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Posted

Finally winter ice season has arrived. I struck out hit some of my favorite first ice haunts down near wabasha and Alma and found the pannies to quite active. We started out with hopes of some dandy perch but were pleasantly surprised the perch were replaced by big ol bluegills. The bite was streaky as you had to pick through quite a few little ones until a school of big ones rolled through. We found that small moves of only 20-50 feet were the best option rather than jumping in the car and traveling to an entirly different spot. By the end of the day Jr and I had a nice mess of 8.5"-9.5" for our fish fry and let many other keeper caliber fish go for others to enjoy. Here is Jr with one of the first gills of the 2012/2013 ice season.

rileysgill.jpg

It seemed the gills preferred the spikes over the waxies but the bigger ones were caught on waxies. The green Lindy Toad jigs seemed to be the ticket over most everything in my box. We fished in depths ranging from 4-20 FOW and had ice thickness ranging from 3-8"

Day 2 found us in another location on the WI side of the river near Alma where we only able to manage small gills. After a popping a number of holes trying to seek out the larger ones we opted to try the dike road on the way home. We were once again greeted with hungry baby bluegills. We didn't leave with out each one of the kids getting a dandy panny though.

myasgill.jpg

rileycrappie.jpg

Be safe and enjoy the first ice!

mw

Posted

That's awesome mike way to get the boy out there with ya.

Posted

I love taking the kids fishing except now Jr learned how to use my flasher on Day 2 and decided he will be using it from now on. I happen to have an old FL-8 in the basement he will be using next weekend if we are fishing the deep water.

mw

Posted

Nice report Mike and great pics! My son laid claim to my flasher this year as well. Ended up grabbing a Showdown troller for a 2nd unit.

Posted

I find it funny. My boy also claims my flasher. I think dad will just have to upgrade.

Posted

Really terrific Mike! Great read and pics.

Posted

Awesome. Nice work Dad.

Posted

Now that the kids got warmed up in week 1 with bluegills I switched gears a little and focussed mainly on crappies in Mississippi River Pools 5A, 6 and 7. Found the crappies to be biting well but the overall size seems to be down. If a guy is patient enough it seems the bigger ones show themselves eventually. For the most part I have been fishing the less crowded fishing spots and if I did find myself in a pressured spot I'd fish just under the ice and was able to pull a few decent fish. I have been hitting multiple spots in a day using a long rod and fishing fast trying to pick off the active fish. This week I am back to my normal work schedule so no mid-week outings for me frown

Here are some pictures from the week.

Kept 10 for the pan!

1113064_zpsecd9e9e6.jpg

The boy is getting the hang of this crappie thing!

ice005_zps8604c76e-1_zpsc0b0c2c6.jpg

Best fish of the week was around 13" sorry I forgot to get a measurement on it.

1113062_zps72e5a0f2-1_zpse443e804.jpg

Now is the time so do it. The ice has been consistantly 6-8 inches and I finally broke down and got the power auger out.

Happy New Year!

Posted

nice! thanks for sharing.

Posted

Nice pictures.

Posted

Love the pics, thanks for sharing!

