Fishing Report

Good morning from the Quiet Lakes, gloom and doom are what the current forecast is showing starting around 10 p.m. tonight and ending sometime Monday morning. The winter storm warning on my phone is showing anywhere from 20-32″ of snow and wind gusts up to 45mph. Add that to the around 8″ we got Thursday night into Friday and it’s looking more like winter around here than it should for March!! It looks like mid week starts to warm up and stay above freezing so most of this snow should start melting and create quite the slop on unpaved surfaces. It sounds like ice conditions are still fair, although shorelines from what I have seen and heard can be sketchy. Areas where snowmobile trails go on and off the lakes may still be safe, but anglers should check ice conditions anywhere they head to. The snow we have received and what is coming is going to create a lot of slush and problems getting around.

I honestly have not heard much of anything as far as a fishing report goes, as I think everyone was taking those 40 and 50 degree days and thinking spring, not ice fishing! If anglers do wish to get out for what likely is some late ice panfish, they may start to find them pushing shallower. Look for Bluegill, Crappie, and Perch on edges of weeds, and transitions from the basin to structure. Jigs tipped with waxies or plastics, or jigging spoons for more aggressive fish would be good options still. Fish anywhere from 8-15 FOW where you can find safe ice and start there!

That is all I have for this week’s report. Not much to go on, but I’m thinking the season is just about over. Gather all you need today as travel tomorrow and Monday is going to be rough. Have a great weekend and we will talk soon.

Greg

Good evening from the Quiet Lakes, another early/late report as we are in Duluth for a volleyball tournament this weekend.  This report will be short and sweet…..

Ice conditions are still favorable for now as anglers can still get onto the ice sheet and they are roughly 20″ thick.  Obviously anglers should be aware of creek/river inlets or outlets and landings getting onto or off of the ice as any kind of flowing or water or shorelines can change quickly.  I was out with the kids’ school on Wednesday on an area lake and we had about 19″ of ice but it got very slushy by afternoon.  We did manage to find some nice crappie in the morning while it was cloudy and colder, however that bite shut down during midday with a high sun.  We found crappie in 17-20 FOW and did not find them anywhere else!  During the midday sun we also found some smaller bluegill and perch, but nothing to write home about. We had great luck on small jigging spoons and jigs tipped with waxies…..we had very little luck on any kind of minnows as bait. 

The rest of this weekend is really supposed to warm up with temps in the mid to upper 50s and lots of sun.  No doubt that is going to start opening up streams, creeks, and rivers and anglers should be mindful on that if they want to chase late ice panfish.  I’m not sure of the exact regulations off hand, but I believe anglers can target trout in streams and creeks and rivers if they desire right now.  

I also noticed personally that I have a few reels to go through and get fixed or cleaned before opener so anglers should start thinking spring, or at least thinking of the bare minimum they need to do to get ready for the open water season.  Next week we will dive into some spring boat/rod/reel/tackle things that anglers should address before May 2nd sneaks up on us!

That is all I have for this week’s report……not looking great for anglers wanting to be the last on the ice as I think the shorelines are going to go away fast after this weekend, but that is the reality of March in the Northwoods!!  Have a great weekend and we will talk soon.

Greg