I have never went ice fishing on Mille Lacs but I may give it a try early ice this winter. Just curious for early ice, do most guys target the same general areas they were fishing during the late Fall open water season? Any help is appreciated.
Absolutely!!!
Mark
Early on you are going to find them anywhere from 5 to 20 isn ft. A lot of variables will come into play such as time of day, ice clarity, and cloud cover, but in general start shallow early/late and deeper during the day. A lot of variability as far as what part of the lake your on as well, but essentially look for weed lines, rocks, breaks, or transitions.
Last year was a unique year in several different ways on Mille Lacs for early ice….Here is a video James and I shot early ice last year. Lots of good info….Enjoy.
I’m by no means an expert, but daytime has been better for me around transition areas (from gravel/rock to mud) and as the sun gets closer, it’s been better up shallow near the tops of structure.
We had a very good night last year fishing nearly on top of a reef in 4.5 ft last year. Set the hook and the fish is just about already out of the hole. 
Thanks for the posts guys and the video clip. I have a pretty good idea where to start now. Will post a quick report if I make it up there for early ice. 
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