spik

Hi all: Been doing quite a bit of ice fishing on the weekends, this year has been more difficult in landing walleye. However this week the fish have really turned on. Been moving around to a number of spots, with most outings producing one or two table-sized fish. From my experience the sturgeon seem to be increasing in numbers, some traditional walleye/sauger spots have been inundated with sturgeon and ling. Two of the larger sturgeon have been mid 20 pound fish (released back as quickly as possible), ling at 5 and 5.5 pounds. I have since moved off of these spots after a couple of outings due to the number of out of season sturgeon present there. A few nice walleye have been landed with two just over the 7 pound mark(both released). One outing even produced a catfish at almost 40 feet of water on the Ottawa, caught on a water bug that surfaced in one the holes drilled in the ice. Here are a few pictures from this winters so far. Stick Bug catching catfish Nation 7 pound Sauger 5 pound Ling 3.5 pound monster walleye

Hi all Managed to get out a few times this Nov/Dec for some last open water fishing on the Ottawa. The walleye bite compared to last year was not as good for size and not as numerous, but managed at least two or three fish per short outing. Mixed in with those walleye were some other species which were great to catch as well. Got out for my first ice fishing trip for the 09/10 season for a couple of hours this afternoon. The bite was very good and managed to land 18 walleye/sauger. Kept a few for the dinner table. The largest fish of the afternoon was a 20" walleye and the ice was around 5" in depth. Hopefully the fishing will stay consistent for a while longer.

Hi all: Thought I would put in a quick report on late night walleye fishing from shore. As I am not a boat owner a lot of my fishing consists of shore fishing. The window of opportunity especially for fish such as walleye can be very short, but at times can when the fish are actively feeding can be very good. These fish were taken a few hours after dark aggressively jigging tight to bottom (1/4 ounce white jig). I usually tip with a worm or minnow, but a full worm seems to out fish minnows (for size) until the temperature drops further. Ottawa River walleye can almost be found everywhere, but often like to sit in increased current flow and fluctuations along with structure changes (drop offs). For year around consistency in water around river mouths. Depending on current strength I like to change the size of the jig head so I can maintain contact with the bottom without jeopardizing the livelihood of the jig. Here are the rewards of the night’s action. Fish sizes are 22", 19", and 14". All these fish were released. Hope to get out again soon.

Hey BudsFan, there is plenty of good ice fishing around Rockland. I live in Rockland and get out icefishing as much as possible. The ice huts that you see are good starting points to fish around. East of the boat launch is a good starting point, within walking distance there are some good spots. I like to fish in about 25- 30ft water midday and work myself in as the day progresses to dusk. This can be as shallow as 4-8 ft. Around Rockland you can catch just about any type of species of fish. I fish for walleye,sauger but you never know what you will pull up. There are no commercial outfitters in the immediate area. E-mail me if you have any furthur questions. Good Luck