It's That Time Of Year Once More!

ICE FISHING TIME!!
We've been locked in a deep freeze for the better part of the past two weeks but as soon as it breaks I'll be back out to get after some trout. I was able to get out a few days before Xmas and ice a limit of trout. There was 12"-13" of good solid clear ice, enough to drive the truck anywhere on the small lake safely. After this latest deep freeze with temps running an average of -30C daily(-29C to -34C daily with lows to -39C at night the past week) I am sure the ice will have doubled in thickness. Temps are supposed to climb for the weekend to single digits in the minus side still so it will be time to get after the trout once again...here are some pics from the first daay out this season.

 

Well the fishing has not disappointed since the cold snap ended. We have 20"-24" of good solid ice now and the Brookies have really been good to us and a few Bows have co-operated as well. I hear the others on the lake complaining the action has been non-existent when they ask if we are having any luck which of course I just agree it's been dead...The last thing I'm going to do is divulge our success to the others on the lake and be overrun on the little spot we fish where nobody comes near...LOL My wife caught her personal best Brookie on sunday just minutes before we were about to pack up for the day, a real beauty of a male that measured 16.5"x13.5" and pulled the lip grip scale to 3lb-8oz. I caught my PB on Friday with a 17.75"x13.25" @3lb-14oz.

 

A few more....

 

All great fun pictures, Thanks for sharing.

 

It's been a good winter so far and still have at least 6-8 more weeks of ice fishing left! Finally scratched another species off my bucket list with my first ever Tiger Trout( last two pics). Not a bruiser but still a thrill to get that first one. Now to get a bigger one!

 

Those are some nice fish.

 

When this fellows head came into the hole this afternoon{March 12/22) and I saw the big jaw and humped back I thought I had a male Rainbow. It made a twist in the hole and that's when I saw it's sides and the colours and realized I had a nice male Brookie. It measured 18" x 14" and pulled the Berkley Lip Grip scale to 4lb-3oz. I keep getting closer to my goal of a 5lb Brookie. No bows today, saw one small one on the camera and a half dozen or so 2 to 3lb Brookies. Caught this one in 5' of water but with almost three feet(34") from the top of the hole to the bottom of the ice it only left a two foot strip of water between the ice and the lake bottom. Got this one on the jawjacker with a clown slushbug tipped with a beetle pupa....

 

A couple more from this week...

 

And my final fish of the ice season before returning to work on the Trans-Mountain Pipeline Expansion Project in B.C.....the ice was melting fast with some warmer days and went from 34" to 22" in three days. Still was lots of safe ice to stand on but the shavings from the power auger were coming up wet from top to bottom and the ice was melting and breaking along the shoreline. I was happy as a clam when the Jawjacker fired and the drag started peeling on the little 28" rod and reel combo as I knew I had a decent one to end the ice season with.

 

Excellent catch!

 

We are off to a good start for the 2022/23 ice fishing season. December 8th was go day. With a measured 8" nice clear ice after walking out and punching holes every 30 feet or so the 150 yards walk to my first ice fishing spot it was park the truck at the launch and haul the gear out on foot. I am not comfy with putting the truck on the ice with 8" ice. I prefer a minimum of 12" and at the current temps that should be doable by Christmas. The the trout were biting. Got out again on the 11th solo. We picked up a new ice shelter and a Marcum LX9-L sonar/camera combo for this season and I spent the day trying it out and playing with settings. Kept 5 fish between the two outings. That should fill the 4 trays on the smoker!