After being trapped in an ice shack last week-end our wish for today was to get out and face the ice gods without a nylon roof overhead.
Waking up to increasing temps and overcast skies were all the signs needed to help pick up the pace, double check my son Cams gear and fly out the door before that first hint of light.
Meeting up with JD Welder our initial target was going to be a small secluded bay that we hoped would be semi-protected from wind and roving eyes. Turned out that the fish that were caught in this spot last season didn’t care to renew the lease and left us with a vacant pond.
Gathering our gear we headed to a large area that can be productive one day but ultra tough the next.
With a handful of other ice guys scattered around we stayed off of the edge of a 3ft.shallow flat and concentrated on the taper dropping into 5-7ft. of water.
A few specks were nailed off the bat but the two lx5s that Dan and I were using told us to consider a move.
Grabbing gear and heading to the opposite side of the flat turned out to be the last set up of the day. Drilling a run of holes, starting in 3ft. and eventually dropping out to 6-7ft. is where the hungry gills awaited.
Being quickly joined by Cam and Dan, the Marcums got cranked up, the long stix came out and the hole hopping fun began.
When hitting the gills today, the Marcum lx5 proved its worth once more. Viewing the screen you would seldom see higher riding marks. What you would see is very faint yellow slashes on the very bottom reading. Working the jig deep, pounding the mud then lifting the bait slowly would often produce that green bar which in turn would turn to that wonderful hot red with the follow up thump.
Had a chance to try out a new long stick today too. Yesterday I picked up a 5ft.ul Lightning Rod, matched it up with an Okuma Hardstone spinning reel spooled with 2lb.Trilene ice. Attached a small frabil spring on the business end, balanced it out and presto, another sweet little number added to the gear!
Plenty of action with more than enough for a mess or two with countless pannies going back down the hole.
Sitting along side Cam toward the end of the day is when he looks me in the eyes and says…"man I love ice fishing."
By the look and huge smile on his face I could tell he meant every word.
Great report Jeff.
That’s cool that your son is so hooked on ice fishing. 
A great day to be out there on the ice – – – lot better than last Saturday, heh? 
Couple more pics
Very nice report Jeff. It is always great to get the kid involved and loving the outfoors.
JP Mason
Nice report slick! today was a nice day to get out besides the wind. i cant stress enough the importance of a good flasher. i told jeff when we were done that i didnt catch 1 fish hole hopping. no particular color or bait was the hot bait. you had to be patient with the gills today. once you got the red mark on the marcum sometimes they would nail it and some would barely move the spring. a few crappies were thrown in the mix also, they didnt fool around once they commited. once we got cam to sit down and fish he really started to light them up. it was cool to see those 2 sitting there shooting the breeze like ole fishin buddies. dan
Another addict in the club, awesome
Great read and report
Another hard core, ice hole driller on his way.
Well done Jeff & Cam!
Hey guys, looks like a great day. Take away that wind, and I bet it would’ve been perfect! I wish I could’ve joined you guys, but this weekend…….fishing wasn’t going to happen for me.
Great report!
Great report Jeff! Looks like a blast!
Super Report
Slipped out yesterday morning to see if the gill bite was still on……nope, alot tougher getting them to eat. The slabs were aggressive though, just not much for numbers.
Still fun , had the entire area to ourselves
Nice looking fish! I can’t wait, Friday my Christmas break starts and I will be up on pool 10 & 11 ALL WEEK!!! Congrats on the nice fish.
Nice fish. It looks like the spot some slabs were in earlier in the week. While you went there, I went up river from Cassville before daylight and had the spot to myself. Only 5 crappies but the 13 1/2″ made the 10’s look small. Tried your spot in the afternoon and managed an 11 1/2″ slab before the rain drove me off the ice.
Thanks for the report and congrats on getting the kid hooked on ice fishing.