Slow PV - 3/15/22

[MWScott72]

Made it out to PV to try for perch and crappie on Tuesday late afternoon / evening.  That's about all we did was "try".  Thinking that with the front that came thru, it must have shut the fish down because they just didn't want to play.  Haven't heard a good report about perch all year from PV, and this post won't be the exception.  Last year we caught them well in the Narrows at this time of year.  Not so much as a nudge on Tues during the last 2 hours of daylight.  Crappie weren't much better - very few bites, and those that would hit were tapping it once, maybe twice if you were lucky, and it was EXTREMELY light.  Moreso, than any other time this year.  We fished from 6pm until 9:20.  I caught 2 crappie, and missed 1 and my friend caught 1 and missed 2.  We each had a couple fish just bump the lure once and leave - I won't count those as "misses".  I spoke to the one other group of anglers on the Narrows that night, and their catch rate was a mirror image of ours.  The fish were just not interested.  Didn't see big schools come thru either, just a few here and there.

Now what you really want to know.  Ice is going fast.  The access down the hill near the caretaker's house won't have snow on it much longer.  I give it to maybe the weekend, then it will be toast.  Edges are wet too.  We were still able to jump accross to solid ice without a plank, but again, a couple days and the gap will be significant enough to need a plank everywhere you go.  There is 4-6 inches of cloudy ice with between 9-15" of clear ice below.  Mid-channel the clear ice is thicker.  It thins as you get closer to shore.  I give it about a week, probably less with the warm temps, and then ice fishing will be more or less done.  Please be safe out there!  No news is good news!!

[wiperhunter2]

Well that's too bad, not surprising the ice is going bad but as many crappie as there are in PV, that the catching is slowing down, maybe you are right about the storm front. Were most of the fish you saw coming through suspended and were they singles or a few at a time?

[MWScott72]

Yes - most were suspended between 15-25’ down but numbers were way down.  I gotta believe it was the storm.  Crappie have been consistent up there since mid-Jan.  I’ll be interested to see if anyone posts this week to see if this is a new trend or if it was just the storm.

[obifishkenobi]

Yes - most were suspended between 15-25’ down but numbers were way down.  I gotta believe it was the storm.  Crappie have been consistent up there since mid-Jan.  I’ll be interested to see if anyone posts this week to see if this is a new trend or if it was just the storm.

I saw a post on facebook from last night that they said it was really tough until 9:00pm then it was like some one flipped a switch and they limited out by 10:30pm.

[icerman]

Thank you for your report MWScott, as always, very informative and helpful.  I hope to get out there one more time Friday morning, early. I hate to see the close ice come to a close.  With $4.31 gas, not sure how many strawberry trips there will be this spring either!  I will report on my early morning fishing!

[MWScott72]

Yes - most were suspended between 15-25’ down but numbers were way down.  I gotta believe it was the storm.  Crappie have been consistent up there since mid-Jan.  I’ll be interested to see if anyone posts this week to see if this is a new trend or if it was just the storm.

I saw a post on facebook from last night that they said it was really tough until 9:00pm then it was like some one flipped a switch and they limited out by 10:30pm.

That must have been the same group I spoke to cause they were the only other ones on the ice.  Guess we left 10 minutes too soon.  We were putting our rods away at 9:20. ?

Glad you got into them again Icerman!  I can't complain.  My last trip was really the only bad trip up there in 6-7 outings.  I'll take those odds any day!