12-13-2011, 10:51 PM
[cool][#0000ff]About the closest thing to ice fishing without having to drill holes with an auger. Ice all over the lake, water temp 35 degrees, air temp never got over 25, fishing vertical jigging in 58 feet of water...with ice jigs. But...I was in my float tube. Silly me.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Launched from the port ramp about 8 am. Slush ice on the water surface next to the ramp but no problem getting out to open water. Didn't see a mark on sonar for a loooooooong time. Then only onesies and twosies...very far apart. Worked north past the docks and toward the yacht club. Motored in and out of shallow to deep...30 feet to over 60 feet. Like a desert on the bottom and only an occasional stray suspender. Not encouraging.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Motored back and forth in an S pattern as I crossed the arm between the ramp and Browning Point. Still nothing on the screen. Worked in and out off the point. More nothing.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Came back to an area just north of the docks where I had seen some bait schools. Figured there might be something bigger on the fringes. I love it when I get it right. There were a few perchies that were ready to play with my ice trinkets. I found the little balls of forage fish again and by bouncing jigs on the bottom around them I began getting hits. Really had to set the hook to take the stretch out of the line in that deep water...58 to 60 feet. [/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I experimented around with several different lures and caught fish on most of my new stuff. Worms and PPP (processed perch pieces) both produced. The perch meat caught the bigger fish...but nothing over about 8 inches. But...all of the perch I brought up were barfing up baby crappies. They have been feeding...probably on what I saw on my sonar screen.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I kept about a half dozen of these dink perch to turn into more PPP. The rest I either fizzed and sent back down...or tossed to the circling sea gulls. They seemed to be appreciative.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]After about an hour of fairly consistant action it shut off. The fish disappeared from sonar and I couldn't find them again. By this time I was "chillin' out"...literally. The cold water and constant light snow weren't exactly warming the cockles of my heart...or any other part of my anatomy. So I headed back toward the docks. I did see some suspended crappies right off the docks but they were typical suspended crappies...middle fin upraised. No bitee.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Short day. Cold day. Maybe my last tubing trip of this year. Maybe. At least the power squadron was not out today. Wimps. They can't handle a bit of cold and ice. They'll be back in the spring though. And I won't.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Attaching some pics of ice conditions. Looks like the arms are freezing. Frozen from the narrows across to cemetery point but open to the north. The narrows appear to be closed by ice but it is open from there to the dam.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]With 35 degree surface temps it will take only a couple of cold windless nights to get the lake capped over. Then some more single digit nights will make it ready for drillin' and chillin'.[/#0000ff]
![[Image: image.gif]](http://www.bigfishtackle.com/images/gforum/files/image.gif)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79843"][#63626b]LAUNCHING THROUGH SKIM.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (155 KB)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79844"][#63626b]BROWNING POINT.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (147 KB)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79845"][#63626b]FIRST OF A FEW.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (118 KB)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79846"][#63626b]HOLY JIGGER.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (216 KB)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79847"][#63626b]DOUBLE DINKSTERS.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (157 KB)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79848"][#63626b]NO NAME JIG.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (160 KB)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79849"][#63626b]KEPT SOME BAIT.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (314 KB)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79850"][#63626b]EAST TO CEMETERY POINT.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (235 KB)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79851"][#63626b]NARROWS CAPPED.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (259 KB)
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79852"][#63626b]OPEN TO THE DAM.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (268 KB)
[signature]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Launched from the port ramp about 8 am. Slush ice on the water surface next to the ramp but no problem getting out to open water. Didn't see a mark on sonar for a loooooooong time. Then only onesies and twosies...very far apart. Worked north past the docks and toward the yacht club. Motored in and out of shallow to deep...30 feet to over 60 feet. Like a desert on the bottom and only an occasional stray suspender. Not encouraging.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Motored back and forth in an S pattern as I crossed the arm between the ramp and Browning Point. Still nothing on the screen. Worked in and out off the point. More nothing.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Came back to an area just north of the docks where I had seen some bait schools. Figured there might be something bigger on the fringes. I love it when I get it right. There were a few perchies that were ready to play with my ice trinkets. I found the little balls of forage fish again and by bouncing jigs on the bottom around them I began getting hits. Really had to set the hook to take the stretch out of the line in that deep water...58 to 60 feet. [/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I experimented around with several different lures and caught fish on most of my new stuff. Worms and PPP (processed perch pieces) both produced. The perch meat caught the bigger fish...but nothing over about 8 inches. But...all of the perch I brought up were barfing up baby crappies. They have been feeding...probably on what I saw on my sonar screen.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]I kept about a half dozen of these dink perch to turn into more PPP. The rest I either fizzed and sent back down...or tossed to the circling sea gulls. They seemed to be appreciative.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]After about an hour of fairly consistant action it shut off. The fish disappeared from sonar and I couldn't find them again. By this time I was "chillin' out"...literally. The cold water and constant light snow weren't exactly warming the cockles of my heart...or any other part of my anatomy. So I headed back toward the docks. I did see some suspended crappies right off the docks but they were typical suspended crappies...middle fin upraised. No bitee.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Short day. Cold day. Maybe my last tubing trip of this year. Maybe. At least the power squadron was not out today. Wimps. They can't handle a bit of cold and ice. They'll be back in the spring though. And I won't.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Attaching some pics of ice conditions. Looks like the arms are freezing. Frozen from the narrows across to cemetery point but open to the north. The narrows appear to be closed by ice but it is open from there to the dam.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]With 35 degree surface temps it will take only a couple of cold windless nights to get the lake capped over. Then some more single digit nights will make it ready for drillin' and chillin'.[/#0000ff]
[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79843"][#63626b]LAUNCHING THROUGH SKIM.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (155 KB) [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79844"][#63626b]BROWNING POINT.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (147 KB) [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79845"][#63626b]FIRST OF A FEW.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (118 KB) [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79846"][#63626b]HOLY JIGGER.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (216 KB) [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79847"][#63626b]DOUBLE DINKSTERS.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (157 KB) [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79848"][#63626b]NO NAME JIG.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (160 KB) [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79849"][#63626b]KEPT SOME BAIT.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (314 KB) [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79850"][#63626b]EAST TO CEMETERY POINT.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (235 KB) [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79851"][#63626b]NARROWS CAPPED.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (259 KB) [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=79852"][#63626b]OPEN TO THE DAM.jpg[/#63626b][/url] (268 KB)[signature]
