I was excited to get on the ice today as I heard there has been a good bite. I stopped at Lake Sport Shop and talked to owner Jeff Hicks and he mentioned a few walleye and northern were coming from the west end by the grade so I give it a try and had one northern give me a thrill before I lost it Then it was off to the island and it was good fishing
I do not like fishing crowds but today I had lots of company there were maybe 6 shacks when I arrived but about 20 when I left. I drilled my first and only hole just east of the tip of the island and it was fun for the next four hours as the action was steady all afternoon.
I started with my go to buckshot rattlespoon in the green chartruse combo and had hits but I was missing alot of fish so I switched to a smaller shiner colored rattle spoon and that was the ticket They wanted it jigged differently all day aggresive worked for a while then long pauses would work it made for fun and challenging fishing.All the fish were in 14ft 6 to 10 inches off bottom.I tipped my jig with a minnow head and today the smaller heads seemed to work the best
About half way through my trip a bonus crappie showed up what a slab I had heard that there had been a few showing up and I actually stayed longer than I planned in hopes of a few more.I ended the day with 23 yellows 1 crappie a short walleye and a long range northern release. In talking to fellow fishermen coming off the ice results were mixed some did OK others struggeld I do believe jig size, minnow head size, and changing jigging motions made a difference today.The ice was 15 in of good ice we should have ice for a couple more weekends Joe,s Guide Service 641-749-2239
Sounds like a great day Joe!! Did you access the island area right their south of the island? Thinking of giving it a try tommorow.
Yes I did I would reccomend ice cleats as it was SLIPPERY Good luck let us know how you did
I read your post and decided to check it out. The ice is still thick but will it last? It was still 8″ to 12″ thick, however there is open water in various areas. We fished in 15ft of water and the Minnow Heads worked great. I caught 1 14″ Walleye and 2 Yellow Bass Thursday. This morning was real slow, but I did manage to catch 1 16″ Walleye and 1 Yellow Bass before needing to get back to Cedar Rapids.
Barb
The winds lately have sure opened up some open water around the areators. Please use caution as ice can change daily we should have ice for awhile yet but I would reccommend using extreme caution around areators
Nice report Joe
How do those stripe crappies taste?
They are as good as any panfish I have ever ate. There meat is white and firm the lake has really been good the last few years and when they spawn around memorial day weekend there are buckets of yellows taken