Also by now with the rain & all I doubt the ice has gotten any better or
safer for that matter. Guess I’ll work this week end for more toys
See ya on the ice

I might be making it up to the Prairie gtg, my moving is just about done. Can you believe it, I hav’nt wetted a line yet. The last two yrs the in-depth angling gtg has been a good time

say Barb, long time, no see…
Have you graduated to 2lb test line yet?
Also are you watching your line and tip for ANY movement what so ever.
Glowing up your lures helps too… like at 4:00 AM…
Now do you remember me, the one with the extra Vex?
I hav’nt been out this yr yet since I’ve been moving to Hiawatha.

it’s amazing how one end of the lake will hold a different year class then the other end of the lake.
I think this year the bigger Crappies have been on the south arm of Mcbride.

At Hawthorn the far north east end definitely held the bigger Crappies.

No but two of us took home about 60 craps & gills from Hawthorn which is 15 miles SE from there near Montezuma IA. My biggest was just a shy less then 14 inches.

Hey Joe; I predict very tough fishing for Crappies, Gills, … because of the water height & water Temp lately. High water small funnel sites are probably your best bet to concentrate the fish. Especially if the water is dirty.
I suggest possibly bussey lake, cold springs, The spill way at linxville, at the top of Desoto lake along the east shore, Lake Gremore maybe in the harbor?, Glass lake, The top of Methodist, If it were me & I was destined to head for the Miss. R., I would try for the eyes.
Ever tried Lake Segema down south of here?

is it ok to fish at night on Bushy? Is there a time when your not supposed to be on the lake?

Just got back from 3 mile. Fished a total of 10 hours. The fish that I found were shallow. 174 Crappies over nine inches, 10 Blue gills over nine inches, also did’nt know there were perch in there but got a 12 inch dandy. Some Crappies had toothy marks on them and then I spotted the culprit a pretty big musky in the clean water. A close to 3 Lb Bass put on a good fight with my long pole with 4 Lb line & tiny hair jig. Good luck as this huge cold front is going to put a damper on the shallow fish…
John

Vikefan: Just got back from a good morning & afternoon fishing trip at three mile.
I would guess around 250 Crappies caught & 174 over nine inches. 10 big bull gills
9 inch plus. 1 twelve inch perch. Also a Bass on her bed pushing 3 lbs.
Four lb line, long poles, & home made hair jigs were the ticket.
I lucked out with the window of opportunity weather wise as this cold front is going to
push them out again.
The other day my dad & I had about 25 from the Mac in shallow water. lots of little
guys, hard to come up with those nine inch plus Crappies.

Decisions, Decisions… I’ve got until next Sun off and am heading Three &
a half hours from here to SW Iowa at Three mile lake. It’s an annual thing ya know?
In a lot of ways I think if I just concentrated on the morning & Evening at the Mac, then
it would be a lot easier, and cheaper too Wish me luck that it don’t rain the entire time Good fishing to you all…

When Rathbun sucks, as in wind, Water temp… I used to head to little river which is a little closer.
I’ve never heard about the big slab Crappies caught in June but that time does bring to mind the good Walleye fishing at Rathbun.

I’ve been making a annual trip to 3 mile for the past 6 yrs. Usually the last week of april or first week of May. Depends if it’s an early yr or not.
It’s an excellent fishery with lots of bass if that’s what your after. Personally I prefer the huge gills and very decent Crappie fishing on my home made jigs.
Last yr I did something very different. I made two trips down there and spent the night in my tent cot on the deck of my boat. Each trip was a 24 hr stay with about 200 fish caught each time.
The fish cleaning facility is also very excellent
I suggest being selective for what you keep so that the fishery stays prime for next yr
John

A number of yrs back the water had been up a bit & a bunch of slab Crappies went into the broken bridge area. The water kept dropping and really loaded them them in there. The bite lasted from Mar to early May. The DNR figured that 10,000 Crappies were caught from that area.

For some reason the water gets really dirty just after ice out & stays that way so rigging with cranks for Walleyes sounds like a tough way to go, but good luck any way, & still beats staying at home watching the TV.

Barb; did you see any body fishing along the Dam?
I’m the extra Vexilar guy Welcome to the site

I was out at Mcbride Thurs afternoon until dark. Met two guys out on the ice ” Tom & Joe ” sure was tough fishing for quality fish.