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • monstermoose78
      Ok the ice was 15-16 inches and less than 2 inches of snow. It’s was -15 this morning and the weekend looks to be cold again. The fish were there but not biting with change in weather. 
    • Dash 1
      I guess the vikings are a lot like fishing.  Very entertaining but frustrating at times. I've probably been cheering the vikings for 50 plus years  that i can remember and once again it's all about (there's always next year).  
    • Dash 1
      I remember Jeno's boxed pizza years ago.  Mom made it every Saturday night while dad and I watched All Star Wrestling.  
    • smurfy
      Chef boyardee box pizza. Good stuff 
    • smurfy
    • leech~~
      Smurf, still trying to get his lure jigging down when using the camera!  🤭   https://www.facebook.com/reel/517510734635573
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the South Shore... Ice fishing is going great on the south shore of Lake of the Woods, with resorts and outfitters reporting thickening ice conditions with two feet of ice in some areas.  Many ice roads are now open to 1 ton vehicles pulling a wheelhouse.  Every road has different weight limits, check with each resort for details before traveling up and out on the ice.      Some good fishing this past week.  As a rule, fishing activity is happening in 28 - 32 feet of water.  Resorts do just about everything they can to get customers on fish and this past week, some resorts made some long runs, resetting fish houses in new areas miles off shore.  Most are reporting good fishing as a rule.     It is common to sort through some small walleyes and saugers to get your keepers on LOW.  Naturally, some big fish are showing up, especially in deeper water.  In addition, this has been a very good year for jumbo perch with good numbers being caught.  Other fish in the mix are eelpout (burbot), pike, tullibees and an occasional sturgeon.      Anglers are using the one-two punch of jigging in one hole and deadsticking the second hole. In the jigging hole, a jigging spoon tipped with a minnow head or tail in gold / pink, gold / glow red, glow white / pink, or Wonder Bread have worked well.     Especially in the deeper water, some anglers are finding success on rippin raps or using jigging spoons with a rattle as well.     On the deadstick, a small jig with a live minnow hooked behind the dorsal fin set 6 inches - a foot off of the bottom is working well.  One day the jigging line catches most of the fish, the other day a deadstick is hot.     Electronics are very helpful to see suspended fish, know when fish are coming through and adjust your presentation to the mood of each fish.  Most resorts, outfitters and bait shops in the area rent electronics by the day.   On the Rainy River... The Rainy River is still producing some nice walleyes and saugers, primarily in the mornings and evenings.  A jig and minnow working well.   Catch-and-release sturgeon fishing continues to be good for those targeting them.  An oversized hole, or three holes drilled together, with nightcrawlers or frozen emerald shiners on a sturgeon rig fished on the bottom are what anglers are using.     Ice conditions on the river can vary significantly due to the current. To stay safe and maximize success, always work with a local resort or outfitter familiar with river conditions.    Up at the NW Angle... Ice fishing continues to be very good up at the Northwest Angle. Resorts have fish houses set up on various pieces of structure as well as adjacent to structure in deep mud.  A consistent mix of walleyes, saugers, jumbo perch, pike and tullibees in the mix.     Shallow structure is best right away in the morning and as the sun starts going down in the late afternoon.  Mud is more of a slower bite but all day.   The ice road from Jerry's on the mainland (Angle Inlet, MN) to island resorts (as of this past week) was open to 1 ton vehicles.  Guests drive right to their island resort after picking up a road pass at Jerry's or Point North Services.  Venmo is also available at all resorts.  Work through your resort for specifics.   Ice fishing is in full swing across Lake of the Woods and there are openings for lodging, fish house rentals, sleeper fish house rentals and meal plans across the area.  Ice fishing is extended on LOW with fish houses allowed on the ice through March 31st, walleye / sauger season open through April 14th and a pike season that never closes.  
    • Brianf.
      From your fingertips to God's ears...  Finally got some snow!   Several inches of new snow fell before and during the weekend.  Sunday eve when we left, the high winds had already begun to create some drifting on the lake.  It was fun riding for sure.  Lots of folks on the lake this past weekend too.  We fueled up the sleds at Shamrock and saw as many people fishing in that area as I've ever seen in the Winter on Lake Vermilion.     Our weekend results were decent.  Jeff and I and a buddy caught probably 50 walleyes between the three of us, mostly fishing a jig/plastics with our three biggest being 24", 25", and 25.5".  We also got one large pike of unknown length.  During the midday on Sunday, we targeted whitefish and Jeff managed one big one.  We released all of our fish, except for three small walleyes that our buddy wanted to bring home for a meal.  Definitely a fun weekend on Lake V!   
    • leech~~
      The Vikings are the Vikings so it's nothing new.  It is kind of sad that Darnold's off season stock is now going to drop like a rock after these last two games. It kind of shows he's not a big game guy.  🤔
    • smurfy
      I'm blaming leech... his food selection has been lacking game days recently  🤣
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