Wisconsin Statewide Fishing report 1.27.12Colder weather in the last week has continued to build up ice on lakes. Anglers on northern lakes are reporting a foot or more of ice. Ice is starting to form off the south shore of Lake Superior where the "ice caves" are located but it will not be safe to walk out to them until the National Park Service gives the okay. Anglers were reporting anything from open water to 7 or 8 inches of ice along the northeast, northern, and western shores of Lake Winnebago and much of Little Lake Butte des Morts has completely opened up and many other areas are offering poor ice conditions. Madison Lakes had ice thickness varying anywhere from 2 to 6 inches.
Recent cold temperatures put a damper on fishing pressure -- and fish activity seems to be at its mid-winter low point. Panfish have been providing the best action with a few fair catches perch, bluegill and crappie being reported along with some of northern pike. Lake Superior?s Chequamegon Bay ice has been firming and there were reports of perch, brown trout, coho salmon, and whitefish. Ice shanties started to appear on Green Bay?s Sawyer Harbor last weekend, with reports of perch, whitefish, and walleye activity. Ice conditions inside Little Sturgeon Bay have been good but ice on the outside of the bay has been poor, with large areas still open or recently frozen. Perch anglers were finding good numbers of perch inside the bay, but few keepers.
Bayfield County - With the switch in temperatures this weekend, and the weather warming up, panfishing seemed to turned on, with more bags of crappie being taken this weekend, the best bait appeared to be smaller size minnows. Northern pike fishing continued to be good, though people using very large minnows and suckers appeared to be having the best of luck.
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron counties) - Ice thickness on most lakes across the Northwoods varies from 11 to 14 inches and recent snows have added about 3 to 4 inches of heavy grainy snow to the surface. The frigid weather of the past week has firmed up most of the slushy spots that showed up on a few lakes and access has been pretty good to most fishing areas. However, the recent cold temperatures have put a damper on fishing pressure -- and fish activity does seem to be at its mid-winter low point. Panfish have been providing the best action with a few fair catches of perch, bluegill and crappie being reported. Perch have been found in a variety of habitats and the best action has been on small fathead minnows fished just off the bottom in 10 to 16 feet of water. Crappie and bluegill have been found in the deeper water areas and suspended just off the bottom - and anglers have had to move around a bit to catch 8 to 10 keeper-size fish in a trip. Walleye fishing in the area continues to be on the slow side, and most anglers seem to have taken a break from fishing with the cold and windy weather. The walleye anglers that have been out have experienced generally low success with an average trip consisting of two or three flags and a single fish caught. The action that has been reported has come in the late afternoon hours, on medium suckers being fished near break lines in 8 to 14 feet of water. Northern pike action has also been slow, with anglers catching just a few small and medium-size fish.
Brown County - Stretches of open water dot the Fox River by Voyageur Park down river to the boat landing. Little fishing activity was observed. Anglers have been walking on the ice at Sunset Beach in search of the perch, with no interviews to verify catch rates.
Door County - Ice conditions have improved this week at Sturgeon Bay with the help of the cold temps. Anglers reported ice being 4 to 7 inches thick. Anglers have been fishing in Sawyer Harbor for perch with some success; the perch that have been caught have been small in size. A few northern pike have been caught as well. Bullhead point has been getting some fishing pressure; most anglers have been targeting perch and walleye. Ice conditions inside Little Sturgeon Bay have been good with some anglers reporting up to 12 inches of ice. The ice on the outside of the bay has been poor, with large areas still open or recently frozen. Perch anglers were finding good numbers of perch inside the bay. Most of the perch have been of undesirable size, but anglers were catching a few keepers. Whitefish action has been consistent overall, with anglers catching good numbers of fish. Most anglers have been using jigging spoons with wax worms for bait
Iowa County - Colder temperatures and snow finally hit and folks were out ice fishing on the frozen waters. Ice conditions are still poor and vehicles should not be operating on the ice. Anglers are having some success on area lakes for panfish and in some Wisconsin River backwaters are producing panfish and northern pike.
Eau Claire County - Anglers are catching a lot of bass through the ice of Half Moon Lake in the City of Eau Claire; ice thickness is still under 10 inches. Motor vehicle use is not recommended. Panfish action is starting to improve on local lakes. Snowmobilers and ATV operators are enjoying the adequate snow depth on Lake Altoona. A reminder that Lake Altoona has an ordinance that restricts all vehicle traffic to 25 mph or less.
Marathon County - Anglers on Lake Wausau report 14 inches of ice. They report 10 to 12 inches crappies have been biting in 10 to 16 feet of water along weed lines. Northern pike are being caught in shallow water weed lines. Anglers on the Big Eau Pleine Reservoir report up to 14 inches of ice. Small to medium perch seem to be the norm with a lot of small walleye still being caught. Anglers on Lake Dubay report 12 inches of ice away from the river channel. Crappies, white bass, and perch are being caught on plastic jigs tipped with wax worms.
Portage County - Despite recent snows in central Wisconsin, the snowmobile trails in the Stevens Point/Wisconsin Rapids areas remain closed. At least several more inches of snow will be required before the trails may open up. Ice conditions have improved due the recent cold weather. Fishers and other people who enjoy our frozen waters are still reminded to use caution as ice conditions change on a daily basis and will vary from water to water. Anglers are out in good numbers but success has been spotty. A few walleyes are being taken on Lake DuBay and the rest of the Wisconsin River System. Some crappies are being taken during the morning and evening hours on area waters.
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.htm
Information compiled from the WDNR Outdoor report and private sources
