02-13-2015, 07:50 PM
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]Bait_Caster and I decided to do a night ice fishing trip to Strawberry last night. Neither of us had ever done a night ice fishing gig before so we were looking to check this one off our bucket list. [/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]We arrived at the marina at about 11:00 PM. It was 23° at the marina.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]As we walked out on the ice, we gingerly and carefully looked for open water or soft spots. We seen open water between 4 inch wide cracks but that was all. Places where tents had been looked soft but were not … they just looked that way. We never seen any open water around the edges. We found where we wanted to fish and drilled holes into 12 inch thick ice.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]With the temperatures being as mild as they have been lately, going out in the dark in uncertain frozen terrain was a little nerve racking. But walking back in the day light, we could see that that part of the lake was all very safe to be on. So if any of you are contemplating ice fishing the Berry this weekend, go for it ... not to worry.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]At 11:30 we were dropping our first lines. By 11:35 we had our first two fish. By 12:00 we had 5 fish. And then for the next 3 hours there was no fish coming through on the fish finder. Around 3:30 we turned on the lantern again and started seeing fish again (note to self: lantern light = fish). But these fish, even though they were interested in inspecting our lures, would not bite. Then between 5:00 and 7:00, a few more aggressive fish came through that let us catch them.[/size][/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]We ended up with just 9 fish for the night … not good … but not bad either. I was hoping for lots more.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]A friend who works grave yard was texting with me a bit of and on through the night. He suggested those little tiny glow sticks inserted in tubes. He also suggested that, if legal, to drop one of those fish attracting lights into the water. It did seem that the most fish passing through was when we had the lantern on high.[/size][/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4][inline Sonar-444.jpg][/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]We used 2 ½ inch glow tube jigs tipped with shrimp or chub. The shrimp-tipped lures caught 8 of the 9 fish and only one came in on a chub-tipped jig.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]For a while during the 3-hour lull, BC snuck in a power nap.[/size][/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4][inline BC-Napping-444.jpg][/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]The best way right now to get your gear on and off the lake is to just back down the boat ramp right to the edge of the ice and unload/load there.[/size][/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4][inline Ramp-444.jpg][/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]It's a little tricky trying to follow the maze to figure out how to access the ramp with your vehicle. You have to enter the west most parking lot at the N-W corner and wind your way up to the top of the ramp at the top N-W side of the ramp.[/size][/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]When we left, it was 17° when the sun had been up for a couple hours. I suspect it got down to around 12-15° last night.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]The big pressure ridge that is in the area of the marina is almost non-existent now and easily crossed.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]So anyway, right now it's still plenty cold and safe to ice fish up there. But I don't know how much longer it will be this good. My guess is at least a week or so more.[/size][/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]We arrived at the marina at about 11:00 PM. It was 23° at the marina.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]As we walked out on the ice, we gingerly and carefully looked for open water or soft spots. We seen open water between 4 inch wide cracks but that was all. Places where tents had been looked soft but were not … they just looked that way. We never seen any open water around the edges. We found where we wanted to fish and drilled holes into 12 inch thick ice.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]With the temperatures being as mild as they have been lately, going out in the dark in uncertain frozen terrain was a little nerve racking. But walking back in the day light, we could see that that part of the lake was all very safe to be on. So if any of you are contemplating ice fishing the Berry this weekend, go for it ... not to worry.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]At 11:30 we were dropping our first lines. By 11:35 we had our first two fish. By 12:00 we had 5 fish. And then for the next 3 hours there was no fish coming through on the fish finder. Around 3:30 we turned on the lantern again and started seeing fish again (note to self: lantern light = fish). But these fish, even though they were interested in inspecting our lures, would not bite. Then between 5:00 and 7:00, a few more aggressive fish came through that let us catch them.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]
[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]We ended up with just 9 fish for the night … not good … but not bad either. I was hoping for lots more.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]A friend who works grave yard was texting with me a bit of and on through the night. He suggested those little tiny glow sticks inserted in tubes. He also suggested that, if legal, to drop one of those fish attracting lights into the water. It did seem that the most fish passing through was when we had the lantern on high.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]
[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4][inline Sonar-444.jpg][/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]We used 2 ½ inch glow tube jigs tipped with shrimp or chub. The shrimp-tipped lures caught 8 of the 9 fish and only one came in on a chub-tipped jig.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]For a while during the 3-hour lull, BC snuck in a power nap.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]
[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4][inline BC-Napping-444.jpg][/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]The best way right now to get your gear on and off the lake is to just back down the boat ramp right to the edge of the ice and unload/load there.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]
[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4][inline Ramp-444.jpg][/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]It's a little tricky trying to follow the maze to figure out how to access the ramp with your vehicle. You have to enter the west most parking lot at the N-W corner and wind your way up to the top of the ramp at the top N-W side of the ramp.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]
[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]When we left, it was 17° when the sun had been up for a couple hours. I suspect it got down to around 12-15° last night.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]The big pressure ridge that is in the area of the marina is almost non-existent now and easily crossed.[/size][/#800000][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000][size 4]So anyway, right now it's still plenty cold and safe to ice fish up there. But I don't know how much longer it will be this good. My guess is at least a week or so more.[/size][/#800000][/font]
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