Fishing Febuary 19, 2008

Here in New England at least in Massachusetts, our school systems take two weeks off during the winter months, one in February and the other in April. My son wanted to go out and try ice fishing once and this was the perfect opportunity at getting him acclimated to the ice and fishing through a hole. He does very well in the summer months but never showed much interest for going out in the winter until now.

We decided to spend some time close to home so if he didn’t care for the ice fishing experience then we could get home fairly quickly. We went to the lake that I frequent quite regularly and had a good feeling that this lake would give him action to keep his interest peaked. After getting everything unloaded you could see the excitement in his face and also his step and as was pumped to get out and try this thing we call ice fishing.

We get out to the first spot and drill a couple of holes and then the explaining of equipment and things that he can touch and not touch especially when it comes to the auger blades. After getting the Vexilar going and explaining to him what he was seeing he actually seemed to understand that the green he was seeing was his bait and the red that was around it was the fish he was trying to catch.

I rigged him up with T.H.E. Jig as well as my lines and we proceeded to fish. The first location wasn’t showing any action and I decided to drill more holes a little ways away. As I finished drilling the holes I turned around and looked at David and he was fighting a fish that he had caught all on his own. The smile that he had on his face when that fish came out of the hole was priceless and one that I will be remembering for quite sometime.

Since now he was hooked on ice fishing he caught a few more from that hole and when the action slowed down he wanted me to drill more holes over there and that is what we did. He started getting the hang of setting the hook and also how to jiggle T.H.E. Jig to entice the fish into biting. The action started slowing some and so did his interest so he did like any other boy and ventured around a little on the ice.

Then the highlight of his day was to have a snack out there on the ice and this was a big moment for him as he thought he was so cool sitting there eating and fishing. We moved a few more times searching for some fish and as the afternoon wore on, so did the cold front that was coming through. The temps were dropping and the wind was picking up speed but he was a trooper and didn’t want to leave at all.

We were out there over 4 hours and he still wasn’t ready to go but the bite was getting none existent and you could see that his interest was waning. So he decided that it was time to go home and play in the backyard for a while, but he is definitely looking to shaping up to being his father’s son. He is hooked on ice fishing and wants to go again this weekend and I may now have a new buddy to take along with me fishing.

One thing that I have learned over the years is that you cannot push these kids into doing the things that we enjoy doing thinking they will as well. I want them to come to me and tell me that they want to go and try these things out so that way their interest is their doing and not me forcing them to do something that they don’t want to. I have found over the years that if you rush kids into these things they take a disliking to those activities and don’t want to do them at all as they grow older. I look forward to many more days on the ice with him and watch that excitement grow in him over the coming years.

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Latest video from Feb 19 2008

Here is our latest video from fishing with my son on Feb 19 2008, enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxFueOshIn8

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Fishing February 17, 2008

Always seem to pick the wrong day weather wise to go out fishing but when other things need to be done there is nothing that can be helped. We ventured back to the lake that we have been frequenting the past couple of weeks in search of the elusive bigger crappies that live in those waters.

Since it has been a little warmer and raining some as well, the ice conditions were not bad other than being very slippery on the surface. Of course there was another storm front approaching with rain for the evening. What we had to deal with was high winds up to 30 mph that didn’t allow us to setup any type of wind break so we had to sit in the wind. Thankfully the temps were somewhat mild and were bearable but made it tough to watch the line for those light biters.

We concentrated mostly in 20 FOW and found the crappies were suspending up to 5 feet off of the bottom. Apparently with the approaching storm, this has triggered the fish into biting and bigger fish than we normally catch. After catching a few fish we were right into the 13 inch crappies and were able to catch a number of these before the bite died off. There wasn’t any sunfish caught at all and usually there is always a mixture between the two species.

The bait that we were using was the Loby Baits Micro Flei in the pink color and we have been using this particular piece of plastic for the last couple of outings. This goes to show the durability that these baits are made from and why plastics are fantastic. This was the only bait that was used as they were keying very nicely onto it.

As the winds persisted the bite started to dramatically drop off and after drilling more than 20 holes they were reluctant to bite very aggressively. This particular lake the shoreline was finally frozen solid once again but with the coming warm temps and rain, this may hamper our opportunities of fishing here again. This lake turns the big fish on when late ice starts and now is the time to get out there and find these bigger fish.

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Latest video from Feb 17 2008

Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS)

Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS)

VHS is an infectious disease of fish. There are several strains of VHS that affect fresh and salt water fishes. The strain of VHS that is currently present in the Great Lakes is a strain most closely related to one that is found on the Atlantic coast. VHS affects several different species of fish, including sportfish. Some of the affected species include: Muskellunge (Esox masquinongy), Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides), Freshwater Drum (Aplodinotus grunniens), Round Goby (Apollonia melanostomus), and Walleye (Sander viteus).

Read the rest here

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Latest video from February 10, 2008

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Fishing February 10, 2008

If you are not familiar with New England and the weather that we have here, all you need to do is to wait five minutes and it will change. With the news that a major cold front was going to be coming through in the afternoon we hit the lake in the morning looking for a good bite back on the pond that has some good slab crappies.

Upon arriving the sun was shining and there was a light breeze blowing but off in the distance you could see the cloud bank coming. After drilling a few holes it wasn’t long and the fish were biting and hitting the ice while using the Loby Baits pink Micro Flei we were able to locate and catch some good sized sunfish but average crappies.

As the morning wore on so did the weather and this really was the story of the day. Once the cloud bank arrived overhead the winds started picking up and it started to sprinkle. Thankfully I had brought my Otter fish house as the rain became fairly hard and consistent. The rain continued for about half an hour and let up and so did the wind.

Then there was a noise coming from the adjoining woods and as I set my house back up the gail force winds hit and with all of the snow it was a white out conditions and there were times that I had to do all I could to keep my house from moving across the ice from the force of the wind. This went on for about half an hour and once that blew over the sun came out and the winds died down and it was like nothing had happened.

Usually don’t get weather like this extreme from one to another but here in New England this is fairly common throughout the year. The fish were still biting but had slowed a little so we switched over to T.H.E. Jig and worked those finicky fish into biting. Most of our fish came from 18-20 FOW and were suspending 2-5 feet off of the bottom. Towards the end we were fishing one hole that had numerous fish activity in it and when they would bite we missed them but they all felt heavy. Not sure but this may have been that school of 13 inch plus crappies that we were looking for but unfortunately were not caught.

