap, but this guy was gut hooked, and died on the ice. Pretty much all bass were the same size.
Finally, one of the neighbors was out and did pull out a 32" pike, which he promptly ate.
Sunday was the killer day, though. I was packing up all my stuff and loading it into the car for the drive home. I took 3 tip ups and laid them out in front of dad's pier. I didnt even check for depth, just put them all at 6' under the ice.
In the 2.5 hours fishing i did, i had 12 flags that i had to race from the house to catch, and landed 3 bass and my dad nabbed a pike which he laid out on the yardstick on his pier and said it was 27. He should be sending me a pic shortly. I left him those 3 tip ups and my auger considering that the fishing was awesome at the beginning of the day, hoping he would land a few more. Unfortunately, they were calling for icy conditions for pretty much my entire drive home, so i couldn't stick around. I might try to go back for next saturday, but have a lot of projects to take care of, so we will see.
absolutely. The person who stocked them in didnt clear it with the rest of the lake committee, and they all agree they dont want any. Not to mention he put way too many in for a 7.5 acre pond.
The way i see it, any pike minnows and yoy need as many bass in the lake as possible to gulp them down.
It was a little disconcerting to see the shiners that were victims of drag n drops (flag pops, only pulls out a foot or 2 of line and drops the bait) had lost so many scales and many had puncture wounds.
No matter that i get at least one or two out each time i go up there, it seems as if it is still a pretty significant problem. And now they are all old enough to spawn. ugh. but....6 down this weekend. 3 of mine, one of matt's, one at the neighbor's and one dad got on sunday.
Now adorning the dock in the form of pikecicles. -skinny
next plan is for the weekend of feb 4. We'll see. I doubt they will lose an inch of ice between now and then, but other things like employment might get in the way of another trip.
Yeah, looks like there are more warm days than freezing days in the near future, and each freezing day is followed directly by highs in the mid 40's, so I guess that was my only trip of the year.
Oh well, the pike hit buzzbaits and rattletraps too.
looks like there is another cold snap coming in 2 weeks. Assuming that an inch and a half of ice has been lost between the last cold snap and the next one, there might be time for another trip!
Headed out to my ponds today - main pond had around 2.5-4" - felt like it was a little dicey, but this is the first chance I've had to fish since early December with our warm weather.
We caught and culled approx 40 BG from 3-6", but managed one Bull CSBG which was a very pleasant suprise, a few 6-7" RES, 3 nice SMB from 12-14" and a couple YP before the wind started rolling.
I've had SMB stocked for three years and this is the first time I've ever caught them through the ice - and caught 3 today! WRs were solid 110+ on two, the last one was a little torpedo shaped and under 100. Must not be a pellet trained fish. Wish he'd get busy hammering BG, then.
The RES are a challenge to get to strike - they are very tenative and I have to jig them up 4-5' from the bottom until they finally commit. Keep your jokes to yourself, yes, I chose to stand, but wasn't on my tip toes.
Alright, it's official. In less than two weeks I will be traveling with a friend to Brainerd, MN to help out with World's Largest Charitable Ice Fishing Contest! Pretty excited. Might even get to fish!
That's cool! Bring your warm clothes, and waterproof boots. With the weather this year you don't know what it'll be like. They are predicting 51°F here on Thursday.
If it's going to be cold out, your local winter gear is like someone from Florida's winter gear going to Nebraska.
I've got a pair of insulated pack boots that are rated for 120°F below, and if I'm not moving around my feet still get cold in the nasty weather.
If it's bad, you could see -30°F or worse on the thermometer. Disposable chemical heating packs are your best friend! I like the larger ones, that are supposed to run for 18 hrs. (about 6" square).
It's 34 here right now but the water in our stream feels a bit colder. Just got back from a dip. The rope railing is tied to a tree on one side but on the other side just to a metal fence post. The melting snow made the 2' wide plank bridge a wee bit slippery and the ground was not quite frozen enough to keep the metal post upright when I grabbed the rope railing to stop myself from going over. Landed upright in belly deep water. Quite a jolt. Didn't spend too much time in the water, and high-tailed it back inside for a hot shower. Think I'll avoid the bridge till it dries up.
If it's going to be cold out, your local winter gear is like someone from Florida's winter gear going to Nebraska.
