North Shore Lake conditions

Mitch and Everyone,

Your take on the weather and ice making the past 24 hours is dead on. Today, we still can not find 10 inches of ice in our area. (we won’t drive on less than 12″)It was still the 9.5″ it’s been now for a couple days.

We surely doubt, even with the big cold snap starting tomorrow night and being in place over the weekend, that we can safely allow anyone with cars or trucks and SUV’s, nor our trucks on the ice until at least Monday.

We will continue to check on the ice thickness daily, and if things change drastically, our plans could change. Not likely, but we are surely open to getting on the ice sooner if things become safer sooner.

As of now, our plan is to put the trucks on the ice Monday and plow at least the shore related fishing grounds. Knowing that the banks will flood and become hard as a rock overnight, we will plow them to mid season width right away. Then we’ll do the house driveways. Again, knowing these banks will flood, especially after houses are in place, we will drill a hole right away where the house will sit and let things flood as much as possible. With the cold overnight temps in place, this system will allow the houses to set on more ice, with less fresh, flooding under the house and skids when they get spotted. We hope to avoid as much flooding as possible by not only waiting until at least Monday for more ice but also creating some flooding before the houses add weight to the relatively thin ice.

We surely appreciate everyone’s patience. Simply, the ice is what is. Your safety and comfort, as well as our staff’s safety is paramount. Call it “ice logistics”.

Of course, at no charge, our access will continue to be open to ATV and snow machine traffic. Check in at the office for ice updates before you go out as this cold snap will surely have the typical crack(s) active and up to date direction is always best to have before you leave shore.

Stay tuned!

Thanks for the daily update!
The next couple nights should really help.

Do you guys have a pizza machine in the office? We will need to come in mid-day on Friday to drop off a man and it would be nice to stop in and warm the digits and fill the belly.

Thanks!!

John

Heggies Pizza is on hand and there is an oven here in the bait shop as well. We’ll look forward to seeing you and hearing your fish stories from the morning trip.

Not much new to report. We are still on schedule to get on the ice with the plows on Monday.

New Years Eve (tonight) will be minus 10 or more and minus 25 tomorrow night. With those cold temps, we expect a split in the ice somewhere along shore, within the first 1/4 mile, so we will be on it with a bridge if need be. Snow machines can usually cross the breaks fine but this kind of cold can make the split wide enough to drop 4 wheelers into, so be sure to use the bridge. Again–it’s best to check into the office before leaving shore.

Fishing reports were on the slow side today, with most reports coming into us from the mud flats. Locals report catching a couple walleyes most evenings along shore.

Be safe in this cold! The big lake isn’t called “Frostbite Flats” for nothing!

No doubt, things are heading in the right direction! With 25 or more(maybe minus 30!) below zero tonight and tomorrow night, we’re hoping we get the 2-3 inches of ice needed to safely get the trucks on the ice Monday and progress toward starting to pull all the houses by mid-week.

As usual, the cold is splitting the active crack, which is out front about 300 yds. We have it bridged for ATV traffic and will add the big bridge early in the week–we hope.

Just an FYI–3 of the 4 north shore ice fishing operations have yet to drive on the main lake ice as of today.

Stay tuned and be safe. At 20 below or more, there’s not much room for error on the big lake.

Fishing reports from this morning were fair with most having 2-4 walleye keepers and a few too big.

Wow, I can’t believe the temps up north right now. I’m in Onamia, and at 8pm it was -15 already. I would think the lake is going to be making some noise tonight. With -25 predicted tonight, and tomorrow night.

I’m interested to see how much ice the lake puts on..

Hey Red Door. Its -24 here with a high of -6 forcasted today. Want me to keep prayin for cold weather, or should I back off a little??

Let’r rip! Until about Wednesday. Then you can back off.

Minus 30 at 7 am.!

Thanks for letting us use the access yesterday. Fishing stunk for out group out on the mud. Lots of lookers, but only only one “real” bite/hookup for our group.

FYI for all. There are full size trucks going all over the lake. I personally think they are pushing it a bit. One 3/4 ton giant Dodge truck came flying by us. Literally causing water to shoot up out of our holes. I didn’t measure the ice out on the flat we were on, but my guess is right at 12 inches. Max. However, I’m sure there is another inch this morning. She was a cold ride in last night.

Hey Red Door, was there a brave sole willing to check the ice this this AM? What did this arctic air do? I’m seeing -25 this AM again, man that’s cold.

Stuff just stops working when it get this cold out side.

Mitch,

We checked this morning and found 10.5″ to 11.5″ on the main lake ice. The crack also moved out onto the new ice, to about 20ft. of water.

We plowed to mid season width out to the crack and will try to put a bridge over it tomorrow after one more night of sub-zero temps. If all goes well, we should plow to mid-season width in all directions by Tuesday and start pulling houses. If all goes well. We’d sure feel better if we had two more inches of ice.

Fishing reports are “slow”.

In all the cold the past few days, we gained only 2 inches of ice in some places. Even yesterday morning, we found 10.5″ under deep drifts with it pushing the 12″ we set as the bench mark for driving in level snow area. After plowing the snow off, it will make ice fast now.