The shoreline at this lake has firmed up over the last couple of days but still unable to walk on it and we had to walk around a part of the lake to get on. Monday we are looking at 10 degrees and high winds and this will definitely help in keeping the ice there and firming the shoreline up that we may head out there again on our next outing to search for these crappies.

A video recap is following in a day

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Ice softening

If you are an angler in the New England area you probably already know that the ice conditions out there are getting fair as each day passes. We were on a lake last weekend and had to walk around part of the lake to be able to get on as the shoreline had open water where we wanted to get on. We are going to go and check this lake once again here in a couple of hours and see what it looks like if we can get out there again this weekend. We have been having fairly mild temps and a lot of rain as well and now the last day or so the snow has come in and has covered everything over again. This weekend especially could be problematic for getting on some of our lakes and caution needs to be taken at all times. Play it safe out there and if the lake that you want to go on looks iffy, go try another lake as there are plenty of waters around to get on safely. Enjoy the weekend and hope that everyone catches many fish.

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Latest Video February 3 2008

Here is our latest trip put to video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQbO0yTHsNI

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Fishing February 3 2008

With the warming temps and the rains that we have been receiving our ice is starting to take a toll and making things a little interesting. We decided to head to a pond that is known for having large crappies and this was going to be our focus for this trip. Upon arriving at the waters edge there is something going on as this shoreline that we get to first almost always has open water on the edges and is open once again. Have to walk around a part of the lake to get to a place that the ice is safe enough to set foot on.

Since this pond has some big crappies in the 13” and bigger class we decided to stay out in deeper water and search for suspending fish. After drilling a few holes we started catching a number of nicer sunfish on T.H.E. Jig and they were coming in fairly regularly. We had to down size to the smallest jig as the fish on the Vexilar would hover around T.H.E. Jig but at times showed no interest what so ever. Since the crappies weren’t coming in we forged on and drilled more holes in our search.

At this point we switched over to the Loby Baits micro flea in the pink color and the crappies started gobbling this bait up. We were catching more crappies than sunfish and that is what our quest was for this day but the size wasn’t what we were looking for and catching 10-11.5” fish fairly regularly. We decided to move out into deeper water and this is when we started connecting with bigger crappies. These fish were in 20 fow and were suspending anywhere from 17 feet up to 14 feet. These fish that were suspending were more aggressive than the ones that were lower towards the bottom. We were able to catch a bass as well and this fish came in and slammed the micro flea and gave the Austin rod another workout which it handled the fight very well.

All in all it was a good day out on this pond but we never did find those 13 inch plus fish that we were looking for. With the weather being warm and a light breeze all day the ice is getting worn and the top layer is definitely softening up here and we need to get some cold nights once again and freeze things over nicely. From the times that we have been to this pond we usually don’t catch numbers of fish but on this outing we caught a number of fish and the crappies were good fighters. We will be back again soon as the search for those slab crappies will continue.

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Downsizing

As we move into February and the ice season is in full swing, the fishing is getting tougher with winter weather playing a major role. This time of year fish are still being caught but many anglers are having to have to work harder at catching their favorite species of fish. The anglers that are having better success are the ones that are employing the downsizing methods to their fishing strategy. By downsizing we are talking about micro baits that are used and there are days when these baits are the only thing that the fish want and are finicky to even bite these. By micro baits we are talking about jigs that are very small with examples of 1/60, 1/80 and even 1/100 oz sizes. These resemble micro organisms and at this time of year this is what the fish are feeding on. Micro plastics are another bait that is shining these days and between these two offerings, this should put more fish on the ice for you. These very small jigs may not be at your favorite tackle shop and there are a number of companies on the internet that sell these. Downsize and catch more fish this winter season and try something that most of the other anglers either don’t know about or don’t want to fish a bait that small.

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Fishing January 27, 2008

This day was one of those days that were going to test you in every way possible once getting to your fishing spot and the walk before. The previous day was gorgeous with high sun and mild temps but projects around the house had dominated that day and we were unfortunate to be able to take advantage. So Sunday arrives and we wake to a snowstorm with gusting winds to 35mph.

We arrive at the lake, one that we usually only fish a couple of times a season, and there is between 1-2 inches of fresh snow on top. If someone wanted to make a home video to send into one of those TV shows, this one would have done well. Since there was a fresh coating of snow the footing that we had was never really there. The ice surface was very slippery and while pulling our portable house along with us I had fallen to the ice at least 15 times before getting to where I wanted to fish. As I sit here and type this report my right knee is still in a good amount of pain as well as one of my elbows. There were a couple of times that I laid there on the ice wondering why I continue but I wanted to fish and made my way to that area.


We concentrated on a deeper hole of the lake and punched a number of holes looking for active fish. What we were finding were a number of dead holes and finally one produced a couple of small sunfish for our efforts. I had decided to work my way towards shore as I was contemplating walking the shore back to avoid another round of slamming myself to the ice. As we worked into a little shallower water the last couple of holes started producing and started with a pickerel. After getting that fish out of the area the bigger sunfish started coming in and there were a handful of nice ones caught.


With the winds and snow howling outside and not much action happening inside of the house we decided to pack it up and head out. Most of our fish came in 10 feet of water and were caught on a green/black T.H.E. Jig worked ever so slowly and the smallest jig that I had along with me. These fish were very inactive and fortunately the last hole that we drilled there were some active fish to save the day. This lake has numbers of these bigger sunfish and that is what we were looking for but with the cold snowy front passing through the area, I have a feeling that most anglers out there had a tough day as well.


One piece of equipment that I need to purchase this week before going out again next week is a good set of boot cleats as I am not going to put myself through that punishment again. We as sportsman put ourselves through some very tough and demanding situations to do what we truly love to do. It takes dedication and sometimes a little craziness to keep getting out there and going but when that day comes where everything falls together, those are the days that we live for. Would I do it again and the answer will always be yes as my wife asked me that when I came limping and hobbling into the house.


