Good morning from the Quiet Lakes, a rollercoaster is a great way to describe the weather we are having! Much colder today with a high of 15 vs. the 51 we saw yesterday! Tomorrow stays cool but then we are back up into the 30s and 40s the rest of the week. I am seeing a good chance of rain on Friday which will most likely knock down any remaining snow on the ice.
I do stand corrected as last week I said anglers would still be able to fish pike after March 1st…they cannot as pike are a gamefish, although most anglers would disagree! We do still have great ice conditions on main lakes, however folks should be cautious on lakes with springs or any kind of river inlets where ice could be thin.
Walleye– Anglers should get out today and tomorrow to get a few more walleye for the freezer, or just to get some ‘eyes on the ice. I was out Thursday night and we had quite a few flags around dusk in around 12-15 FOW. Suckers rigged under the tip-up anywhere from 15-18″ off of bottom worked well for us. Walleye are definitely starting to stage near spawning areas so work areas that have shallow water close by.
Pike– Anglers should still do well on pike, both around weeds and up on shallower flats. Set tip-ups slightly shallower than you would for walleye, say around 6-12 FOW around these types of structure. Suckers and shiners work excellent under a tip-up. The last few pike I have caught were full of eggs, so they too are going to be nearing spawning areas.
LMB/SMB– No report for any bass species right now.
Crappie– On lakes with a defined basin bite, anglers will find schools of crappie there. Look for those fish anywhere from 15-25 FOW depending on the depth of the basin and use tungsten jigs or spoons to get down to fish quickly. On lakes without a defined basin, look for crappie on deep edges of weeds or just off the weed edge. The same jigs and spoons will catch these fish and anglers have been tipping them with waxies, plastics, or minnows.
Perch– I have not heard much on a perch bite at all this winter, but anglers should find perch on those deep edges on shallow lakes, and deeper rocky transitions on lakes with deep basins. Small jigging spoons fished aggressively usually triggers bigger perch to bite. Crappie minnows tipped on those spoons seem to favor smaller jigs with waxies or plastics.
Bluegill– Bigger gills can be found on these deeper edges as well as any kind of vegetation that is still holding some oxygen. Bluegill seem to prefer jigs/jigging spoons tipped with waxies or plastics over any kind of minnow. Look for bigger gills anywhere from 8-15 FOW that has any kind of structure they can hide from predators in.
The reports will be shorter starting next week as they will only include panfish, but I will try to stay on top of ice conditions and the bite, and maybe throw in some open water gear reminders as well. Have a great weekend and we will talk soon.
Greg