Snowy Morning on the Ice

A welcome onslaught of colder weather (for those that enjoy it) has descended upon the Hills region over the last week and has extended the hardwater for at least another couple of weeks, possibly three if temps don't stay too warm going into next week.

While some lakes are open in the lower elevations, the higher bodies of water are still locked hard and will be for a bit longer now. With that in mind, it's time to keep the ice rods and K-Drill going while it lasts! This past weekend, I traveled to Deerfield with a few friends, to see if we could find any Lake Trout swimming in the shallower side of the lake. My friends, Shyra, Matt, Kara, Nick and I were hopeful that a stretch of water where we've caught Lakers in the past, would still produce this trip.

The skies were threatening snow all morning and it would not disappoint. Soon after arriving and getting holes drilled, giving some quick flasher lessons to Nick and getting the Vexilars going, it started to snow. And snow. And snow.

It would go from thick to light and back to thick the entire time we were there, getting everything wet, from flasher screens to inside rod cases and tackle boxes. Most of the gear would need to be dried or aired out once we got back home. The bite was hit and miss, with most of us catching some decent Rainbows or small Splake using Clam Pro Tackle jigs, coupled with various Maki and Northland Impulse plastics as well as six Clam Arctic Warrior setups spread out across different areas.

No Lakers were to be had, though despite a few larger marks coming onto our Vexilar screens. Then around 10, the air pressure really started going up as did the snowfall, which seemed to drive the fish away towards deeper water.

Deteriorating road conditions made us pack up a little earlier than normal, but when you can still get on the ice in April, you really can't complain. Cold temps and more snow is still in the forecast for a bit longer, so here's hoping it'll be mid-April before I got to start looking at packing up the ice gear!