Fished Hawthorn on fri 7:00 to 4:30 PM. Only took home about 15 Crappies, very unusual for Hawthorn. I could’nt believe that the ice was only 4 inches at the dam, and what’s with this weather? Five bees landed on my coverals, & I’m like a hundred yards from bank.

Well, You know what they say about Iowa, if you don’t like the weather, just wait a bit

Sat I did about 30 miles on the bicycle, & had to shed clothes as I went

From the time that you left Gianni to about 7:30 I only caught two devil Crappies
Man what a change
I’m not whipped yet though
when the going get’s tough, the tough get going & leave
The next time down there It’s the S or N arm, I’ve got plenty spots in
mind. Yea right,,, Gianni is thinking

would any body like to meet at the hungry house for breakfast Sat Morning and what time does it open?

What time does the hungry house open Sat Morning? Also … would any body like
to meet there for breakfast in order to start this thing off?

I’ve got Crappies mounted on a branch, but for the life of me I’m tring to picture
2 (two) eleven foot Crappies, why that’s huge!!! I suppose you’ll
be spending the rest of the winter at the sports shows.

Tomorrow is the Iowa Out doors gtg at Mcbride, I plan to be there at 4:00 AM If the snow
don’t get to bad.

spent yesterday up at Norwegion above Clayton on the Miss. R. Caught about 70 gills,
one speck, & a perch. Wasn’t real great fishing but sure beat staying at home

Jeremy; are those two pits by mud private? Can I pull my sled across frozen back water to get there? A little snow is easier to pull the sled on then mud, rocks, & weeds

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the 2 little lakes are easy to get to.. Go down to mud lake and head straight south about 200 yards and you will see them. They are old sand pits and very deep. There are plany of fish in them but you are right about the hit or miss. Out of the 3 lakes typically one is producing. Give me a ring if you want the tour… I will most likily be out on sunday looking for a few bites as long as the ice is still good.
jc

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Hey Jeremy, not doing any thing Sunday afternoon, would’nt mind having a
tour of those two sand pits,,,, never even knew they were there. Unless those are the ones this guy keeps chasing people out of. I can share one of my vexilar’s.

I skipped mcbride, Tomorrow though, bussey here I come

yesterday I went up to little Missouri, fished from 1:30 to 4:30. Caught some
nice gills and 4 decent Crappies. The Ice was 8 inches. I rebuilt and did some
costum work to my ice rods, oh,,, so much better never seen any thing like
them in the store. unfortunatly I must have caught some thing on the way back
home because I had to call in sick
Today I’m feeling much better, probably will check out Mcbride this afternoon before
going back to work tonight.

Looks like fun But if I remember right, it takes strong ankles, and
some times it helps to avoid the pad stems

I’ve got a non smoking room with two queen beds. I believe she said their were only
three rooms left. looking forward to the party

Not totally Lebruce I saw a few on Mcbride yesterday taking
advantage of the great early ice fishing.
The highline area North & south has open water so be care full

Don’t forget gravity flow,,, ” Have it standing up when trying to start it “
Last year my spark plug cap had to be adjusted then it worked just fine.
Also bring the spark plug gap a little closer if need be…

My strike master has been working pretty good for the last 7 years

Herb, Wahly, Rugbystar, Gianni, I’m planning on being up there
bright & early. 1st eating breakfast at the country kitchen by the
Broisbis Inn & then hitting the morning bite. I’ll probably bring
a case of beer like last year. It would be nice if we all stayed
at the same Hotel. Preferably a place next to where we can eat
supper. Does any body want to share a room.

Mcbride still has open water in the high lines area and north to the major arm going
east. Four huts were located up and around the corner “west” of the high lines. At
present were probably making a inch a day.

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I’m trying to decide where to go this coming Saturday. Anyone know if the guys below the dam are doing any good? Lots of delicious looking wingdams and rip-rap through that S-curve, too. Was thinking of maybe giving those first 3-4 miles a go before playing bumper boats.

Regards,

Joe Jiacinto

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Hey Joe; My 50 four stroke Merc sometimes grumbels back when I try to start it at minus 25 degrees morning temp. This weekend I hope the temps come up abit for the sake of the icy ramp & my motor groans.