Here is our latest video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=LCOAGj7wcgU

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Our latest Video Jan 28, 2008

Panfish fishing through the storm

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Cold Temps Making Ice

The weather as of lately here in New England is being very favorable for the ice anglers out there and cooperating with ice forming. The temps lately have been very cool especially at night and lack of snowfall is helping immensely. The warm weather and rain that we had received a week ago or so has taken most of the snow cover off of the ice and this is allowing the cold to take hold. Some area ponds still need to be watched as the shorelines were opening with the warm weather and still be unsafe to navigate onto. Bringing all the safety equipment along is always encouraged and letting people know where you are at is getting to be standard practice. We are still enjoying time on the ice and are finding good ice where we have been and will be trying a new body of water again this weekend. Be safe out there and enjoy what Mother Nature has to offer but also be aware of what and where you are walking and be safe to enjoy another day out on the ice.

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Dead Sticking Panfish

As the winter months are progressing further along here that is bringing along high pressure days more frequently. This in turn makes the fish a little tougher to catch as the bites are more finicky and also very light hitting the baits that we offer them. Until we start seeing the spring thaw anglers are going to have to work a little harder to being able to put fish on the ice but we are starting to see a technique that is starting to pay off on these high pressure days. What we are talking about is dead sticking which is just like it sounds. Instead of giving any type of action to the bait, just leave the bait sit there motionless and this is attracting fish. Once you notice that the fish are hovering around your bait then you may want to put a very minimal action to it and usually one of those fish is going to grab the bait. Then there are times that just letting it sit there they will attack it as well. Play around with this technique and see what you can get to work for you and this may help you put some fish on the ice when others either are having a tough day or not getting bit at all. Adjusting your fishing methods to what the conditions are is what is going to make a mediocre day into a fruitful day.

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Wildlife Activity

Have you ever noticed on days when you are in the field that sometimes the wildlife activity is either very active or none existent. Weather plays a huge role in how much activity are in the wildlife that we seek. It has been mentioned that you are able to look out your window and be able to gauge if this will be a successful day or not. If you have bird feeders in your yard those are good indicators that you could use to determine if there will be activity while you are out. Most of us are not able to pick our days that we take to enter the field and have to take whatever mother nature throws at us, but if we have a little idea as to the activity that is happening around us then we can adjust our plan accordingly and still make it a successful outing. Fish are going to be doing the same as well and many folks say to watch the bird activity around your favorite body of water and this will let you know how the day will be going. If there is a lot of activity then most creatures are going to be active but if you are not noticing much activity things may be tough and you will have to work a little harder to have an enjoyable day. The next time you go into the field take a look at what is happening around you and see if these things are as we describe.

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Fishing Video for Ice Fishing

Click on the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7wsARCrKuk

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Fishing January 19, 2008

Finally to be on the ice once again as the weather and conditions here in New England do and will change from day to day. While we were in MN for a week the weather here was in the 60’s and that melted a lot of the surface of the ice as well as opening up the shorelines on many ponds. We heard many reports that folks were using long board planks to get out onto the ice and after having another 12 inches of snow we had decided last weekend to stay off of the ice and wait for more favorable conditions.

We ventured out onto our favorite winter pond this day and with the spud bar in hand and the ice picks around our neck we found very favorable ice for our latest ice fishing adventure. The total ice thickness was around 12 inches with the top layer of 6 inches of frozen snow and the rest being hard ice. The thickness that we had now was thicker than we have had all winter and we should be set now for the rest of the winter with the cold temperatures coming in this week.

Since the snow has melted from the surface of the ice, this made for easy travels around searching for our fish today. Drilled a few holes right away and concentrated in depths from 13 – 18 feet of water. On this particular pond this area that we fish is the deepest hole of the lake and we always figure that there are going to be concentrations of fish here and usually are never disappointed at that.

Our game plan for this day was to fish for crappies and sunfish but at the same time we were going to jig for some bass as well. Upon dropping the transducer of our Vexilar down the first hole we were marking fish and dropped the Chubby Darter down and a couple of jigs later had the first bass on ice. Unfortunately since this fish had hammered the bait and taken it fairly deep we easily worked the hooks out and quickly released this bass back into the water unharmed. We tried a little more with the Chubby Darter but were more focused on searching for panfish and concentrated our efforts more towards them.

The plan that we generally use is drill around 20 holes in a circular pattern and once that is done then we will start hole jumping until we find active fish. As time goes by we generally find that there are only a few holes that are very productive and that were this case this day as well. The fish that we were marking were suspended from 3 feet to 9 feet off of the bottom and if we were to see the higher fish those were of a much bigger size. We had caught a number of fish but a majority of these were in the 4 – 6 inch range and we haven’t seen this many small crappies in this location ever.

After weeding our way through a number of fish we were able to bring home a few for a small fish fry and they were greatly appreciated on the dinner plate. The fish that were caught were caught on the Loby Baits Mousi in the white color and also others were caught on a yellow/orange T.H.E. Jig which we are finding as a popular color on this particular pond. The lift method was used on all of the fish that were caught and if they were reluctant to bite after working them for a few minutes then we would move onto the next hole.

We had figured that the bite would be much easier than it was as a small storm front was going to be coming through the area and the temperatures are falling as well. But that didn’t seem to matter as the fish were there and fish were caught but the numbers of fish that we did catch were worked for and were not going to come easily. Now that we are getting our ice forming more firmly these days this is going to open many more avenues for us and start looking for more reports from us and we are going to start venturing to lakes and ponds that haven’t been visited yet this winter.

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Ice safety

This is getting to be an old record lately around here in New England but we want to keep these thoughts on everyone’s mind this ice season. The ice that we had form early in the season had started out very clear and hard, but with all the snow that we have received this winter has melted and there is a layer of frozen snow/slush. Then came along the few days in the 60’s with a rain as well and what that did was melt the surface fairly well as well as open the shorelines also. Now we have received around another 12 inches of snow the other day on this weaker ice and snow/rain in a couple of days coming again. Luckily the cold weather is starting to come back but if you are venturing out to do some ice fishing, be very cautious and check the shoreline and all ice that you may walk on to making sure that it is strong enough to support you and your equipment. We have been talking about this scenario almost the whole season so far because the ice is ever changing and with the weather that we have been getting, this is not helping matters at all. Spud bar, life jacket, ropes and ice picks are standard equipment that needs to be taken along and you should not be out there without any of this equipment. Have fun and enjoy your ice outing but keep in mind that safety is number one and always should be and use that safety equipment and we all want to see everyone being able to fish another day.

