Seasonal temperatures and fair weather has allowed ice fishing to get into full swing during the past week. Ice conditions vary greatly throughout the system, but in general the bays have approximately 4-8 inches of ice with deeper areas of water with less ice. The main lake still remains rough (ice surface) in many areas, especially on the eastern and southern shores. There is a thin coating of snow over most of the ice sheet currently, but that could change rapidly this week as a huge winter storm approaches for the end of the week. Assuming the storm does not compromise the ice, I would expect a lot of company on the ice this weekend after the storm passes.
Lake Poygan has been the hot spot so far this season. Pan fish are still biting on the lake (Boom Bay), and the white bass have started to become active this week as well. Spikes and wax worms have been crucial when tipping your presentation. Pike and walleye fishing remain slow, however, a few are being taken.
The Harbor in Fond du Lac has had some fisherman working the inner harbor without much success. The area outside the harbor in front of the light house has had better results for medium sized perch.
The area near the Old Chaparral (North Fond du Lac) has been decent for crappies, gills and an occasional walleye. Wendt’s continues to produce small perch. Asylum Bay and Millers bay have produced pan fish inconsistently over the past week. There are a lot of small fish in these areas which you need to sort through to find the keepers. The Black Wolf area is reported as “Slow.”
The east shore is in tough shape with a lot of surface obstruction and build ups. There is little activity on this side of the lake currently, except in the Calumetville area. No reports of what they are catching in this area.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all! Please continue to post your fishing reports on the forums or drop me a line at [email protected]. Be sure to pick up a Drop-n-Stay for your favorite angler this holiday season. You can purchase one at Tews, Wendt’s, Critters, the Boat Doc (Lomira) or other fine retailers. On a windy day on Lake Winnebago, it is a got to have item. I love mine! For more information, just click on the link on the main page. Till next week……Be careful on the ice.
