Only a few anglers ventured out onto the ice today, whether it was due to the strong breeze that has been continually blowing for a couple of days now or the intimidating situation at the landings. Heavy traffic, as the cold weather sets in, is the only way to get these landings back in good shape. Let’s get started on that. Those welcomed colder temperatures have already helped cure the slush since yesterday, and travel is expected to improve even more throughout the week. A mixture of hard and soft snow drifts will be encountered, and maintaining a good pace is crucial to avoiding shovel work. However, not too fast — we wouldn’t want to get airborne on one of those rock-hard drifts either. I wouldn’t mind seeing that, though.
The forecast calls for another snowy day tomorrow, with a few inches of accumulation predicted. Strong winds from the south during this next snow event will continue to pile it up in the northern parts of the Bay. Most of the remaining slush is isolated to landings, near pressure cracks, and deeper snow drifting around shack scabs. A group of anglers from southern Wisconsin, coined the Penguins, have returned. Usually a good sized group, not all the Penguins made it this trip, just the head Penguin, Ricky, and his woman, Jenette, on her first overnight adventure on Little Bay de Noc. Icing this 8-pound-plus, 29-inch walleye certainly makes for a memorable first time here. Or was it the hours of shoveling while exiting the Red Gate ice access on Sunday? Both will be remembered. Nice fish, Mrs. Penguin. Looking forward to your return.
Increasing your odds,
-Blade