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Fishing MN January 9, 2008 with recap

Today was going to be a rest and travel day and being on the ice for 5 straight days was starting to take its toll on my back and I could definitely feel all of that fishing. Later in the afternoon I started my travels back towards the cities and met with a couple of friends before getting to my aunt and uncles as I spent the night with them. Very early morning flight on the next day had me back in New England by noon and the last numbers of days are all of a memory now that I am going to be carrying along with me for quite some time.

After looking back on my trip I had met a number of old friends met a load of new friends and will definitely be trying to get out with all of them upon my next outing to MN once again. I am already starting to plan my next years ice trip and I know that I will be in the same areas seeing the same folks that I had the pleasure of fishing with this year, but will be adding a stop in Wisconsin the next time around and fish with the Loby Baits gang over there on Redstone Lake. I tried to figure out how I could possibly get there this time around but the drive was going to be to long and I know that next time I will fly into Milwaukee and catch up with Loby and his crew for those outstanding days of fishing that they have over there. This was a very good trip and the days always go by way to fast but again I want to thank everyone that I met along the way for their hospitality and was a joy fishing with all of you. I am looking forward to doing it again next year.

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Fishing MN January 8, 2008

Dad and I decided that we were going to go and fish the lake that I fished earlier in the week for crappies again but with the conditions that we had we were never able to get there and fish it. Since we had to walk and had no other means of transportation out to the fishing spot, I was trying to find a location on the lake that we could park and walk but with the very dense fog that we were having, made it impossible to find that location. We ended up at a connecting lake and tried there for an hour and the fish were not biting there. The fog was lifting so we loaded the gear and headed back to find that other location and still were unable to find it and unfortunately never got back to the crappie honey hole. Went back to the homestead and I fished there the rest of the afternoon but the sun was out once again and the bite was tough but was able to put together another meal for the freezer and that was a goal that I wanted to do for my parents.

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Fishing MN January 7, 2008

Since I had been traveling around the state the last three days I decided to stay and fish my parent’s lake and was nice to be able to walk out the door and start drilling holes. Across the bay there is a point that comes out and after finding that and drilled a number of holes to locate the break line and had holes in depths from 5 feet out to 26 feet. We found out that the best depth’s that were holding fish were from 8 feet to 16 feet with 12 feet the best. Today the bite was the best again when the clouds were around as later in the afternoon the bite dropped off dramatically once again. We were able to catch numerous sunfish and later in the day the crappies starting showing themselves and a few of them were caught as well. It was amazing at the number of northern pike that I had caught as I had a back to back battle with two pike on two consecutive drops of the line. These were all great battles and on the ultralite gear and 2 pound test line that I was using, this was a little nerve racking getting them in. we were able to get fish in the freezer and I know that mom was especially happy at seeing that. Was nice being able to fish with my dad for a change as this was something that we haven’t done in a number of years as well, this was some great times that I am going to remember for a long while.

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Fishing MN January 6, 2008

This was another early rise morning as this day was going to bring me to Big Sandy Lake in the McGregor area and a day of fishing with internet acquaintances and meeting many new people as well. The meeting place was at CrappieKeith’s house and man was there a number of people there to shake hands with. Shaking hands for the first time with Dave ”Hoggie” Hoggard and “CrappieKeith” Keith Nelson was something that I have wanted to do in quite some time and finally was able to get that chance. Also, the gang from WhereIFish.com had been there with Keith for the last few days and was truly a joy meeting all of you as well. We loaded and headed for Big Sandy and met up with another member of Catch-N Shannon “SandBurr” there with his kids and crew and a number of handshakes once again were put out and was great meeting all of you as well. Were moved out onto a narrows area on Big Sandy and everyone started drilling holes on a break in that area. With cloudy conditions and a light breeze this proved very productive until midday when the sun decided to poke out and slow the bite dramatically. Everyone was catching fish with whatever techniques they were using and many varieties of fish species were hitting the ice, walleye, northern pike, perch, crappies and whitefish were being caught. This day was one of my most memorable as I had met and fished with so many people in one day that goes to show me that ice fishing is so much more fun and we are able to share that time with more folks as opposed to open water fishing. At the end of this day Keith and I had done a Catch-N Radio show with Hoggie and hopefully other anglers are going to be able to get information from that. Again, this day was really the highest highlight that I had from the whole trip and look forward to doing this again next year.

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Fishing MN January 5, 2008

The same friend and I decided to meet up early Saturday morning and try a lake that we haven’t fished in 15 years or so. After unloading the 4 wheeler and gear we traveled across the lake and decided to try an area and see if we could find some sunfish. Drilled a number of holes and nothing was in that area and as we looked across the lake there were two distinct pods of houses and we ventured towards the smaller one. We drilled a few holes and turned the Vexilars on and they were lit up like Christmas trees and wasn’t more than a few minutes and the crappies were hitting the ice. What we learned was that in this area there was a deep bar running through there and we were catching these fish in 36 feet of water with them suspending a few feet off of the bottom. The thing that I was amazed at was as the morning went on the fishing got better and before 11:00 am we both had our limits and had thrown a number of fish back as well. We packed up by noon and said good wishes to each other with a slap on the back and the memories were really starting to form already as neither of us has had a fishing outing like that in quite some time. Spent the rest of the day visiting with my brother that I am only able to see every other year and always look forward seeing him as well.

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Week spent in Minnesota Recap

As I sit here back in New England and reflect back on my trip that I made to Minnesota from January 4 - January 10, 2007, there are many memories that I have taken and already I am starting to look and plan for the same trip next winter. I am really looking forward to being able to make this trip on a yearly basis and also meeting with old friends, business acquaintances and new fishing pals along the way that made for a very enjoyable trip this time around.

January 4, 2007

After being able to get an earlier flight at my connecting destination, I was able to get into Mpls a few hours earlier and met up with a friend for a few minutes as a surprise as he didn’t know that I was coming into town. Always good meeting up with him but I really need to get him out of the office and back onto the water one of these days. Then the road trip started towards St. Cloud to meet up with my old hunting buddy and we haven’t seen each other since I have moved here to New England 9 years ago. After a handshake we loaded the truck and headed to the Howard Lake area to try our hand at some ice fishing as he hasn’t been out in quite a while as well. We were able to use a friend of his fish house and we were on fish as soon as we started but the sunfish and crappies were really on the small side and only a few were kept. Was more fun just reminiscing about the old days and things that we had done over the years and time sure does fly by.