I've got a pair of insulated pack boots that are rated for 120°F below, and if I'm not moving around my feet still get cold in the nasty weather.
If it's bad, you could see -30°F or worse on the thermometer. Disposable chemical heating packs are your best friend! I like the larger ones, that are supposed to run for 18 hrs. (about 6" square).
Oh, I live and die by the warmers. I like the toe warmers more. They're more versatile, smaller and shaped just right for all kinds of applications. I generally put two in each boot, one in each of my back jeans pockets and one in between my double layered gloves. I've been quite comfortable with this in nearly -20F weather. And that wasn't windchill.
1/2 pints of flavored Schnapps are quite popular in the Brainerd area for ice fishing purposes. Be sure to bring more than one halfer or they will laugh at you....
1/2 pints of flavored Schnapps are quite popular in the Brainerd area for ice fishing purposes. Be sure to bring more than one halfer or they will laugh at you....
Had some bad experiences with the flavored Schnapps so I'll probably steer clear of the stuff while I'm up there.
Got out for a short bit today and got into a few eater gills...
Got out on Bremer Pond yesterday. All my fishing buddies were either working, sick, or out of town so I went by myself. Variety pack of fish again, but no large NP. The Hamm's is especially tasty when you are all alone.
I drink alone, yeah With nobody else I drink alone, yeah With nobody else You know when I drink alone I prefer to be by myself
Every morning just before breakfast I don't want no coffee or tea Just me and good buddy Wiser That's all I ever need 'Cause I drink alone, yeah With nobody else Yeah, you know when I drink alone I prefer to be by myself
The other night I laid sleeping And I woke from a terrible dream So I caught up my pal Jack Daniel's And his partner Jimmy Beam And we drank alone, yeah With nobody else Yeah, you know when I drink alone I prefer to be by myself
The other day I got invited to a party But I stayed home instead Just me and my pal Johnny Walker And his brothers Black and Red And we drank alone, yeah With nobody else Yeah, you know when I drink alone I prefer to be by myself
My whole family done give up on me And it makes me feel oh so bad The only one who will hang out with me Is my dear Old Grand-Dad And we drink alone, yeah With nobody else Yeah, you know when I drink alone I prefer to be by myself
About one in ten BG caught is one of those bottom fish in the picture. They are squat and fat and feel different on the end of the fishing rod. Is that a male/female deal or a whole different fish?
1/2 pints of flavored Schnapps are quite popular in the Brainerd area for ice fishing purposes. Be sure to bring more than one halfer or they will laugh at you....
Dwight, you weren't kidding. Couldn't avoid the schnapps of all flavors. This was merely a volunteer thing so we didn't fish, but we made the rounds and were given food and drink seemingly every time we turned around. At one point I was handed a brat. Took a couple bites and then the guy warns me that "there's something special in there". Sure enough, my mouth is on fire. My buddy turns to a group of guys enjoying drinks and says his buddy needs something to put out a fire. He pours something red into my shot glass and I throw it back. He turns the bottle over and it's something called Hot Damn 1000 or something like that. Super hot. Definitely made it worse! All this before the gun went off at noon! So yeah, it was a crazy time. Basically just a huge tailgate party on the ice. I couldn't take very many pictures due to the need to keep my phone and hands warm, but here are a few...
Complete with street signs.
The winning walleye. Picture doesn't do it justice. It was a nice fish. Just a shade under 6.5 pounds. Won the guy a new truck.
Just a cute picture of a girl and her little brother.
Our crew afterwards.
They definitely do it the right way up there. Every demographic was represented and saw some very cool and innovative sleds and set ups.
Actual temp that morning was -6F. Windchill was probably approaching -20F, but the sun was shining and the wind died down by the afternoon.
It sounds like you had a good time! Just think of the fish swimming around down there and seeing all those baits. Ice fishing up there is a serious pasttime.
If you want something to warm you up while out on the ice, I was given a bottle of clear stuff.
Smells like rubbing alcohol, just wet your lips and your whole mouth feels warm. A shot feels like you poured liquid fire down your throat, but as a mixer, it is great - especially in apple juice or something like that. Sunil or TJ would appreciate it, you wake up with a clear head the next morning.
