the fish are hitting

[davetclown]

the fish are hitting good right now so get on the ice.

the ice wont last but a week or two at best in the temperat zones.
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[chiefpanfish]

[cool][cool] Hi Dave This past Sunday I cut thru 24" of solid ice so we should be good for another month, I'm doing the Lake George fishing contest this weekend the ice there should be close to 30". I'm going to pick up some 6" suckers and put them down for a laker then sit down and jig for a nice size perch. The weather looks good for this weekend so the turn out for the contest should be good.I've got to get a good fish for our contest as well so I can give you something to shot for.
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[lonehunter]

well i'm not going back over to lake 4 again[pirate].

10" of snow on top of 4" of water , below that 1-1/2 of solid ice , below that 1" of water then 6" of slush ice .

hy jaw almost dropped after poking thru the first layer with two , maybe three turns of the augre , but it droped right into that slush ice , a few turns there and up came the lake .

higgens lake has the same thing , i guess the spring fed lakes around here are getting unstable . [unsure]

time to hit some of the other lakes around here , hello wiggins [] .
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[DrownedDesertRat]

Was out tonight on Long Lake (in New Brighton). I was scared to drive out on the ice when I saw foot deep puddles of water in the tire grooves so I parked on solid ground and hiked out on the ice. When I got to my destination and drilled my first couple holes, I found the ice to be about 15 inches thick still. Could have saved me a hike, but the exercise is good for me. Gotta get back in shape and into most of my clothes again. See what fishing does to you? Makes you gain weight if you're job is fairly sedentary.

No fish. Not sure where to catch them this time of the year. I've been told to go shallower, like, in the weedline area. I tried between 8 feet and 19 feet deep on a point drop-off. No luck. Not one nibble. I should try it during daytime hours and see what happens.
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[davetclown]

wow look how the time is passing when we are having fun, cant hold back the reighns on old father time.

ice fishing season is just about over here in my area. one maybe two days left before the river opens up my lake. hope to get on tomarow posibly fryday saturday is a big maybe. sunday I doubt and monday is a no go for sure. rain due to set in for sunday monday and tuesday..

I am counting down my last hours of ice fishing. still plan on the move south if my house sells this year. the only way I will get another year of ice fishing is if I hit the lotto or I am stuck here another winter.

there may be a vacancy opening up on the icefishing board for a mod,
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[lonehunter]

we will hAve ice for a bit longer . the temps so far are staying below freesing for most of the day . the fog that blanketed us yesterday left all the trees covered in ice today . it lasted untill 2:30 and was gone by three . the ice cycles quit dripping by 4pm .

this is the way winter should end up here , over the last few years we went from winter to summer , that ment the frost line prevented water from soaking in . a slow thaw is what were hoping for , the lakes need to come up a bit .
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[davetclown]

[center][font "Times New Roman"][size 3]HOT DAM![/size][/font][/center]

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[size 3][font "Times New Roman"] Hot Dam is the flavor of schnapps I would have taken a snort of after today’s battle had there been any available for snorting. [/font][/size]

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[size 3][font "Times New Roman"] The day started off like most any other day, I woke up and dragged my self out of the sack and scooting out the door just as soon as I could get my winter rap on.[/font][/size]

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[size 3][font "Times New Roman"] Getting out on the ice I drilled my first hole, getting no hits I moved on to my next target area only to find nothing at the bottom of that area either.[/font][/size]

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[size 3][font "Times New Roman"] I was graced with a bit of overcast this morning, and I wanted to take advantage of the low ceiling while it was going to last. The weatherman was calling for sunshine for most of the day.[/font][/size]

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[size 3][font "Times New Roman"] We scurried on over to my next spot. again finding notta’. By this time an ol’ fissin buddy found his way back on the lake. We headed on over to our regular drilling grounds and proceeded to open our holes from the night before.[/font][/size]

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[size 3][font "Times New Roman"] With only a 1/16-inch of fresh ice accumulated over night to cover our holes we could have stepped on them to open them but age and experience has made us the wiser, we would keep our feet dry by using our tools at hand keeping our feet dry for a whole day of on ice fun. (A spud and hand cup auger) [/font][/size]

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[size 3][font "Times New Roman"] I dropped my dig down tipped with a wax worm, and no sooner did it hit bottom did I land a 10 crappie, then the bite went cold, it was another hour before I had landed a 8 inch gill, and yet another half hour before the next gill at which time I had to take a short leave from all the excitement of the day, it would be 5 hours before I would be getting back to my hole.[/font][/size]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]Around 4 pm I managed to find my way back and with out a moments waist I opened up my hole and dropped down a minnow on one jig and a waxy on the other. I was ready for the action to start any second. A half hour passed and Jim (one of the old timers of the lake) was pulling up the gills not vary fast but with some regularity. [/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]Not getting a single bite I decided to change my jig over to a perch eye. I dropped it down tipped with a waxy I began jigging. [/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]There was no shortage of tall tails on this day since while I was gone most of the old timers found their way back to the old drilling grounds and the bull started piling up on the lake waist deep and getting deeper as the stories flew from one angler to another.[/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]Then it happened, my line felt funny, I lowered the end of my rod and the line went limp, I lifted the end of my rod and the rod just bent, after doing this a couple times I figured I had caught the bottom of the lake again, so I lifted my rod slowly to put pressure on the weed at the bottom to slowly weaken the rood and allow me to keep my jig.[/size][/font]

