Good morning from the Quiet Lakes, an absolute nasty holiday weekend is underway for the Northwoods. Snow/sleet and ice accumulations are going to make travel unpleasant today, but we should start to see all of this mess going away as soon as tomorrow. The week ahead looks decent with temps in the 40s and 50s, however I am seeing some chances of rain Wednesday and Friday. Aside from a low of 10 degrees Monday night, overnight temps are starting to creep up to around or above freezing and that should help really start knocking some ice down.
It does not sound like anyone has been fishing, and we have had no customers in for bait over the last week. The ice has to really be starting to get questionable, and no fish is worth risking going through sketchy ice. Anglers should use this time to make a list of new stuff they need for next ice season, clean and put away any and all ice stuff and start getting open water rods/reels and tackle boxes ready. Only a few short weeks until boat ramps will be busy and cabins and resorts will start filling up.
Hooks are probably one of the more overlooked pieces of terminal tackle to go through in the off season. Most anglers just put baits back into the spots in the tackle box and just grab them back out when they are ready to fish. Now is a great time of year to touch up all of your hooks on baits (yes even for walleye, bass and panfish). Musky guys may be the exception as they are generally over the top about hooks! Hooks can get brittle over time and treble hooks can lose points after catching lots of fish or hitting structure. Jigs also take a beating getting bounced off of rocks, timber, and bottom. Sticky sharp hooks can be the difference of catching the fish of a lifetime, or the one that got away!
Sorry I don’t have more on the ice conditions or fishing, but that is where we are at this time of year. Have a great weekend, travel safely if you have to get out, and we will talk soon!
Greg