An Itty Bitty Pike
Does anyone else feel the cold getting to them more as they get older? Every winter I find it harder and harder to convince myself to leave the heat of the woodstove and venture out for cold weather activities. My hands freeze in an instant and even the warmth of a floater suit only lasts so long.
However, winter is pretty long in these parts, and I go stir crazy inside. Plus, there’s only so long a person can go without fishing. We take the boat out as long as we can but now that the lakes are frozen, it’s time for the ice gear and hard water. Yesterday was a bit of break from the chillier temps, with a high in the single minus digits, and the sun broke through the cloud cover to warm things up even more. A perfect day for hitting the ice!
Normally we would take the hut with us when ice fishing, but I was swayed by the beautiful sunshine and convinced Darrell that we should go light with just a couple of buckets, a few rods, the finder, and the auger. We only had a few hours to be out and it was easier to take less gear.
We did a quick drive by the lake to see how things looked before heading to the parking lot. I looked out the window and laughed when I saw more huts than I’d ever seen on that particular lake. Quite a few other people thought it was a good day for ice fishing!
Donning floater suits, ice picks, and our wonder Baffin Titan boots (the only boots to wear when ice fishing), we trudged through the fresh snow and out to the lake. I nervously eyed the open water next to our access point. It’s a spring that stays open most winters but it’s always a little nerve-wracking to see it. Darrell drilled a test hole and found over a foot of ice, though only 3 inches of it was black. It was good enough for us.
It’s always nice to visit a lake you know so you have a starting point. We set up in about 27 feet of water and dropped the sonar down. The bottom changed now and then so there was a good chance some perch were swimming around down there. I let my lure fall down and started fishing. I had a little bump that got my hopes up and I kept working to entice a fish to bite.
Darrell left me playing with the little perch and moved on to drill another hole. He set the finder in it and started marking fishing pretty quick. I was engrossed in what I was doing when I heard him yell “Got you!” I looked over to see his rod bent and I quickly reeled in my line so I could go see what he had caught. It had been far too long since either of us got our hands on a fish. After a quick fight he pulled a feisty, itty bitty pike through the hole. That little fish was the cause of some big smiles.
We went back to fishing, drilling more holes, looking for fish. The sun went behind the clouds and snow began lightly falling. Without the sun it was definitely chillier and I wondered how smart it had been to leave the hut at home.
There were more bumps and missed hooks sets. At one point my rod bent right over, but after a head shake the fish was gone. It was one of those days where the actual fish weren’t as important as just getting out there and doing some fishing.
The breeze had picked up and was starting to cool down the back of my floater suit and find its way in around my neck. We stayed out for a bit longer but packed up as the snow began again. We were the last ones on the lake by that point. Everyone else must have been due home for Valentine’s Day.
It wasn’t a big outing as fishing trips go, but it was nice to get out again. There hasn’t been near enough time for fishing. We were both much happier by the time we left the lake and I even felt nice and warm after the walk back. The fresh air was great and that little fish made for two very happy people.
Here’s hoping we can get out again next weekend and maybe find a few more fish.
argosgirl
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Fairy lake?
No, a small lake in Grey County. We haven’t fished Fairy much since we moved away from the area.
Ageing does have it’s drawbacks. Five minutes of breaking trail wearing my Baffins would have me gasping for air on the ice like a fish out of water! Thankfully blogs and youtube help keep cabin fever at bay. I’d be tickled grey with an itty bitty right now . Thanks for your post.
Haha I’ll agree that the Baffins are not the easiest boots for hiking around a lake. Even those itty bitty fish are fun to catch. Thanks for reading!