12-28-2007, 07:56 PM
by structure in meant variations in the lake bed (humps and dips) and rocks and fallen trees etc. it is just a shallow bowl. and yes it an excelent lake that produces some big sow LMBs and some nice 12" crappies, but we just seem to struggle finding them over ice.
all the things youve pointed out would in theory and practice be perfect. however, only in a couple places does the shoreline drop to 5ft. (the dropoffs ive marked) most places it is about a foot along the edge and then slowly decends. and as far as weeds, they are all gone. i got out once in november when the ice was just on the edges and spotted around the whole lake only to find to weeds gone and super clear water.
i will definately hit drops that hold the walleyes pretty hard and the beds where the blues usually are. and i also have to start checkin local bait shops for wigglers, a buddy of mine was also telling me about those.
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no structure? you gotta be kidding, from the pic of your lake it is full of structure, each one of the coves is structure, in between the island and shore at its closest points are structure, the island it self is structure, the blue line in your pic is structure. to me your lake is full of structure...
if you took the time to find the pan fish beds in the spring and summer, head there and go to the ledge and fish that area,
chumming wont be nessisary,
wax worms will do the trick. wigglers if you are aloud to use them work well too...
get out to the bed area, cut a dozen holes up and down the side of the drop off, including on top of the 5 foot shelf.
I am asuming that your lake drops to 5 foot almost emediatly from shore? this being the case you could have gills almost any where, weeds wont go down for another month yet. so deffenantly check aound the weedy areas, in and just out side, set tip ups around weed areas for pike... Pike love to set in the weeds and lunge out when they are ready for a dinner...
I was out ice fishing yesterday for pan fish, I was fishing in a 3 foot of water of a man made canal... of the ten of us on the canal 8 of us took home thier limit, I only took home two crappie because that was all I wanted...
most man made lakes I have seen like that run 5 foot and jump down to about 14 foot in deapth. this makes for an excilent fishery and produces some howgs of LMBs...
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all the things youve pointed out would in theory and practice be perfect. however, only in a couple places does the shoreline drop to 5ft. (the dropoffs ive marked) most places it is about a foot along the edge and then slowly decends. and as far as weeds, they are all gone. i got out once in november when the ice was just on the edges and spotted around the whole lake only to find to weeds gone and super clear water.
i will definately hit drops that hold the walleyes pretty hard and the beds where the blues usually are. and i also have to start checkin local bait shops for wigglers, a buddy of mine was also telling me about those.
[reply]
no structure? you gotta be kidding, from the pic of your lake it is full of structure, each one of the coves is structure, in between the island and shore at its closest points are structure, the island it self is structure, the blue line in your pic is structure. to me your lake is full of structure...
if you took the time to find the pan fish beds in the spring and summer, head there and go to the ledge and fish that area,
chumming wont be nessisary,
wax worms will do the trick. wigglers if you are aloud to use them work well too...
get out to the bed area, cut a dozen holes up and down the side of the drop off, including on top of the 5 foot shelf.
I am asuming that your lake drops to 5 foot almost emediatly from shore? this being the case you could have gills almost any where, weeds wont go down for another month yet. so deffenantly check aound the weedy areas, in and just out side, set tip ups around weed areas for pike... Pike love to set in the weeds and lunge out when they are ready for a dinner...
I was out ice fishing yesterday for pan fish, I was fishing in a 3 foot of water of a man made canal... of the ten of us on the canal 8 of us took home thier limit, I only took home two crappie because that was all I wanted...
most man made lakes I have seen like that run 5 foot and jump down to about 14 foot in deapth. this makes for an excilent fishery and produces some howgs of LMBs...
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