I managed to get out for the afternoon with Deer hunting partner Bill. It’s always amazing to me how we can go from open water to 12 inches of good ice in such a short period of time. You could have driven a tank across that lake today. We started in the 18 foot hole in the first bay and never got a nibble. So it was time to pull the Otters around and poke a lot of holes. What we finally figured out was that most of the action was happening very shallow, in 5 to 7 feet of water. People were doing well on Northerns using shiner minnows, and there were dozens of Bass caught on tip ups today too! I helped one guy unhook and release a dandy bass that was in the 20 inch class. The Crappies weren’t cooperating but we ended with a chunky 14 inch Walleye caught on a waxworm and decided to call it a night. I can’t explain why the fish were all so shallow, as there aren’t any better weeds up there than there are out in 15 feet of water. For whatever reason the water clarity isn’t what it was last winter so that may be why they’re shallower.
Rootski
Keep us informed and enjoy the ice fishin season. 
) every winter. My friend personally took 2 over 21″ a couple of winters ago. I mostly fish with suckers, but you have to use shiners to get their attention. A couple of gators we got a few years ago would be pushing the low 40″ mark right now!