Can't Stop, Won't Stop! Ice Fishing Is in Full Swing

With the cold weather having set in, we have gotten a great start on the ice season.  The ice fishing started right after Thanksgiving and it has not let up.  It has been one of the best early ice season's I can remember in the 20 plus years I have been guiding.  

We have been ice fishing on Lake of The Woods, but will soon be fishing on Lake Waconia, and Lake Minnetonka. The ice on Lake of The Woods has been great and we are seeing ice thickness on the lake side in the 14-17" range.  

When we first arrived at the end of Nov we had 6-9" of ice and the big fish bite was great.  We also found lots of numbers of fish.  In the last few weeks we have moved out into some new areas and still have been able to catch some walleyes in the 26-28" range.  As we ventured further out we got away from all the people and had no problem finding lots of gravel lizards that want' to cooperate.  We have been fishing 24-28' of water as of the last week.  

I have been jigging with the new Phantom Lures Tilly #5 and #7 have been my go to sizes.  For jigging this bait, I am running a 36" Thorne rod with a Shimano 1000 Stradic spooled with 10lb power pro with a 8 or 10 fluorocarbon leader.  I like to put a small swivel between my braid and my leader.  Usually about a 2' leader is all I run for this application.  When I am not jigging, I am running a dead stick Thorne rod with a plain #2 glow gamakatsu octopus hook.  I am tipping the hook with a rainbow or a golden shiner.   

In the coming weeks we will be venturing more and more into the Ontario side of the lake in search of crappies, perch, and walleyes.  The MN side should continue to be good fishing for the next few weeks as well.  If you are looking to go on the adventure of a life time, please feel free to contact me.  I have been leading adventures and making memories the last few weeks and everyone has really enjoyed themselves.