Fishing Report

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!

The fishing continues to be pretty good even with the increased pressure we are seeing this year.  If you are fishing on the weekends you will definitely have some neighbors while you are on the ice.  Weekdays have significantly less people, if you want to bounce around a bit it might be worth it to take some vacation during the week.  The fish have moved out from in front of the shop as they normally do when they get pressured.  Guys are catching quite a few bluegills by Marge’s Island as well as some perch and crappies.  The lights have been boom or bust for perch.  If they are firing and you use tip downs expect to have a fun day.  The northern and bass fishing has picked up by the lights as well.  I haven’t heard of any 40″ fish yet but I know multiple mid 30s have been caught, with some guys reporting days where they have a lot of flags.  Stop in for the latest report and to get your bait and tackle!

I have been getting a lot of calls lately about ice conditions. The good news is the ice is holding up very well. Even if we get rain as forecasted we should have plenty left over with the lake averaging 7-8 inches. As far as fishing goes the bluegills have been biting well, check out my facebook page for a picture of a 10.25 in gill caught this week. The crappie bite has remained better than expected, and guys have found perch over by the lights. The only question mark has been the northern pike. We are off to a slower than usual start to tip up fishing, but I haven’t seen as many people setting flags either. Stop in for the latest report!

It looks like we are finally going to get some fishable ice! I took a measurement over at the landing and we are at about 2 1/2 inches. I would not be surprised to see 4 inches by the end of the day tomorrow, but we will have to wait and see. Most of the ice has 1/2 inch of melted snow (cloudy ice), but there is also areas of only clear ice that froze up after the snow stopped. Those areas should be as good or better then the gray areas, but I have not been out that far to check it yet. Use a spud and go with a buddy, the water is too cold to swim in!

Well there is good news and bad news. The bad news is the river is coming up. The latest forecast shows 11.8 feet in La Crosse by Wednesday which means it will be almost over the bank here at the shop. It may push the fish into the lake more we will just have to see. The good news is that the fishing in the last week has improved. The bluegills continue to bite well, move around to find a school of big ones. The perch have really come on in the last few days. There are people catching some jumbos over by the lights. The minnow bite has really turned on for them. The crappies still have yet to move onto the lake in force, but I expect them anytime now. Swing in for the latest report!

It looks as though we are slowly creeping towards better fishing. We didn’t get the cool weather that was originally forecasted for this past week, however this coming week looks promising. My latest thought is that the fall migration of fish to the east side of the lake is going to happen in a shorter time than usual which would mean a window where there will be some phenomenal fishing. We are over a month behind schedule and not catching up so something has to give here at some point. That being said you can still go out and catch some nice bluegills along the tracks and out by the lights. A few reports of perch and crappies but no large schools yet. Next week with highs in the 60’s might be the time to get out.

My report for this week is not that much different from last week. The bluegills continue to bite pretty well. We did have a couple of slow days this week. The perch have picked up quite a bit. I went out and was able to catch quite a few nice ones. The crappies remain spotty. I think that this next week with cooler temperatures will really get things back on track.

We have continued to run behind schedule with the fall bite, which has been the pattern since spring. The bluegill bite continues to be decent but not what you normally see by this time. The perch are slowly picking up, I think it really correlates to the vegetation. As their cover falls down they move out and start schooling. Crappies are around on the lake and you can catch them, but again not to the extent you would expect by this time. You might want to think about keeping the boat out, either the season is going to run late, or their is going to be a compressed window that will be phenomenal.