For the Tomahawk Leader

LAKE ALICE – Feb. 5, 2022 was the Alice in Winterland ice fishing derby on Lake Alice east of Tomahawk, an annual event that draws out the locals and tourists alike to spend a day ice fishing, socializing and supporting a great area fundraising effort.

But, what a cold day. With morning lows about 15 below zero and winds that later in the day had gusts to 20 MPH, it made for a bunch of inside the ice shack time. People did turn out, and the lake was busy all day, but you needed to dress for it and have a place to warm up.

We found about 15 inches of ice in the area we fished on the lake’s south shoreline. Good ice, and a good road system that has been maintained to allow people to get to their shacks with ease. Being pretty unfamiliar with the area that we fished, we simply looked for some ice shacks in a line and assumed that must be the channel. Giving plenty of room away from those shacks, we punched some holes to find a 20-foot deep channel, indeed. The bay was littered with stumps and wood on the bottom. We figured it was as good a place as any to give it a try and see what was in the area.

We did catch several nice crappies, a few smaller ones, along with bluegill and rock bass, all of which were released. It was tough sledding, as they say. The fish were there, as they did show up on our graphs, but they just didn’t want to bite. Even when we did catch something, it was the softest of all bites, or you just felt weight on the line and not an actual tug. None of our tip ups produced a fish at all. Everything we got was while jigging the rods and mostly inside of pop up tents. A couple small walleyes came while jigging a waxie worm, which is a bit unusual as well. When fish are biting light, they are really aren’t looking for a big meal, so a smaller target like a waxie was the preferred dinner for those small walleyes.

Snow depth still has remained very low. With no real snow storms to speak of in even the past month, it’s making fishing easier. Easier to navigate the lake and easier to drill and clear holes; unfortunately for snowmobilers, the trails are taking a beating as snow cover on them wears thin.

Get out, get fishing and stay safe.

Until next trip, Good Fishing.