Eastern Wisconsin endured the early week snow storm, and bounced back nicely just in time for the weekend.  Lake Winnebago and Lake Poygan had solid ice fishing conditions, with the exception of the several inches of snow on top of the ice.  There are also hidden slush pockets in some portions of the lake.  Overall, ice depths are ranging from 17-24 inches on the system.  Water clarity is very clear, with excess of 8 feet of visibility in most areas.

There remains heavy angler pressure on all areas lakes, as ice fishermen are rejoicing in the near perfect conditions.  We’ve had a lot of reports this week, and I want to thank everyone who contributed.  It is very evident that the system is inconsistent, and is producing a large variant of results.  I have reports from the same area, on the same day with anglers limiting out, and others getting skunked using identical methods.

Lake Winnebago at Merritt Street (Oshkosh):  This is the hub of angler activity.  This area has also produced the most erratic results.  The main activity is to the south of the Fox River, approximately 2 miles out from Fuggelburg launch.  The area continues to hold a large white bass population, along with crappie, perch and small walleyes.  An occasional larger walleye is being reported.  Most anglers are using bare Rapala jigging raps or slender spoons.

The northern group off of Merritt Street has had a smaller population of white bass, and possibly a larger population of perch.  This area is getting less attention than the previous week.

Bottom line – these fish are moving, often away from overhead noise.  The heavy concentration of shanties, often offers the worst fishing.  Get away from the crowd, and your results will greatly improve.  Think of it this way….If you resided under an old rickety rail road track, with heavy train traffic….you’d probably find a new place to live after becoming annoyed with the vibration and noise.

The south end has been quiet, especially along the west shore.  At a recent club meeting one of the members commented that the weeds along western shore were consumed by cormorants and other water fowl in September, October and early November.    The area is nearly void of weeds since late fall.   I’m not sure if this was the cause of the lack of weeds, but it is undisputable that weeds on the south west portion of the lake are greatly diminished.

The northeast portion of the lake continues to produce limited numbers of white bass, sauger, perch and walleyes.

We concentrated on Little Lake Buttes Des Mortes (Neenah/Menasha) this week.  Our target was pike.  On the southern portion of the lake we found loads of perch, all of which were in the 4-7 inch ranges.  Near the water treatment plant in Neenah (on the northwest side of the lake), there has been a solid pike and panfish bite.  Like Merritt Street, this area has been heavily fished, with most angler targeting both perch and pike.  Several large pike were iced near us (mid 30’s)…. and we missed a giant in the hole, which we could not get the head through the 8” hole.  What a fish!  It eventually broke off the leader after a hand landing attempt, which resulted in a bloody hand.  One report was that this area was producing larger perch, and we did ice some 9” fish.

Lake Poygan:  This Lake is very much hit n miss.  Walleyes are here in heavier concentrations than on Lake Winnebago.  The keys to fishing this lake is to fish near or after dusk, stay away from the crowds, and work the top portion of the water column.   Basket range from no fish to 2 man walleye limits.  White bass are readily available near Horseshoe Hole.  Crappies are plentiful.  Roads are in excellent condition.

Side note:  Fox Lake in Dodge County continues to pump out the crappie.

Another arctic blast is expected this week, and could continue to slow the system in the short term.  Many spearers have been scouting locations for the upcoming sturgeon season.  There is a lot of excitement heading into the season, with good ice and clear water.

Next week is Party on Poygan, and there will be oodles of people out of Winneconne next weekend.  There is also a Sportsman Rummage Sale in Fond du Lac on Saturday.

Feel free to drop me a line with your fishing report.  [email protected] is my email.  Thanks for visiting the site.  We also have mid-week news/reports on our facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/myfishingpartner?ref=hl Stay on top of the ice!