[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]After about five minute of doing this I figured my jig was lost to the bottom of the lake. I started pulling harder, knowing my 2 pound test line would not take much to break and it would only take just one good pop to loose it, but still I aired by the way of caution pulling harder but gentle. Then it moved, the weed on the bottom broke loose and came up about 6 inches and I figured I had it free and boy was I a happy camper. [/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]Then the weed started to move? What the hay? Weeds don’t move I thought to my self. Then the weed took off! It ran and ran and ran nearly melting what little ice left on the lake from the heat of my spool spinning stripping off at least 100 feet off my reel before it went dead and I figured the line had snapped, I began reeling it in and caught up to the fish but he was still swimming straight back towards me then underneath me and my reel started screaming again! [/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]By this time most every one on the lake had herd all the commotion and gathered around my hole gaft in hand ready to pull what we knew by now was my old nemeses, the biggest baddest meanest old pike these waters have ever seen. His head passed under us and it took a good 5 minutes before we saw the end of his tail go by. [/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]I am telling you this beast is ten feet long if it is an inch![/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]That old pike scrambled after hearing all the hoopla over head causing my reel to scream once again! This time he ran so fast he was loosening the spool nut and I was fighting just to keep the nut from spinning off and flying on to the lake. After retightening the spool several times he slowed down and I began the long process of bringing him in slowly one foot at a time and what seemed ages passing I had managed to get him back under me and nearing the hole once again. [/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]We all got set and our first gaft volunteer was already on his knees ready to do his thing, as we got the pike close to the edge of the hole he again went flying reel in hand screaming and nut flying loose as the pike despoiled another 100 feet of line. I was getting nervous when I started seeing the color of the spool under my line. I knew he was getting dangerously close to taking all my line as he did once before in an earlier battle some years back.[/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]He turned again coming straight at us full speed, the wind form my bail spinning around the spool was blowing the hats off the anglers 10 feet away as I tried my best to pull up the slack before he hit the end. And we all know what happens then need I say more?[/size][/font]

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[font "Times New Roman"][size 3]We battled the behemoth nearly twenty minutes before he took my jig and bid us fair well. I pulled in all my line to find I still had my split shot (line cut off just millimeters below the sinker)[/size][/font]

[size 3][font "Times New Roman"] [/font][/size]HOT DAM! I sure could have used that snort, and probably two if we had actualy landed him.
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[tubeN2]

That would have been a good Kodak moment. That also would have put you way out in the lead for the ice fishing contest.(even though you are in it just for fun) That probably would have stirred up the rest of the boys to go out and catch some serious fish.

You did the best you could and I'm sure you had a fun time doing it. That's what counts when you are fishing.
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[DrownedDesertRat]

Sounds like an awesome day! Too bad you don't have an Aqua-vu to capture all the action that went on! That would have been a truly breath-taking video.

Best of luck next time you hook into that little guy!
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[DrownedDesertRat]

Hi! Who are you? If you haven't gone through our FREE registration process (very much worth doing) then hop to it! We'd love to know who we're chattin' with.

By the way, tell them that DrownedDesertRat talked you into it. Hehe.

You can register here:
http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/com...ser_signup
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[bulldawg53115]

Fished for three days again this weekend.

Friday was open water day at the Neceeda Dam in Wisc. Got about 60 walleyes and 7 nice perch between 3 of us in 5 hours. The wind was brisk, and though it was high 40's on land, it seemed like 25 degrees on the water. A great time. Gold jigs were the hot ones in 1/4 oz. tipped with a medium fathead minnow. Jigging was done verrrry slowlyyyyyy. Caught a few of the walleyes on set lines, and a few on jigs. Perch were mostly on the setlines, but only got 2 on the jigs. Only 2 walleyes that were better than 16" went home with us. All of the perch were refused by my wifes cousin, so I gladly took them home.

Saturday was a good day for catching up with things at home, but managed to get on the ice at 1 p.m. My son & I caught over 100 bluegills, but took home about 25 nice ones. Son had about an 18" Largemouth on a tipup, but lost it as he was pulling it out of the hole.

Today went to a different lake. Got out at noon, wasn't feeling too good. Needed to fish a lake that had portable outhouses close by[unsure]. Son got a 16" Largemouth. Got a whole mess of bluegills, but only one keeper. Another guy brought over about a 16" Largemouth, and asked if we wanted it. I took it home, as the fish we kept today will go to a disabled woman and her boyfriend. The wife is her caretaker from the place she works at. I give them some fresh fish now & then, and she is very grateful. Real nice people.

The ice around here is deteriorating very fast. It was just under 60 degrees today. It won't be long now. It is currently raining out![]
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