By George Langley
NORTHERN WISCONSIN – We are in for quite a rollercoaster of temps for the last week of game fishing this winter, but this is nothing new for us this year. The extreme swings from 50s to teens is unprecedented in February.
The fishing has been great since our ice season up here started, but we think it’s safe to say that for next year, we’d welcome the normal complaints at this time of the winter about deep snow, frigid cold and slush on the lakes.
Ice conditions are holding, and we can’t say enough about how pleasant it’s been out there, basically all season. We expect to skate (literally) through with what we have until it’s over for this year. We’re still seeing five to 12 inches on most area lakes, and we don’t expect that to change any time soon.
We are starting to hear of some exciting “events” out there, like cracks opening up suddenly with a big boom and lots of water. This kind of thing will most definitely get your heart beating fast and is related to big swings in temperatures. Check the ice as you go. Do not depend on what your neighbor’s uncle’s son said about any particular lake.
Walleye fishing has been decent, and we saw a ton of people out last weekend with the great weather we had. Tip-up action is still dominating the walleye fishing. Most anglers are setting a little deeper now, and the best action is still after dark.
Northern action has slowed a little. Tip-ups with large shiners set over the weeds have been best, but we are getting reports of great action one day and little to nothing the next. Look for the deeper weeds for this type of fishing, and while afternoons are good, these fish will eat all day long.
Panfish action has been good to great throughout the area. Crappies have been hitting on vertical jigs with waxies or crappie minnows on weed edges at six to nine feet on the Chain.
Bluegills are in the weeds and have been providing pretty good numbers. Waxies or spikes have been best for the ‘gills. The perch bite has been OK, but not great. You may not see anything all day, but then a school comes through and they’re hitting like mad.
Despite the end of the game fishing season after this coming weekend, there is still plenty of great fishing to be had in March if the ice holds. It’s the one thing we didn’t lose out on this year.
Good luck and good fishin’!