Had that experience on a small lake last year. Did really well on some big crappies first time out suspended in the deeper water. Went back a few times after that and caught a few dinks. Very puzzling!!!!
There is a lake that I fish a few miles from my home. It is not mapped but I have never seen anything deeper than 11′. Later in the year I have noticed out there that the fish wont always be in the deep basin. Fished it for a little bit on Saturday and caught a handful of gills in the 11′ range but moved to some sunken timber in about 6-8′ and that’s where the big boys were. Also got 2 bonus Pike out of the deal with a Tungsten teardrop and 3lb test.
I think of each lake as it’s own little world. Fish do not go on “vacation” to other lakes, that specific lake is all they know. They will adapt to the shallow water and develop their own “personality”. Each small, shallow lake can be different, just like the bigger Walleye lakes. Night bite on LOTW? Forget it. Night bite on URL? Decent. Night bite on ML? Can be amazing.
Smaller lakes will have a greater potential for lower oxygen once snow cover blocks the sun from continuing the photosynthesis process below the ice. Reduced oxygen will effect larger fish the most, causing them to go into a lethargic-less active state. This could be what you are experiencing, as also mentioned, the fish you are targeting may also be relating to different structures than the fish you are catching.
Another possibility is that if people are keeping fish from the lake early in the season, those fish won’t be catchable again later in the season; and small lakes tend to have fewer total fish than larger lakes. Not trying to condescend, I’ve just been surprised by how many people I have come across that didn’t take that into account.
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