Friday, January 25, 2013

Ice Report

Left work a little early today with my good friend to get a head start on the weekend fishing crowds.
We fished a Fond Du Lac county lake. Ice depth was 12".
Flurries blew in and out while we fished making for a beautiful afternoon. We had the ice all to ourselves. It was quiet, peaceful and relaxing. I love these kinds of outings.

We had about six flags in 3 hours time. This little guy got his photo taken before being released. Look at all that line! The little ones always run so much.

Some Crappies taken today. (The cutting board measures 11 inches). 
I will be out again tomorrow morning, not sure where yet. Reports to follow.


Saturday, January 19, 2013

January heat wave

With the wind blowing, and water on the ice, we ventured out on a local Waukesha County lake today.  Temperatures have been in the high 30's up to the mid 40's for a few days now, yet the ice is stable, 8 inches or more everywhere we went. Finding deeper water was the challenge today. Everywhere we looked the weeds were thick and gown tall up to the ice. 


 We managed to punch a few holes around this massive flat and jig up small pan fish. Most were sent back to tell their friends of the perils they had just survived.


We also had a good handful of flags, with a few low 20 to mid 20 inch northern.


This northern was the biggest of the day. Unfortunately it wasn't quite 26" which is the slot for Waukesha County lakes. He would have been a great candidate for the pickle jar, but we respect the regs and released all of our undersized northern today.
Fishing was slow, but that never matters to us. When you are on the ice with friends, the beers are flowing, the grill is rolling and food is hot, you'd better be having a good time.
Cold temps and high winds are in the forecast. We should be making ice rapidly this upcoming week.