Ice Fishing Gets Underway
I talked to Guide Zach Burgess on January 2nd, who in addition to open water charters for walleye and perch targets Green Bay whitefish on the hardwater out of Algoma. Burgess said “we’re finally making ice” with cold temperatures expected to add enough to the three or four existing inches to make the Bay safe for clients by the weekend.
After a January, 2011 trip on Green Bay with Burgess that introduced me to a resurgence of the whitefish as a highly sought after Wisconsin gamefish triggered by a change in the fish’s forage base, I would highly recommend that you try this venture yourself. Read our story on our Dick's Trips page in the Explore Wisconsin section of this On Wisconsin Outdoors website. I will tell you that six Wisconsin boys, several of our hunting dogs and a Chicago Bears fan that we made eat outside with the dogs spent just six hours in two Burgess shacks on the Bay to pull up 75 whitefish averaging between 15 and 20 inches. Despite bitter cold temps, we did it in sweatshirts next to fires crackling in wood burning stoves, and at least another 30 whitefish were lost or released along the way.
The same kind of good news was waiting for me this morning, January 4th, with an e-mail from expert guide Jim Hudson in Ashland. He woke up this morning to a new sheet of ice stretching across Chequamegon Bay. Read his fishing expectations for Chequamegon under Outdoor Reports in the Explore Wisconsin section of this website. The ice, Hudson says, is about a month behind schedule but, as they say, good things come to those who wait. Hudson also says that with first ice anglers can expect to catch up to 10 different species of fish. I’ve been on that ice, and the open water, with Hudson and many other Ashland area experts many times. Whenever you can go….go to Ashland and Chequamegon Bay. You will never be sorry.
Have you ever been to northwest Wisconsin to hunt or fish? What’s the matter with you? Two years ago, I met another one of the Badger state’s outstanding guides who like so many others became a fast friend. Dave Hraychuck led me to unbelievable panfish days in Polk County during the bluegill spawn, and, if you can believe it, we also nailed big crappies in November and lots of them. Hraychuck knows what is biting and where in some of the most beautiful country Wisconsin offers and knows too how to put them on the hook. He’s also an accomplished hunter and trapper. Read his stories on hardwater northern and snowshoe hare hunting under Explore Wisconsin’s Outdoor Reports.
Check in often. We’re lining up our guides and other experts from each county and they’re ready to tell you what is happening right now from every county in Wisconsin. As a syndicated outdoor columnist over 25 years, I’ve personally had the pleasure of trailing these guides with notebook and camera during 1400 field stories from Pool 9 on the Mississippi to the Menominee River, and from the St. Louis River at Superior to the Root in Racine. We’ll tell you when to go, we’ll show you what we did, and in addition to top guides, we’ll line you up with the county experts who can set you up with lodging, dining, and anything else you may need.
Talk soon. Go Packers. --Dick Ellis