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!
January 29, 2024
This rollercoaster of a year continues! It stayed cold long enough to get a good sheet of ice, however it warmed right back up. As of today they are still driving atvs, however those days are numbered until we get some cold again. The ice sheet overall is in good shape if you want to walk, but again the warm is going to knock it down so be careful.
The fishing has picked up with the temperatures. Bluegills, crappies, and perch are all firing. There are guys catching perch over by the lights, as well as in the dredge lines. The bluegills and crappies are spread out in the 10-12 feet and were hitting well yesterday on waxies and plastics. Stop in for the latest!
January 10, 2024
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.
January 3, 2024
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.
December 16, 2023
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!
November 29, 2023
Quick update. The lake is froze (1.5 inches) over in front of the shop, however it might open back up looking at the forecast for the next week. Probably looking at mid December before we will have better chance of fishable ice.
June 26, 2023
The bluegill spawn was the same as the last 2 with mixed results. The fishing really is dependent on stable weather, and we had big temperature swings that messed with the timing on the spawn. We are now full swing into the summer pattern with the best fishing out on or near the main channel.
In other news Red Pines Bar & Grill is finishing up permitting for a dredging project and is starting a fundraising campaign. If they can raise the money it will create new habitat for fish and in turn improve our fishery! I really hope that everyone can get involved and donate so this can happen! Everyone who reads this report is interested in the health of the lake, and we don’t have to wait for the government to put together a multi-million dollar project to make a difference.
Thanks,
May 15, 2023
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!
February 15, 2023
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,
February 2, 2023
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,