Ah, some moonshine concoction. Everclear was 190 proof when we were buying it (on rare occasions!), but I think that potency is illegal in some states.
Tried 6 oz of frozen concentrated orange juice, 6 oz of everclear, fill blender with ice and buzz it for a while. Good, but more then one or two will give you the spins. Especially if you have a large glass.
Jeff and the stick were out ice fishing again yesterday. 17 YP, 14 BCP, 12 LMB, 2 BG, and the 30.5 inch 7 pound NP. The LMB and NP were C&R. 12 of the YP didn't fit on the photo board so they didn't get their picture taken.
According to the stick, the females of all species are full of eggs. There should be plenty of new forage when the water warms and all those eggs get fertilized.
Have pinned down two spots in Bremer Pond where there is a very large NP living. Lots of long runs, fighting, and bite offs this year. The trick is to hook them with my 4 lb line in a spot where their nasty teeth aren't rubbing on the line, and keeping them out of the structure piles. I am still working on it.
Have pinned down two spots in Bremer Pond where there is a very large NP living. Lots of long runs, fighting, and bite offs this year. The trick is to hook them with my 4 lb line in a spot where their nasty teeth aren't rubbing on the line, and keeping them out of the structure piles. I am still working on it.
Yes I have. It is the challenge of the light line I like. I could go to heavy line and a quick strike rig and get one of those NP for a picture, but it would not be the same.
That could be worth a try. Certain instances I have seen the NP teeth go through braid too. We are going to get a blizzard here tomorrow and off and on over the weekend. I think it will be a while before I get back out.
In my younger days yes. Now as Sunil says, I am a wussie. Got to agree that the fish would be biting. Probably have to go outside the shack just to get a bait on.
Mike and the stick were ice fishing yesterday. These are the keepers:
They also caught the usual LMB that were released and a surprise SMB (5"). The SMB is assumed to be from last fall's stocking. If so it has been growing even in the winter as the stockers were all 3.5 inches or less.
Hamm's beer has become the stick's "day beer" (Sunil terminology).
Hamm's, first brewed in Minnesota in 1865, is America's classic beer. Hamm's is brewed using the purest water and the choicest barley malt, grain and hops. The beer that is "Born in the Land of Sky Blue Waters" is available in select states and is now brewed by MillerCoors.
Classic Dwight! I rediscovered Hamm's about 3 years ago.
I would like to add to Dwight's analysis....
It's GOOD and tastes like Beer should. Not some watered down "keep the little woman happy" kind of beer.Nor is it brewed for playing volleyball at the beach.You can see that it is brewed with the outdoorsman in mind, hence the similarity of the pictures with the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Real men are not afraid to crack open an ice cold Hamm's.
Mike and the stick were ice fishing yesterday. These are the keepers:
They also caught the usual LMB that were released and a surprise SMB (5"). The SMB is assumed to be from last fall's stocking. If so it has been growing even in the winter as the stockers were all 3.5 inches or less.
Excellent news on the SMB find...escaped predation to this point let's hope he packs on the weight and gets to 12" ASAP!
Suspended ice fishing efforts for the year. I don't know the totals on fish removed and eaten, but no 40"+ NP. Had one of those big ones on several times this season, but fished tighter to Dwight's structure units, so they either bit me off or tangled. Next year.
Suspended ice fishing efforts for the year. I don't know the totals on fish removed and eaten, but no 40"+ NP. Had one of those big ones on several times this season, but fished tighter to Dwight's structure units, so they either bit me off or tangled. Next year.
Dwight, Thanks for all the fun!!!
Fun job well done! I kept track of the fish you kept based on your email and photo reports. GSf:9, YP:28, BG:36, BCP:79.
A "cull" refers to a specimen that has been removed due to an imperfection. This is much the same as banishing a twerp from a group of more normal humans.
A valiant effort at reducing fish biomass providing increased headroom for the WE and SMB stocked in the fall.
Hey Dwight, now that you have WE established as a front line predator, I was wondering if we should start keeping any NP caught to utilize them before they die of old age and become carp food? I could rig for them with an ice fishing set-up so that even if they head for the structure piles I would have a better than average chance of getting them up on the ice. You know what I have in mind when I say "utilize" them.
