Say goodbye to the ice. Consecutive 60 degree days matched with high winds and a little rainfall are causing the lake ice to disappear quickly. Our winter has disappeared in a matter of days. While working at the Cross River Lodge on Gunflint Lake this past Monday, I watched the melted shoreline grow 100 feet out onto the lake over the course of a day. The remaining ice was so thin that you could actually see the waves traveling through it.
Luckily, I was able to fish Northern Light Lake one last time this past weekend before it all ended. I am sure there will be some daredevil anglers fishing the narrows on Sag for a few more days yet, but not me. I have too much to live for.
I love being on the water, but I am not a big fan of being in it, especially this time of the year. The winter portage bay on Sag was still accessible as of Monday, but the open water from the narrows will soon take over.
Unaware that Saganaga Lake’s ice had popped-up since it was still slushy the day before, we left the landing a little bit early for Northern Light that last day. When a lake pops up, the slushy water sheds away or freezes, leaving a hard, dry surface to travel on. It is better to let the sun soften the ice up so the snowmobiles do not overheat on the ride, but we just took our time traveling between puddles and small patches of snow. We traveled for about an hour to get to Trafalgar Bay, and it was well worth the slow ride.
I have learned to be a patient angler when fishing in the winter, waiting patiently for a flurry of bites, but there was steady action all day long in front of Hoof Creek on Northern Light. The traditional, shallow water stuff was not as productive as usual, but thanks to a friend’s advice, we were able to get some fish in about 40 feet.
It took aboutthe twoeci minutes n i to get thematelfirst bite,up andto with that bite mynewspaperfriend DaveAd Schudy was on a nice 29-inch walleye. Soon after b Daved land d the firstsl tlyhawg,n izwe began to catch youra fair coamountumn ofi whitefish and trout. I marked a fish about 10P asefeet offo nottheb
bottom, raised up to it with a jig and minnow and with no hesitation got slammed. It was a 28-inch walleye that gave me a drag-pulling, head-shaking battle that I will not soon forget. Another hawg walleye was caught in the group next to us that looked to be about the same size. A three hawg day through the ice!
We also caught a handful of eater-sized walleyes to make for a perfect day. That is about as good as ice fishing gets in our neck of the woods.
Trail Center will be hosting an ice fishing contest on Poplar Lake this Saturday, the 24th. With any luck, there will still be enough ice to have such an event, but it is not looking good right now. Windigo Lodge also plans to have their annual golf tournament on ice that same weekend. It should be a lot of fun and will certainly be the last hoorah of the hard water season.
This could be one of those years that we are able to fish out of boats during the ice season. It happened a few years ago and it looks like it will happen again.
On a different note, the Minnesota DNR has responded to my question about who is actually required to be certified for aquatic invasive species training by attending the class being held at the Gunflint Conference Center on April 2. Fishing guides do not have to attend, but some outfitters will. People in the dock removal business are also required, and for a full list of occupations that need the certification, visit the Minnesota DNR web site and scroll down to the list of occupations required. It would be a good idea for anyone in the waterrelated industries to attend, but it may not be required.
Cory Christianson has worked as a fishing guide on the Gunflint Trail since 2000. If you have any fishing or wildlife reports or stories to share, send an email to: christiansoncory@hotmail com or call 218-388-0315. You can also visit Cory’s website at Gunflintfishingguide.com.
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