We had to bridge 2 cracks before we got the plows on the job. But after all that, the guys did punch the main road to Weimer andd Bombeck. Today will be another long day of opening up roads out there and to the other fishing grounds along shore. We’re hoping, if all goes well, to start pilling some houses Wednesday and be in full swing by Thursday.

Fishing reports are mixed. Many are still reporting tough going during the cold snap but one local reported last night he had his limit in short order yesterday. Go figure!

Stayed tuned! It’s cold!!!

OK Red Door!!! Things are shaping up. I got ya -0 nights till Friday, and petitioned for a warmer weekend. The rest is up to you. See ya soon!!!

I’m excited for this weekend. Thanks Red Door.

The guys have been out plowing for two days now and have good traveling to Weimer, Bombeck, Resort, Pantry and Fletcher flats. There is also a good road along the shoreline break areas. All the rental houses are on the ice and the “perms” have been going by the office, lake bound, all day.

Big north winds and some snow Thursday should make the going a little tougher. Time will tell. In the meantime, as usual, fishing reports are spotty. Meaning some anglers on some spots are doing well, while others report slow action.

As of now, off road travel is fair with 4×4 trucks, ATV’s and snow machines. Either flag a plow down to open a hole in the banking for you or choose a spot to get off the road where there is very little banking.

Stay tuned!

The landscape from a Wealthwood Shores viewpoint is changing fast. Many of the houses are now out and in place. Ice travel is fine from all aspects. We have nothing bridged at this point but that can always change from day to day or even hour to hour.

We have all the roads open to all the fishing grounds now.

Fishing reports? Not much chatter yesterday. One angler came in and reported catching three walleye keepers first thing in the morning. Our rentals will see the first action tonight so more reports should be on the way.

A warming trend on the way? Now that we finally have good ice, THAT will be welcomed!

We hope to see many of you soon!

Sure hope all the time and effort you put into these reports translates into business for you!!

Keep up the good work and I hope you have a banner winter!!

A few fishing reports came in yesterday as more houses went out. Some were pretty good on keeper walleyes.

There aren’t many ice cubes on the lake that haven’t been turned over now. We have houses sprinkled on and around 6 mud flats and a mile of shoreline break. The cold air did open a crack early yesterday that we had to bridge. It is two miles out onto the lake running NE to SW, just south of Pantry, running west across the south half of the Resort Flat. Be aware of that if cross country traveling with a full size truck. Best to use the bridge. Hopefully it will heal up asap.

Stayed tuned! Heat wave is in sight.

Fishing reports were very spotty Saturday. Several houses reported good walleye numbers and size where several reported no action. Reports of walleye catches came from all areas with the mud flats being favored. Maybe the warming trend will make things more consistent.

Ice conditions are fine for the most part. Travel by all means is fine but only 4×4’s off road. However, we are dealing with a new live crack about two miles out. Friday it was crossing our Resort Flat road and then it routed northeast yesterday and crossed our Pantry Flat road also. We have both roads bridged. Be very aware. Crossing a crack that is a foot wide without a bridge can break off a large chunk.

Always check into the office to get updates on where any bridges might be.

There is a heatwave on the way!

Walleye reports by late yesterday were pretty good by some. Most houses had some action with reports of up to 17 walleyes caught by one house. Included was a 28.25″ and 29.5″ walleye.

Several reports of good Tullibee action also came in. They could become a target fish again as they were for Red Door customers years back.

Overall, everyone seemed happy after the first big weekend with the big houses on the lake. Very little flooding proved it was good we waited an extra week to get more ice under the big houses.

Warmer weather should make it much easier to hunt the fish this coming week. Off road travel is fine. Always watch closely for fresh cracks. We’re hoping the big crack two miles out heals and the main crack becomes closer to shore, as usual, for the rest of the winter.

Stay tuned! THANK YOU to all who gave us the opportunity to be your host this past weekend!!

A quiet Monday doesn’t have much new to report. The warm temps haven’t moved the ice yet but it’s only matter of time. Most likely today it will be a bridging affair.

The few that fished yesterday did okay.

Although the temps are looking good, beware that the wind is fairly heavy so dress warmer than the heat wave might suggest.

Fishing reports continue to be pretty good by the few that are fishing mid-week. Some good walleye catches have come from both the shoreline break area as well as various mud flats.

The warmer temps have yet to move the ice. So the bridges are still in place and haven’t had to be moved–yet.

Warm but windy. If you’re going to be out and about, dress for the wind.

Hows the crack that is going accross the Resort Flat looking? I suppose with these temps it will keep moving until we get some consistant freezing temps again…

Mitch,

The crack you refer to hasn’t been live now since the weekend and might have enough ice on it to take the bridges off by the weekend. With the major warm temps, we are really surprised things haven’t buckled somewhere, but as of mid day today, nothing has moved. We’re hoping it buckles, when it inevitably will, right along shore as it does most years.

Thanks Red Door for keeping us all up to date on the ice conditions and fishing reports. Knowing that your keeping a close eye on things makes us feel more confident during our travels out on the ice.