Fishing Report

The lake is starting to cooperate, and the fishing is picking up. The perch are about finished spawning but there is a good post spawn bite on the lake that a lot of guys miss out on. The walleyes are spawning right now and the dams have been busy. The water seems to be warm enough for the crappies to be moving into their pre spawn areas and the fishing for them should be good for the next couple weeks. Spring fishing is definitely starting, stop in for the latest report!

We got about 4″ of heavy snow, which is exactly what we didn’t need. There are areas of open water still as well as spots that the snow turned to slush. Once we hit this cold weather be careful going out, I don’t think we are going to have an even thickness ice sheet to start out. The snow forecasted for Friday could also have a negative impact on the ice formation. All that bad news out of the way we will be able to get out once we have this cold spell.

We are making ice (again). There is still open water from Halfway creek past Marge’s island. This season has definitely been frustrating with a lot of people saying they don’t remember ice coming this late. It looks like we will be building fishable ice, its hard to say exactly when but I bet guys will start creeping out this weekend.

If your looking for good news the river is over 6 ft right now in La Crosse with the flow high for winter. This generally means that the fishing is good on the lake as the fish like to avoid higher flow this time of year.

Well it is currently raining so that is not good news. We are holding on to what little ice we had for now, but the forecast still does not look good. It is going to be the new year at the earliest before we can get out any distance from the landing. Stop in and check out the new shop in the meantime!

The water is finally getting back down to normal. This spring so far has not been too friendly to fisherman, but it looks good moving forward. The weather has finally stabilized and now that water levels will be more consistent the fish can start settling into their normal habits.

I am getting reports that the crappies are spawning/spawned out. It looks like they started during the high water, hopefully the eggs hatched before the water dropped. They are definitely still being caught and the bite should remain good in the deeper water for the next few weeks. The bass are on beds and are next up to spawn. The pike are absolutely on fire, you will catch one even if you aren’t fishing for them. Bluegills are still hard to come by. I expect in the next week or so we will see the males moving shallow to start making beds.

The landing is open, and stayed open through most of the high water. I am going to try and get the dock put in tomorrow at the landing. Stop in for the latest report!

ICE UPDATE: I took a ride on my ATV this morning and punched some holes. The ice seemed to hold up really well. Directly across from the shop it is still 12-14″. To the east closer to Halfway Creek it was more in the 10-12″ range. I also checked the corner where the channel comes out behind the skinny island. (A known bad spot) In the two holes I drilled one had 10″ and one was closer to 6″. The extended forecast looks promising with two cold nights tomorrow and Friday. After a brief warmup over the weekend we will have good temps with highs right around freezing and lows in the teens. If the forecast holds it should repair the ice and we should be able to keep fishing for at least the next two weeks. Be careful and stop and use a spud if you aren’t sure.

Thanks,

The BPCA Derby is right around the corner and it looks like it is perfect timing! Guys are driving trucks out and we are averaging 12″. You still need to be careful where you go, stop in and ask if you are not familiar with where to drive. This week of cold weather has definitely helped add some more ice on.

The biggest news on the bite is the northern. They are definitely starting to pick up and I think we will see some big pike on the fish board on Saturday. Some bass are also starting to bite, but they seem to be a bit more timid.

The perch continue to bite and seem to be the most consistent of all fish species this winter. The trend of the schools being small and spread out continues so you need to be patient.

The crappie and bluegill bite have both improved in the last week or so. The biggest hang up for guys seem to be that they are not always in their traditional areas. Don’t be afraid to fish other spots besides what you normally fish. The bluegills especially are biting on small jigs. I have an extensive assortment of small tungsten that are working well. Some days as expected they seem to have lock jaw however.

Stop in for the latest and please support the BPCA on Saturday!!! We need to make sure that as anglers we are helping support this amazing fishery.

Thanks,

Heading into the derby weekends things are looking good. We have a cold stretch that should firm up the ice enough that guys start driving trucks. I’m hoping that the thicker ice pushes some fish out of the backwaters and more into their traditional overwintering areas.

As far as fishing goes, nothing new with the bluegill and crappie bite, it remains fair. The northern are definitely getting more active. I think you will see flags popping at the derbies. If you have given up on tip-ups it may be the time to give them another try.

The perch have moved off of the north shore as I suspected and seem to be scattered along the west side of rosebud through the lights all the way down to the tracks. I went out yesterday and the first hole I drilled had fish. A few tips if you are struggling to catch anything. 1) Avoid other people, the perch are noise sensitive and spook easily. I was watching the fish on my electronics and I slid my rod box and they all spooked. Once you find some fish drill your holes and put the auger away. Drilling kills the bite. I had multiple times where I drilled an additional hole and pushed the fish out of the area. 2) Be mobile, don’t setup your operation until you are sure you want to commit to an area. 3) Tip Downs- They work and you can cover a larger area and pattern the fish easier. 4) Avoid other people, I can’t stress this enough. If you pull up on a group and drill some holes most likely you will ruin that spot for everyone.

Stop in for the latest!

Thanks,

With the switch to the new website we lost a few fishing reports, so I thought I should update everyone. The ice is holding up fine after the rain, I haven’t heard of any issues. ATV and UTV traffic has continued without an issue. We are supposed to get 5-8 inches of snow tonight and I will plow roads if that is the case.

As far as the fish go overall I think the fishing is improving. The perch were on fire along the north shore, but that seems to be slowing down. This year it looks like the perch are not going to school up as tight as years past, so hole hopping and remaining mobile will be key to getting a bucket of jumbos. The crappie bite has improved somewhat, but I still wouldn’t say it is good. The bluegill bite remains fair. Tip ups are still slow, but it seems like there is more activity than last year!

There seems to be some movement in where the schools are located and I don’t think it would be a waste of time to check areas that didn’t hold fish earlier this year.

I have raffle tickets here for the BPCA Derby. They have some nice prizes this year for the derby on Feb. 4th, and they are raffling off a deer blind as well! We really need to make sure to support the club, they are the ones who can push for habitat projects that will improve fishing!

Stop in for the latest!