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Fishing Minnesota

With a whirlwind of fishing across Minnesota the last week look forward to reports that are going to be coming soon as we work our way back home to the East Coast...

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Fishing December 30, 2007

It has been a while since we were able to get out onto the ice with the schools being out and things on the too do list to get done. Now that those things have been finished it was time to hit the ice and we decided to head to our favorite ice fishing lake and see what we could find. The ice was about what we had expected as we have been having warm weather conditions with temps in the 40’s a good portion of the week. There was also rain mixed in with those temps and figured that the ice maybe taking a toll because of this. With spud bar in hand it was time to hit the ice and was surprised that for a Sunday there wasn’t a person out there and nobody came out at all the time that we were there. With an approaching storm, we figured that the bite should be better and it definitely was from previous outings as of late. We drilled 12 holes in a circle that ranged from 14 feet of water out to 18 feet and only about half of them we were marking fish throughout the day. The crappies that we were catching were very small and really faded out and not sure if that is from all of the snow cover or what as they are usually not that faded. The sunfish were definitely bigger on this trip compared to what we generally catch there and were more dominant than the crappies that were caught. The bass were biting as well and watching the video you will see what we had caught as this is one of the nicer fish that we have caught through the ice in a while. We weren’t able to find able perch as they generally make a strong presence while we are out there. The baits that worked on this outing were the Loby Bait’s Polli starting with the red color but had to switch to white to get a better bite. Also a number of fish were caught on T.H.E. Jig in the blue/chartreuse color scheme and both of these jigs were matched with the Austin Custom UL and Elite Series rods and work perfectly. The ice is around 8-9 inches thick but was cracking a lot when we first got out there. The ice would crack under your feet here and there and when drilling a hole that would create cracks as well. Was a little nerve racking for a while but when the temps raised some the ice softened up some and was much better. We are going to be going out again here in a couple of days and may have to give this lake another look or pending ice conditions may take a look at another new lake...

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Mild temps, bad for ice

As we have been enjoying the mild temps the last few days and looks like a few more coming, this has been enjoyable for getting out but not so good for the ice on our lakes. Driving by a couple of lakes this afternoon we are seeing the snow is completely gone and there is standing water on top of the ice. Folks out still out there fishing and that is our plans for tomorrow so hopefully we have a few more days of being able to get onto the ice. The rain last night didn't help any at all either and between the rain and sunny warm days, this is going to take a toll on the ice. The fish are still there waiting to give us a tug on our line but we know that we are going to be having a spud bar with us for each step that we make out there. If you are going to venture out onto the ice to do some fishing, we are becoming a broken record and keep saying to be very careful out there. New England's weather changes just like the days and we can go from one extreme to another in a matter of hours. Always be aware of what you are doing out there and also kind of watch what other folks are doing as well as we need to keep an eye out in case someone needs that extra hand. Enjoy these nice days of late December and being out on the ice in these temps doesn't get any better but there are circumstances that come with that and we don't want anyone to become a statistic...

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Fishing December 25, 2007

Christmas morning and getting out for an ice fishing run and it doesn’t get any better than that unless the fish are not going to cooperate. Since the weather here is looking like the temps are going to hover around the mid 30’s for a number of days we decided to make a run to a local pond that we have never been to and see if the fish want to play. This pond is one of those that not many people know about as you need to hike through the woods to get to it and is a town reservoir that many people forget that you can fish at. Since the rains and warm winds have been blowing, the next few days we are not going to be able to hit the ice, figured that we better give it a try and see what is happening. The ice on this pond was sporadic as the thickness was fairly uniform but the make up was different from one part to the next. Where the shade hit the ice most of the day it was a solid 8-12 inches but where the sun was hitting it there was a layer of 2-3 inches of frozen slush with an open layer of 3 inches of water with a 4 inch layer of black solid ice. This area as well you needed to watch your step as there was a few times you would break through the top layer to step on the black ice, not fun. A spud bar is needed still as every pond you visit is going to be different and without one you are taking chances while you are out on the ice. We worked a number of holes and had plenty of lookers that we could see on the flasher, but they would just sit and look at the bait and the bite was definitely off. We did manage to catch one nice sunfish and a small bass, but were a little disappointed that the fish were not going to cooperate this day. There were only a few holes that had activity but no matter what we put down the hole they would just sit there and look at it. Was a tough day out there but any day on the ice is a good day and this was another pond that we wanted to try and time to look at the next one to sample. With the conditions changing daily with the warmer weather and every pond is in a different state as far as ice conditions, everyone out there needs to be safe and be sure of that next step...

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Fishing December 23, 2007

What a difference makes in just two days here in New England as we went from a cold 20 degrees on Friday to mid 40’s today and raining now. The ice is holding up very well yet in the areas that we were fishing and the 8 inches of snow that was there Friday is now 2 inches deep. Mush easier walking today and dragging a sled but with the warm temps I was able to down size my equipment and brought the minimum things along. I wanted to fish a new area on the same lake but as I was walking towards that area the slush was taking over and one of my steps was very spongy and made me back up and not go forward any more. So I went back to the flat and worked the drop off again and was very well rewarded with good fish once again. Actually today the bass were very active and caught a number of them along with some sunfish, crappies and big perch again. The fish were mostly caught from 4-7 feet of water with the deeper waters void today as well. Three baits were the choices today with them all catching about the same number of fish, the white LOBY BAITS MOUSI, purple LOBY BAITS BUGGI and of course T.H.E. JIG in the white/chartreuse pattern did very well and the bass really liked T.H.E. JIG today. Basically fished 17 different holes that I would work each hole a couple of minutes and then move onto the next one until one of the holes had some activity in it. Most of the time I could catch a fish out of a hole and then there wasn’t any fish left and the hole would go dead. With the mild temps made for a very relaxing afternoon and was very surprised as there wasn’t anyone else out there until about the time I left a couple came out with their tip-ups. Think it is time to move onto another lake and see what we can find and I am looking forward to exploring a bunch of different bodies of waters this year. The next couple of days are going to be busy with the holiday but towards the end of the week we will be back out there and catching them again as long as the mild temps this week doesn’t do any bad things to our ice...

