Countdown to Go Time Part 2

As soon as that calendar flips to December, it's all about ice fishing for me. Unfortunately, mother nature doesn't care what I think and never gives me ice around here until a month after that. But I guess that's why I have a vehicle and the ability to drive north...

According to the calendar it's still fall until December 21st, then it's winter until March 20th. I'm good ice fishing during the winter and other recreational activities in the other seasons. 

Some of the best early ice I've seen in awhile. 4-6" of crystal clear ice and no snow in the forecast is setting up for a good season fellas! ATVs started heading out on some lakes yesterday. Still staying on shallower bodies of water but next weekend should be able to hit the basins. Tight lines!

All my stuff is gone through save for one tipup, which needs a tack weld where the spool attaches to the spindle shaft. I'm having a friend do that here at work today. In the mean time I'll be chasing eyes at night in the open water.

What a great day of ice  fishing!
Got an early Christmas present- a new Eskimo E40 composite 10 inch auger. 
Let me tell you, that thing is so light and drills so fast.
And, being a Kurt’s Island ice fishing sale, he threw in a free battery! 
Fishing was slow at first, but it really picked up from 2:20-3:45. Small pike, but good action. But, on one hole, there was that spin where you know it might be a big fish.
And, after a lot of give and take and a few powerful runs, a giant pike head appeared and out of the hole came a 38.5 inch slob of a fish!! 
If you know me at all, you know the fish is still swimming after a few photos. 2nd biggest pike ever for me! 
Great start to the season. 4 inches of ice. 

" Talked to a climate scientist and he said by 2030 there will be no ice anymore from Green Bay South.He actually thinks by 2050, it's  history unless your North of International Falls MN or 49th Parallel"
Yeah sure! Then buy a boat or quit, but P&M about isn't going to make a difference. If there was no more ice fishing,  think how phenomenal it would be in the summer then! I won't have to move south when I retire if it never freezes here!

Lake Michigan has its own climate. If there is a lot of easterly winds (which last year there was) and temps barely below freezing inland then it will be warmer near the lake.  Browns Lake will have ice by the time we have our gathering or else we'll have a good time in the parking lot!

MCC,

The snowmobile trails in Vilas County were open until  to the  very end of March last year.  It was the first time that had occurred in 10 years, and before that it was 18 years ago.  

Ice didn't  come off Plum Lake until May! Two years before that we couldn't put the piers in for opening  fishing.  

This is a thread to discuss the awesomeness of Ice Fishing.  

Try to think positively, you'll feel great!

I see MCC is back...

All climate scientists who predict what you heard need to go back and look at more climatic data! Some of our largest extremes occured close 100 years ago! I've already ice fished once in southern wisconsin this year and I will go again once we get another cold spell!

Perch, what kind of gear are you selling? I may be interested. PM me. 

n.pike, I call BS on the El Nino thing. Last year was a raging La Nina and it was the same story. It just is what it is now, regardless of the cause. 10 straight warm Decembers is more than a coincidence. 

I'll be up in Forest County on Dec 14-16...hopefully the ice will be fishable by then! Let us know how it goes for you this weekend. 

Climate change, people can have different views about. However, I will say whenever there’s an El Niño, this is kind of what we get. Thankfully, up north here, most of the small lakes have locked up and enough where we can withstand highs in the mid 30s with Lows still in the 20s.  But it does seem like the temperatures are creeping up in the ten-day forecast a little bit each day.
Heading out for the first time this weekend, but I do know there’s a few few people that have fished up here already this year…

Come on, Perch. Water doesn't instantly freeze just because the air temperature is low. With the extremely warm November we had up until now, water temps were warmer than they would normally be so it will take a LOT of cold weather to lock us up. And unfortunately December looks to be very warm, as usual. We aren't going to be on the ice down here until January. 

Walked onto ice in southern Wisconsin near Madison today. Ice was made from the snow we had recently which froze into the ice and it was not very sturdy.  Inch a half thick and went thru with one super hard hit. Someone drilled one hole out there but it didn't look like they fished out there.