Cold Snap Brings Early Ice Fishing Opportunity to Parts of Northeast Wisconsin

Chilly December temperatures have jump-started the ice fishing season throughout elements of northeast Wisconsin, drawing anglers onto bays and smaller lakes sooner than typical whereas security consultants urge warning.

With temperatures working 10 to fifteen levels beneath regular within the Fox Valley, ice has begun forming on sheltered waters resembling Little Lake Butte des Morts and bays round Lake Winnebago. Bigger our bodies of water, together with a lot of the Fox River and Lake Winnebago, stay largely open.

A number of anglers mentioned the early chilly snap pushed them onto the ice weeks forward of a typical season, which often runs from late December by way of March, relying on circumstances. Many relied on bait retailers, native reviews, and the presence of different anglers to evaluate whether or not ice was protected sufficient to fish.

Ice fishing exercise has picked up in locations like Asylum Bay close to Oshkosh, the place anglers have begun establishing early-season shanties. The stretch of frigid climate has additionally coincided with the return of the Wisconsin Ice Fishing Expo, which runs Dec. 12 by way of Dec. 14 on the EAA Grounds in Oshkosh.

Based on reporting from WFRV Local 5, Oshkosh-area ice skilled Don Herman mentioned many of the ice at the moment forming throughout Lake Winnebago bays measures solely 2 to three inches thick.

Herman, who has spent a long time plowing lakes and retrieving autos and ice shanties that fall by way of the ice, recommends at the very least 4 inches of ice for strolling, 6 to 10 inches for ATVs, and 12 to fifteen inches for bigger autos. He mentioned ice circumstances can change quickly as cracks kind and temperatures fluctuate, making early-season ice particularly unpredictable.

Regardless of the dangers, native bait retailers report elevated enterprise as anglers reap the benefits of early ice, when bigger fish typically transfer into deeper water. Store house owners and consultants alike stress that no catch is price risking a fall by way of skinny ice.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources continues to remind anglers that no ice is ever fully protected and urges folks to verify native reviews, fish with companions, and carry security tools, resembling ice picks and flotation units, when venturing onto the ice.

Keith Lusher

Keith Lusher is an award-winning out of doors journalist who resides in Covington, Louisiana. He owns and operates NorthshoreFishingReport.com and writes a weekly out of doors column for the Slidell Unbiased Newspaper. He additionally writes for the St.Tammany Parish Tourism Fee’s VisitTheNorthshore.com. He’s the previous host of The Northshore Fishing Report Radio Present and is on the board of the Louisiana Outside Writers Affiliation. Keith contributes to quite a few publications each on-line and in print and prides himself on selling South Louisiana’s distinctive fishery. To contact Keith e mail: keithlusherjr@gmail.com