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Fishing December 21, 2007

The ice season is definitely here and with all of the snow it is making a tough time to get out to your fishing spots. Without having some sort of a machine to get around on the ice, the latest snow is tough to pull the sleds through and depending on what kind of shape you are in, will depend on how far you are able to travel. We went out to a lake that we haven’t iced fish on before and have done well for panfish in the warmer months. Leaving the access we went around a shallow flat over to a deep shoreline looking for areas that schooling fish are going to hang out in. We proceeded to drill a number of holes but weren’t marking too many fish after moving from hole to hole. The ice conditions that we were finding was that there is a 3-4 inch layer of frozen slush under the 8 inches of snow with a 1-2 inch layer of open water slush with a layer of 3 inches of clear ice underneath that. Being it was Friday there wasn’t anyone else on the ice and with the latest snow made for some very nice scenery while we were fishing. Since the fish were not cooperating in this area and we weren’t to willing to continue on down this shoreline getting further from away from the landing, we decided to turn back and work a flat between us and the landing. This was a good move as when we started working the shallow waters of this flat, this is where we started to find the fish we were looking for. This flat we were working had an inside corner in that area and we had punched 17 holes to get a lay of the land. What we were finding was that the right side of our holes were running on the top edge of this flat and were in 4-5 feet of water. The outside line of holes we had drilled in water depths of 8-11 feet of water and between these two lines the distance was only 20 feet. We drilled a third line of holes in between the other two and these were in 7 feet of water. This was a sharp drop from the upper holes to the deeper holes and after finding out what depth the fish were relating to, it was quickly seen that the deeper holes were void of fish and the other shallow holes, most of these had activity. The sunfish started the bite off and by using a flasher we were able to determine the depth that they were using and made it easier for working them. Once the sunfish bite had started, the crappies started showing up and a majority of them came from 4-5 feet of water. We haven’t been fishing this shallow this season and it was quite fun as you didn’t have to reel them in but just lift the rod and pull the fish out of the hole. For the time we were out there we caught sunfish, crappies and perch and all of the perch were bigger fish up to 11 inches. For the day we caught around 30-40 fish and they didn’t come fast and furious as we had to work at catching all of them. There was only one instance that the activity was fish after fish and we had caught 6 fish in a very short time. There were only two baits that were needed for our fish today, the first one was a WHITE LOBY BAITS MOUSI and was rigged on a 1/32 ounce jighead and the other was the 1/80 ounce T.H.E. JIG in a white/chartreuse color pattern. The LOBY BAITS MOUSI, we only needed that one plastic bait and it is still rigged up and ready to go and that shows you the durability of the LOBY BAITS plastics. We have to give mention to the AUSTIN CUSTOM RODS that we are using and with the sensitivity that is built into these rods, we are able to feel the bites a number of times before they are detected or seen. Since we have started using the AUSTIN CUSTOM RODS we are finding that they are exactly what we were looking for and are going to be the only rods that we use from now on. All in all for all of the work that it took to get us out there on the ice, we had a very enjoyable day and looking forward to our next outing....

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Be ready to work out

The ice on the lakes in New England, are covered by many inches of snow and with the latest rains, ice on top of that. If you are venturing out onto the lakes to do some ice fishing, be very careful out there as with all of this snow every step needs to be paid attention to. The uncertainties of the ice conditions are totally hidden by this snow and stepping into an old hole could be hazardous. Reports are coming in that there is snow up to 14 inches on top of the ice and on top of that a couple inches of ice. There is reports as well that there is slush between the snow and the ice at the bottom making for very wet conditions to be walking in. If you are going to be traveling a great distance on foot to your fishing spot, be prepared for a workout. As walking through this snow you will break through the top layer of ice that is covering the snow and makes for some very tough walking conditions. If you are not up for this type of a workout then you may want to find a lake that you won’t need to do much walking to your spot. An angler needs to be very careful out there and we are looking at getting possibly another 3-10 inches of snow over the next day depending on where you live. We really don’t need anymore snow but this is what we are going to have to deal with, enjoy the early ice fishing season, but be careful out there as we all want to fish another day.

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Ice uncertainty

A couple of weeks ago the forming ice was coming along very well and was looking like we were going to have a great ice season. We are still frozen over but have had a few storms along the way since our first ice fishing trip of this season. We have had warm days with some rain thrown in for good measures. Lately the snow storms have been really putting the snow out there with late last week giving us around 11 inches and then again on Sunday the same but throw in a long period of rain after the snow to add weight to the ice covered lakes. What has this done to our ice here in New England, we are not totally sure yet as we have not been able to venture out and check the conditions. But driving by some bodies of water the last day or so, we are seeing that the lakes are covered in snow and also that the water in areas has come on top of the snow. This is not a good sign as with the weight of the snow and rain, this may possibly be to much for the ice to support that was there and putting a strain on the ice making it possibly unsafe. The snow is firming up very hard with the cold temps the last couple of days, but the anglers really need to pay attention as to what is happening underneath that snow. If you are venturing out onto the lakes, take extreme caution as every step needs to be paid attention to so that we don’t end up going for a swim...

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Snow has cometh

WOW....that is all we can say after the snow storm that hit us yesterday. What was left was a blanket of 11 inches of fluffy white snow and snow in New England is quite a sight to behold. Commutes home last night were rather long and if you had to take any of the major roads they were in grid lock. This morning everything has been cleaned up and is back somewhat to normal once again. Looks like a snow cleaning weekend this weekend and also there is a Nor'Easter that is going to hit the New England region depositing snow and rain in its path. Between that and what was left behind last night, looks like this weekend there won't be any fishing going on. Have not checked any bodies of water today to see what the snow is doing to our ice conditions. After having rain earlier in the week and now around 11 inches of snow on top of the ice, hopefully the ice is in the same state yet as it was last weekend. We definitely will need to be using a spud bar in the coming days to make sure that the ice that we do walk on is strong enough to support us. If you are not using a spud bar on your ice fishing outings as of late, there is the danger that you may be taking a swim in the icy cold water. Make sure to have all of your safety equipment with you if you are planning on hitting the ice this weekend....

