I braved the 'Bomb Cyclone' (aka the uber damn cold weather) and did a little ice fishing on New Year's day. I only got this one picture because my phone's battery died faster than a fat head minnow with a bad fin... When I went out at about 2 p.m. it was -2°F, wind chill of about -10°F. Ice thickness was highly variable, which kind of surprised me. But the pond does have 2-6 inches of snow cover this year. My first/test hole had 7 inches of ice. Several others were 5-7 inches. Along the main dam, near shore (and some new branch piles I placed) and in 3-4 feet of water, the ice was only 3 inches thick. I ended up catching ~15 BG, 5-8 inches. Almost all were taken near those branch piles. I used a titanium tear drop, baited with a 'preserved' wax worm (to start) and some crappie nibbles after that. I switched over to my favorite bait after catching a couple...an eyeball. No other species caught. I froze off after about 2 hrs, when the sun started setting. Was -10°F when I got back in the house. Anyone else give it whirl yet?
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