Early Ice ‘Gills

I have often found myself “walking on thin ice”, metaphorically as well as literally.  The former usually involved my wife Pam or some other authority figure. The early cold weather we have been experiencing has literally put me on thin ice. I have conflicting feelings about the transition from Fall to Winter. Do I want the milder weather to last (who doesn’t) or do want an early start to winter and ice fishing? The last two years have had warm temperatures extending well into Fall. Last year I was floating my boat nearly until Thanksgiving.  The late Fall bite for walleyes, brown trout and especially northern pike can be spectacular. Two years ago, I was fishing Hedgehog Hog Harbor in the northern part of the county on Christmas Day. Before you call me Scrooge, I was home with nothing to do and it was 48°F outside. I had to go fishing, even if it meant putting me on thin ice with Pam. The warm temperatures were much appreciated by most, but it did delay the ice fishing season. The local lakes last year did not have good ice until January and Green Bay did not freeze up until February and even then it was iffy. The guides who rent shacks for whitefish anglers had a real short season if any at all. It was a tough year for ice fishing in Door County. 

What do I mean by good ice? Most winter safety sources, including the Wisconsin DNR, will say that four inches of ice is safe to walk on. I use that as more of a guideline than a hard and fast rule. I base my decision to venture out on a frozen lake on several factors. First is the nature of the ice. If it is good solid, clear ice, I would push that to three inches. I would not jump up and down on this ice and would make sure I have my ice picks, a throw rope and a flotation device, just in case. There is a thrill walking out on clear, almost transparent ice. You feel like a deity walking on water as you peer down at the lake bottom under your feet. The second factor is whether other anglers have already been out on the ice. I never want to be the first guy on the ice in the early season. This may sound selfish on my part, but it is best not to be the Guinea pig if you can avoid it. The final factor is how long has it been since I fished and how are the fish biting. This one can get anglers into a lot of trouble, including me. Sometimes the desire to fish can override one’s better judgement. This is not just a winter thing. I have seen weekend warriors in the summer head out on Lake Michigan in pursuit of salmonids with conditions that had the big lake boats seeking shelter, just because this was their only chance to fish. I get it. When I was working for a living and my fishing time was limited, I would go whenever I could no matter what the conditions. Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night would stay me from my appointed fishing trips. (Apologies to the U.S. Postal Service.) I did survive those episodes of poor judgement, mostly.  

Following my last open water outing this year, winter came down on Wisconsin like a sledgehammer. A freak Arctic blast bludgeoned the state. Snow, howling winds and cold temps shut down the “softwater” fishing. Sad, but it raised the hope of an early ice fishing season.  We started scouting the local lakes and others within driving distance for good ice. If we couldn’t visit the lake ourselves, I would talk to local contacts for ice reports. Lance at Howie’s Tackle in Sturg usually has a good sense of the ice conditions in the county. One source which is fairly reliable is Lake-Link. This valuable website uses angler reports to produce a graphical representation of local ice conditions. Although Lake-Link will give you an idea of ice fishing conditions, it is still best to stop at the local bait shop or talk to another angler about the ice on a particular body of water.  

Paul and I had on opportunity early this winter to test our better judgment. We had not been fishing for a while and we were both anxious to go. I happen to spot a guy out on the ice of one of the local lakes and convinced Paul we should give it a try. The next day we loaded our pickups with our ice fishing paraphernalia determined to start the ice fishing season.  I remember when ice fishing was simple. I would go out with a spud to chisel a hole, a bucket to sit on and a pole I fashioned from an old, broken spinning rod. Now I have a collapsible shelter, electric ice drill, sonar fish finder, several purpose-designed ice fishing rods and a plethora of devices intended to make the experience more convenient. The enterprise has become a lot more complicated and expensive. But that’s on me. I like my toys. 

When we got to the lake, nobody else was out on the ice but we could see footprints and sled marks indicating people had gone out recently. We did not check to see if there were any footprints returning. I walked gingerly out on the ice, with Paul suspiciously hanging back. I drilled a test hole just off the shore. The ice seemed solid with a thickness of four inches or there abouts. Even the DNR would judge this ice safe. Paul agreed we should try it out a little further. We walked about fifty yards out on the ice sheet and drilled another hole. Three inches, maybe, if you measure just the right way. We looked at each other as we stood on the crystal-clear ice. I could see lake weeds swaying in the water below. I reminded Paul where my throw rope was, and we cautiously walked a few more yards out onto the lake. Another hole was drilled. It revealed no more than two and half inched on ice. Paul backed away from me several paces. The moment of truth had come. We were literally walking on thin ice. Would we allow our keen desire to go fishing override our best judgement? We looked each other in the eye, and we knew what we had to do. To the shock, I am sure, of almost anyone who knows us and our love of fishing, we made the decision to abandon the endeavor and go home. We would live to fish again if we could get the hell off the ice. 

It took a week of cold weather before we made the attempt again. This time there were several groups of anglers out on the lake. Our test holes revealed at least six inches of ice. We were all good. We used our GPS to locate ourselves on a portion of the lake we knew held fish. It took a while to get our equipment properly set up, but soon I was dropping a waxworm festooned ice fishing lure through the hole. The bite started immediately. Soon we were pulling up bluegills from the gin-clear water. Many were small, but others were “keeper” sized, up to ten and a half inches. We returned most of the fish back to the lake, but I kept enough for a supper of fresh bluegills for Pam and me. Although these panfish are tedious to clean as each fish does not produce much meat, many consider bluegills one of the tastiest to eat, even superior to perch or walleye. Since that initial outing, I have made a few more trips with similar success. I eagerly await the time when the bay freezes sufficiently to allow the targeting of whitefish, perch, even walleyes. Until then, I will content myself in the humble pursuit of bluegills. I just like to catch fish. 

One last thing. Some of you may be asking, “Hey, what lake were you fishing?” As the cliché goes, I could tell you but then I would have to kill you. I would not go that far, but I do know that if I revealed the identity of this lake, I would be on thin ice with many of many fellow anglers.  So, if you want to know where I caught those fish I will tell you, “I caught them in the mouth.”

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish, Bruce

Questions or comments to bsmith733@gmail.com