Wisconsin Statewide Fishing report 3.9.12Ice remains solid in much of the north, but river systems are opening and snow could cover thin ice, so caution is urged in some areas of the north, along with the south. Some anglers, including Lake Winnebago in Outagamie County, were removing ice fishing houses before Sunday?s deadline.
Late season ice fishing success on northern lakes continued to be limited, with the action for all species erratic. Some fair action has been reported with walleyes, but only during the day and for short periods, usually dawn and dusk. Fishing for northern pike and perch has also been variable. Panfish action continues to be slow, with anglers really having move around and search for the active fish.
Anglers are reminded that the game fish season ends Sunday, but the early catch and release trout season opens on Saturday, with state fisheries biologists saying trout populations are very strong across the state and with the mild weather in the south this winter, fish in southern streams should be active and access should be excellent.
Rivers including the Oconto and Wisconsin continue to open up, along with bays and harbors. Fox Point in Brown County has open water and fishing boats are out jigging for walleye and anglers continue to report good success for whitefish off Bay Shore.
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron counties) Ice depths have ranged from 15-20 inches on most lake, but up to 17 inches of new snow has created some difficult traveling conditions. Prior to this latest snowstorm, many lakes already had areas of deep snow and some slush, and the current heavy snows will likely curtail any motorized access to the lakes for the next few weeks. Variable weather conditions made for another erratic week of fishing. The best success came from tip-up anglers using suckers in 6 -10 feet of water. Most of the fish have been in the 10-14-inch range, but a few up to 23 inches have also been reported. Panfish success has been especially slow lately, with anglers really having to work to find fish. A few nice crappie and perch have been caught, but anglers have also had to move to find them. Northern pike action is fair at best. On many pike lakes in the north, anglers have had to move their baits up a couple feet off the bottom. This is to get above the low oxygen levels that are starting to show up on these generally shallow and weedy lakes.
Brown County The boat launch at Fox Point is open and boaters are taking advantage of the open water to jig for walleye. Fishing is slow but anglers expect the walleye bite to begin soon. Perch and pike are being caught off the Sunset Beach access. The perch have been hit or miss but the fish being caught are of a nice size.
Manitowoc County Ice on Lake Michigan tributaries in Manitowoc and Kewaunee counties is beginning to break up. Open water anglers are beginning to fish trout with some browns and steelhead being caught below the dam in Shoto. Good numbers of northern pike were being caught through the ice on Silver Lake in Manitowoc County. Snow cover is minimal.
Door County With the winds and warm temperatures the past few days, Sturgeon Bay anglers were seeing open water from Bullhead Point past the yacht club through to Lake Michigan. Anglers have been fishing Sawyer Harbor with some success with perch, northern pike, and whitefish. Anglers have been targeting perch and whitefish in 10-15 feet of water. Perch have been biting small minnows on an ice jig. Anglers are taking whitefish with the usual Swedish pimple tipped with a wax worm or Gulp. Sand Bay anglers have been fishing whitefish with good success in 20-60 feet of water. Anglers have also been targeting walleye along Larsen?s Reef and having some success at dusk and dawn. Most anglers are using oddball jigs tipped with a minnow. Inside the bay of Little Sturgeon, anglers have been targeting perch with fair success. Most have been finding the fish in 15-20 feet of water. Whitefish have also been biting well with anglers targeting fish in 10-25 feet of water. Caution is advised due to the high winds. Ice has begun to break up and water can be seen from Lime Kiln Road all the way to Sturgeon Bay. Whitefish action has been good the last week at Bayshore Park with anglers catching them in anywhere from 10-35 feet of water. Fishing pressure has been high off Bay Shore so early mornings and evenings have been the best time. Open water can be seen here as well so use caution. Anglers have been catching decent amount of whitefish along Volk?s Reef. Anglers have been targeting them in anywhere from 3-15 feet of water. A few walleyes are being caught as well, along with the occasional perch. Open water was observed off Volks Reef as well.
Kenosha County The ice is gone from both Kenosha harbors. Trout are slow to bite, but anglers in search of northern pike report good success using live minnows in the small harbor. Anglers have already started trolling in the main Kenosha harbor with mixed success
Walworth County With open water on several lakes, including Lauderdale and Whitewater, anglers are urged to use extreme caution. Several locations had 8-inches of ice, but open water just feet away.
Grant County The area received about 3 inches of snow on February 24, but that melted quickly. Mostly rain came from the storm on the Feb. 28. The thin layer of snow on Saturday made for excellent coyote hunting with dozens of hound hunters out over the weekend. Ice fishing was fair over the weekend with just a few small panfish being caught, but the ice is getting too thin to be safely walked on. The Wisconsin River is running high, and there is currently high discharge from Prairie du Sac.
Iowa County Ice conditions are getting worse with all the rain recently causing soft spots along shore and scouring of existing holes. The forecast for warm temperatures might signal the end of ice fishing is very near. Use extreme caution on any ice. Anglers have reported that the bluegill and crappie fishing have slowed down at Birch Lake The fishing has slowed down at Helen Lake off of Hwy. 14 as well The northern have been biting at Helen Lake off of Hwy. 14, but the ice is quickly leaving Helen Lake and is not safe to walk on. Anglers have been reporting that they are catching some nice bluegill, perch and crappie on Twin Valley Lake at Governor Dodge State Park. River anglers are also reporting that they are catching some nice walleyes on the river near the Hwy. 23 and Hwy. 14 bridges near Spring Green.
Wyalusing State Park Ice anglers are still trying their luck at the park boat landing. They know that their days of ice fishing are numbered and are trying to get as many hours on the ice as they can. Mississippi River level at Prairie du Chien was 7.6 Thursday, same as Wednesday. There is open water just out from the boat landing. The Wisconsin River is open.
Columbia County The ice conditions on Lake Wisconsin are poor and many open areas of water can be found. This past weekend an ATV broke through the ice with the operator narrowly escaping serious injury. Anyone who ventures out onto area lake please use extreme caution. Catching a fish is not worth a life. If you venture out onto the ice please make sure that you let someone know where you are going and when you will be back, carry a cell phone, a life jacket, and don't venture out into unexplored areas as the ice may be unsafe.
Jefferson County The ice on area lakes is not safe. All anglers are asked to be patient, there will be open water to fish soon.
Rock County Walleyes are staging below the dams with water warming during the days.
Eau Claire County Ice is in poor condition on many lakes and fishing has been slow. It takes about six hours, but anglers were catching some limits of perch and large crappies (10 Total) on Lake Altoona. Ice conditions continue to deteriorate - please use caution when traveling on the ice. No fishing is allowed March 1 until the first Saturday of May from the Lake Altoona Dam downstream 500 feet (to the first island). Downstream of the fish refuge, the Eau Claire River remains open all year for most fish species except muskellunge.
Portage County River ice is getting unsafe the closer you get to any channel. The main channel of the Wisconsin River is mostly opened and anglers are fishing open water below the Dubay Dam with limited success. Jigs and minnows fished slowly seem to be working the best. Lake ice is still holding its own but fishing has not been very consistent. The snowfall received is not enough to open snowmobile trail and next week the forecast is for upper 40s, which means ice conditions will really begin to deteriorate.
Minocqua area fishing report
http://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/minocquafishingreport.htm
Lake Michigan Fishing Report and tips
http://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/lmfishingtips.htm
Wausau Area fishing report
http://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/wisconsinriverfishingreport.htm
Chippewa Flowage fishing report
http://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/chippewaflowagefishingreport.htmInformation compiled from the WDNR Outdoor report and private sources
