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Picture Report… Well, more of a picture report anyways.
One thing that will be missing for the first time in a number of years from a winter ice fishing report will be the pike… Kesagami’s pike. Times have changed and future fishing there will likely occur from a boat during the safety and warmth of summer. A little worry I would miss the experiences there, in the end the valley winter flew by so quickly I barely had time to. Instead, what the ice season gave was an interesting mixture of fast and slow days, times on ice that were all work for fish, and then others when it was all fun and play with family and friends. General thought for a number of anglers in the valley was that this seasons ice fishing was tough and slow. There certainly were days like that, but for me it was overall good. Swapping out the old ice life when the season meant 4 or 5 fly-in trips and a couple icy cold skidoo outings, this year a couple dozen days fishing provided a variety of species in a number of different settings. At times I still catch myself living in that past, but I guess as more winters like this one go by, comfort and feeling will eventually fall into that same place of old.
First day of winter was the first day on the ice. Last day of winter was the last… most likely.
Before Christmas Christine and I enjoyed a morning roady to rainbows followed by an afternoon hoping for walleye, but we settled for perch. It was a great day out, catching six bows with Christine icing her first ever. Thanks for sharing the day.
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The holidays were fun as always and this year was the first in a long time we didn’t have to either host, work or travel any great distance. Perfect time spent for all the family.
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Before the New Year while Christine was still around to join us, Slop, Huddy, she and myself took a trip to the boonies to beat up on some bush crappies. Wild stuff making for fast action days.
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Never before have the girls joined me for as much time out on the ice as they have in the past couple months. To them, they make the best of their time playing, fishing, snacking or just doing whatever they want. This year as well, I have had the good fortune of helping to introduce new friends Rick and Angie to ice fishing. Between everyone there’s probably been 8-10 pannie outings logged. They could all be hooked.
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Angie with her first fish through the ice.
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Splake have eluded me all my fishing life but during January I managed to squeeze in two quick morning outings. First trip old friends Keith and Fra took me along, and the second pass I was able to track down the long lost MuskieMagnet Pat.
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One point along the way I tried heading out fishing on a least favorite lake for my nemesis the lake trout. A long day of jiggin’ with a laker missed I was surprised when come afternoon when a lone pike came by and tried biting my transducer. Reeling up from 60 feet I rubbed my lure on his side ti’ll he swam ahead then came back to smash it.
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When the snow flew in heavy come early February I took the opportunity to explore the area around the house on the Bravo. The girls let me drive them aboot awhile too, before taking over the machine to ride on their race track around the yard.
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Reconnecting with my friend Pat, he and I got away one day to adventure upon new waters. Not sure what we would find, we were both happily surprised with some solid perch. One more outing there afterwards with big kid Slop and my little kiddies too, we were greeted to more.
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An annual gathering in Calabogie couldn’t come soon enough and unfortunately, it ended all too quick. While playing in The Hills with a couple dozen yahoos and a Slop and the Sock, all under quad and sled power, we found a few fish on the slushy lakes.
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During January and February I snuck away four times to Quinte. First trip with SM05 (Mike) we didn’t get a sniff. Trips two, three and four things picked up some but overall Quinte was tougher this year for me. The last trips went 8/8 with Slop, 4/4 and a dismal 1/3. However, a few nice fish did make the surface and each time out using the Instashak was total comfort.
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To cap off February Grant, Huddy and I rented a cottage up in Quebec for three nights and planned to fish for whities while fighting off lakers. The fishing itself was hit and miss although we all got some trout. The cottage, company, meals scenery and quading were all top shelf though. A great time I hope to do again.
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Early March came in like a lion on the weekends, but during the midweeks Slop and I managed some perfectly timed outings to take advantage of quiet fishing opportunities. Whitefish did finally show themselves while the lakers were taking midday breaks. By ice end for me, Grant, Huddy and myself took one last weekend day to the whitey hole and bumped into a couple fun Fish-Hawkers, Paul and Craig. What was the final outing was a complete day of fish and relaxation.
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That was winter in a blob of pics. Next year I hope to see Stevie Z in his backyard of Hearst for something new, but for now thoughts of any future ice time are packed away. The Bomber is ready to go. Float tube a quick grab. The WarCanoe will be flipped shortly. Rods are readied for spring crappie, specks, browns and bows in the coming weeks, with hopefully a side of lakers and whiteys. Like spring has arrived, summer is fast approaching too.
Hopefully see some of yas out there.
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