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Snow Coming

Looking at the radar here in New England we are getting braced for our first major snow storm this afternoon. Schools are closing already or planning on leaving early to get all of the kid’s home before the conditions get to bad. We had warm temps and rain the last day or so, so the surface of our lakes is questionable as we drove by one of our lakes this morning and it had a strange look to the ice. Not sure if the rain did anything to the ice as we didn’t get a chance to check it out but with the coming snow, this is going to make ice fishing interesting to say the least. Really need to rely on that spud bar to check the ice conditions as with every step that we take areas may have softened up and gotten weak. We are also looking at another significant storm forming for Saturday night with snow accumulation which is not going to help the ice making process at all. Hopefully the ice will be thick enough so that the layer of snow insulates what is there and we are able to enjoy this early ice season. With the holiday season approaching this will bring many days and hours on the ice and reports to follow. Looking forward to exploring many different bodies of water in search of fish and meeting folks along the way that enjoy the same passion as us in fishing New England waters....

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Ice forming set back

With the mild temps the last day and the rain that we had late last night and into this morning will definitely have an effect on our ice covered lakes. Whatever snow that was covering the ice will turn to slush and be a mess on top of the ice. The rain and warm breeze today could possibly loosen the ice from its clear solid state to a softer and possibly honeycomb state that occurs in the spring. If there are any hills or higher ground surrounding the water the runoff will be running onto the ice and these areas of ice could possibly be weakening as well for points to get onto the ice. These changes are going to be unique to each body of water as none of them are ever the same as the others. Caution needs to be taken if venturing out onto the ice the next couple of days and thankfully the long range forecast is calling for cold nights so this should firm things back up. The season is very early this year and waiting another week or so may not be a bad idea as we generally are not on the ice this early. Waiting is better than putting one's life in jeopardy as the fish are not going anywhere and will be there no matter how long it takes for us to have safe ice conditions. Be safe out there, bring all of your safety equipment with you and be ready to act fast if an situation occurs....

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Fishing Dec 8, 2007

With the winter blowing into New England with a fury we were able to get out on the ice this past weekend. We had been checking different bodies of waters all week long and making a judgment as to which one was going to be ready for our ice fishing trip. By Thursday of last week there wasn’t going to be too many options as many lakes still had open water areas or the ice was only an inch or two thick. The lake that we decided to go to had around 4 inches in the back bay as this area had froze over much sooner than the rest of the lake. The ice was clear and black and there wasn’t any sound of cracking at all. We had our spud bar to keep checking the ice as we walked as well as wearing a life jacket just in case. The temp was going to be around 40 for the day and was warm enough that we didn’t need to use the ice house. Other than being a very nice day out on the ice, the fishing wasn’t that great. Over the course of the day we drilled 50-60 holes from shallow water to the deepest water in the area and was only a few times that we were actually were marking fish on the Vexilar. If it wouldn’t have been such a nice day, it would have made for a long day but just being on first ice for the year makes up for not catching to many fish. We caught a couple of perch and one nice sunfish but were unable to find any crappies. The fish that we did mark on the Vexilar were all on the bottom and came up to our bait as there wasn’t any suspended schools that we could find. As we were packing up to leave in the afternoon the main part of the lake started getting water on top again and not sure what the ice conditions are like over there now. Now that we have our first day on the ice in, we are looking at trying a new body of water next weekend and hopefully the results will be much better. Fish or no fish it is great to be out on the ice once again and caution still needs to be taken as the temps are above freezing here for the next couple of days coming.

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Ice is Dangerous

We are hearing many reports after the weekend of the ice conditions around the North Shore of MA as being very erratic in thicknesses. Anywheres from open water spots to 4-5 inches at the thickest that has been reported. We were out on Saturday before the afternoon thaw and we were seeing around 4 inches where we were fishing. That area was holding up for the afternoon warmth but the main part of the lake was getting water on top of it and we are not certain what condition it is in now. Caution needs to be taken if you are going to try some early season ice fishing and bring along all of your safety things as well. We had our ice pick's around our neck, with the spud bar in hand checking every step and also we were wearing a lifejacket every time that we moved from one location to another. These items not only are going to help save your life but also get you out of the ice and water if by chance that you do break thru. This time of year you don't want to be in this water as hypothermia is going to set in very fast especially if it is cold and there is a wind blowing. Always make sure that someone knows where you are and about what time to expect you back so that if a situation arises, they will know where to look. Getting an early start to this early ice is very exciting but also needs to be respected as one wrong move and that may be your last time to enjoy the early ice season....

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Ice is forming but be careful

The ice here in Northern MA is forming but we are getting reports that the consistency is varied from lake to lake. We are hearing reports of open water to 4.5 inches of ice and this is showing you that it is very inconsistent where ever you are. This means that caution needs to be on the anglers mind at all times and if you do venture out onto the ice, take some safety items with you. Never go on the ice especially now without ice pik's, spud bar and a life jacket. All of these items are a necessity at this time of year and depending on the body of water you are going on, the ice may very in thickness. The ice pik's are used if you fall through the ice and using these will allow you to try to pull yourself out of the water. The spud bar is used to check the ice as you are walking and you hit the ice in front of you with the spud bad to see if it goes through the ice. If it goes through the ice stop walking and back up as the ice in front of you is not thick enough to support you. The life jacket will help to save your life if you break through as if you are not able to get out of the water, you will stay floating and not get trapped under the ice. With the varying ice conditions out there, staying off of the ice is the best remedy and should be taken to heart for anyone that wants to venture out there. This ice season is going to be very long this year and waiting another week or two is a good idea for most and there will be plenty of time to enjoy the activities that come along with ice. Be careful out there and the best thing is to stay off of the ice as any and all ice is truly never safe....

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If you have an outdoor related question that you would like to "Ask BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors", send those inquiries to the following e-mail address and we will be glad to post a response for you:
outdoors@backwoodssportsman.com

Spring Bobbers

At the early stages of the ice season the fish are still fairly active in their search for food and the bites are as well. What we are getting at is that the bite detection is fairly easy to see on your ice rod and this makes it a little easier to detect the bites. We are not using bobbers when we ice fish and the sensitivity in the ice rod is very crucial and very important for what we look for in an ice rod. So as the ice season continues on, the fish start to slow down in their feeding mood and the weather conditions start playing a major role in a successful day on the ice. When these conditions happen the fish are biting so very lightly that the bites are going on without detection a good part of the time. There is a product out there that helps with these light biters and it is called a “Spring Bobber”. This is a wire or very thin flat piece of metal that attaches to the end of your fishing rod and you feed the line through it. When these light biting fish bite, these spring bobbers will move ever so slightly and that is when you set the hook. You may and will not feel these bites but by concentrating on the motion of this spring bobber you can detect the upward and downward action that the bite is doing to your bait. If you are getting bites and not catching fish, you will need to attach one of these “Spring Bobbers” to your ice rod and start catching more fish. These come into their prime especially once we get into January and February when the bites are getting very tough when those high pressure days are taking over our winter months....

BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors web site:
www.backwoodssportsman.com/

If you have an outdoor related question that you would like to "Ask BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors", send those inquiries to the following e-mail address and we will be glad to post a response for you:

outdoors@backwoodssportsman.com

Ice fishing reels

As we continue our look at the ice fishing equipment, the last post dealt with a rod selection and now we are going to take a look at the reels that we use. A majority of ice fishers out there are using the open face spinning reel for their ice fishing and we have been using these for years and they work very well. Since we are fishing such small sized baits we are going to match the spinning reel size to that and use the ultra or micro sized spinning reel that the ultra light fishers use for catching panfish with. These small reels are more than sufficient and hold enough line as well since the deepest that we usually fish is 30 feet. By using these small reels they work very well with the 2 pound line that is spooled on them. Once the drag system is set to the fish that are being caught, sit back and enjoy fishing similar to when you are summer fishing. By using these spinning reels this keeps the line off of the ground that happens with the jiggle stick that you bring in the line hand over hand. You are able to fight the fish much better with the spinning reel and even if a large bass or pike takes your bait, set the drag and utilizing the rod, you should be able to still land a big fish with this small equipment. Using a quality spinning reel with a number of ball bearings in them keeps everything moving smoothly and these should be able to be used for years to come....

BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors web site:

www.backwoodssportsman.com/
If you have an outdoor related question that you would like to "Ask BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors", send those inquiries to the following e-mail address and we will be glad to post a response for you:
outdoors@backwoodssportsman.com

Ice fishing rods

As we look into the equipment that us ice anglers use we have taken a look at some baits and size and knots to tie them onto your line with. Now we are going to take a look at the rod/reel combo's that are used for ice fishing. These are similar in fashion to the open water fishing rods/reels that are used but for the rods, size is the difference and for the reels going to a small spinning reel works the best. This season we are using the Austin Custom rods as our choice and two particular models are going to be used the most. Both of these are small 27 inch long fishing rods and being they are hand made, are very sensitive and durable. The first one is an ultra light version that flex's the whole length of the rod and we are using this for those very finicky biting fish. Where we want sensitivity and not a lot of resistance this ultra light version works very well. The other rod is the 27 inch Custom taper in the light action and this rod offers great sensitivity like no other that we have used. This version offers a very good backbone to the working section of the rod and the tip is very fast and sensitive to detect the subtlest bites. This is a great rod for letting those deep dwelling fish know who the boss is when we are out there rearing on some fish lips. Take a look at the Austin Custom Rod lineup and for the money they are a great value....http://www.lobybaits.com/index_files/Page956.htm

BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors web site:
www.backwoodssportsman.com/

If you have an outdoor related question that you would like to "Ask BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors", send those inquiries to the following e-mail address and we will be glad to post a response for you:

outdoors@backwoodssportsman.com

Ice is forming

With the winter weather moving in very quickly and some snow along with it, the winter season has finally started and there is a possibility that the ice fishing season may start earlier this year. The lakes and ponds are starting to skim over with the cold air over the weekend but any ice that was there, there will be snow on top of it as well. Ice in general is considered never safe and especially at this time of the season, needs to be respected at all times. Now is the time that we all need to watch the KIDS and family pets from venturing out onto the ice as it is not thick enough to support them. For us anglers this waiting period can and will be painful, but we need to keep safety in our minds and wait until the ice is thick enough to support your weight. For New England this may be one of the longer seasons for ice fishing if the cold weather stays and we don’t get anymore snow. We need to be very careful out there any time that we are near the ice as one false move could create a life threatening situation, so don’t put yourself or others in a dangerous situation. We will get out there ice fishing soon and it hurts to wait, but we need to keep in mind that safety is number one....

BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors web site:

www.backwoodssportsman.com/
If you have an outdoor related question that you would like to "Ask BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors", send those inquiries to the following e-mail address and we will be glad to post a response for you:
outdoors@backwoodssportsman.com

Let Winter Begin

This past weekend was a blow of winter that is coming and for us folks in the New England area a dose of reality that fall is over and winter is beginning. With the cold temps and high winds on Saturday made doing anything outside somewhat unbearable if you were not wrapped up tight. Sunday wasn’t quite as bad as the temps moderated a little and the wind had died down so that the last few things could get done outside before the storm hit. The storm that lashed out on MN and WI at the end of last week approached New England, this gets everyone a little uptight and preparing to be snowed in for who knows how long. As we awoke this morning and found 4 inches of the new white stuff on the ground, the pristine view that one has looking into the woods with the trees covered in snow, makes you stand in awe as to the wintery scene. This is only the beginning of our winter season and was a good primer to get everything running and working and most are ready now for a white holiday season....

BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors web site:
www.backwoodssportsman.com/

If you have an outdoor related question that you would like to "Ask BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors", send those inquiries to the following e-mail address and we will be glad to post a response for you:

outdoors@backwoodssportsman.com

Micro Bait Knots

Once we have figured out the micro baits that we are going to start fishing with, then it comes down to deciding how and which knot to tie the bait to the line with. These baits are very small and for them to be fairly productive we need to tie them so that they hang horizontally. A normal bait is tied so that the knot is tight to the eye of the hook and if we were to do that with these baits, the bait would hang somewhat vertically and is not natural looking. These baits need to hang and be presented horizontally and by tieing a LOOP KNOT we are able to achieve this. By following the diagram and with some practice, these knots will come second nature to the angler and will not even have to think about it when tieing. By creating this loop this allows the bait to hang horizontally and also is able to move easily and naturally as the angler is jigging the bait. The free movement of the bait also allows the fish to not feel the tug of the line as they suck the bait in and this is going to allow more hookup rate successes and more fish on the end of the line. There is other knots that work very well as well but we have found and so have others that the LOOP KNOT is a great knot for fishing with these micro baits....

BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors web site:

www.backwoodssportsman.com/

If you have an outdoor related question that you would like to "Ask BackWoods Sportsman Outdoors", send those inquiries to the following e-mail address and we will be glad to post a response for you:
outdoors@backwoodssportsman.com