1st Ice Trip 1st Fish of 21/22 Ice Fishing Season

10.5" VMC Fly//Wax (Pink)

 4:40-6:15PM Out Front 10' of water 5" of Ice 

32-37℉, PC, 0-6mph WNW

Bear Trax had minnows, so I stopped in to get bait. Tim told me the word was 5" in the bays on Platte. That meant I didn't have to waste time checking ice thickness before bringing my stuff down to the lake, saving me the time I needed because I got to the lake so late. I drilled three sets of holes about 75 yards out front. Marked something in the second set. I wasn't really prepared and missed a couple of bites. The crappie came through about 4' up, and I caught it. Skunk out of the Fish Trap. I put a minnow down. Had a couple possible bites on the minnow and had a couple more lookers on the VMC Fly and THE Jig. Not skunked on the 1st trip for the first time since 2017.

Final Open Water Fish of 2021

16.5" Jerk Shad (Tomato)

7:00-8:50PM South Jetty, North Corner

35℉, Cloudy, 1-3mph SE 

Started on the South Jetty, no action. On the North Jetty spotted one fish and caught it.  MY heart wasn't in so I packed up shortly after letting it go. This was my final trip of the 2021 Open Water Season.

 

Pike Caught, Trophy Out For 2021

1:30-1:50PM F Flat

45℉, Cloudy, 6-10mph ESE 

I was hoping to get a bass for my final trip in the Trophy for 2021, but it was not to be. I headed out to F Flat with the Dobyn's Fury and the Orange Jackhammer. I got a bite and was followed at the waypoint by something small. The Pike came much closer to "The F Flat Juice." I was about to leave, and catching the fish sealed the deal. I headed to the access, and we took the boat out of the water. I forgot to run the gas out of the motor. It is going to rain for the next couple of days then get cold. Boating Season Over. 

Bring on the ice.

 

Barring an unforeseen warm-up, I should be ice fishing slightly before Dec 1st.

Last Bass In the Trophy For 2021

Sun Setting on 2021 Season In The Trophy

 

One of two in the SE Corner

Ended With A Platte Lake Special

3:30-5:30PM SE Corner, LSB, SWBI, NPBI, F Flat

40-52℉, PC, 0-5 mph SW

I got out later than I really should have. Started in front of the Old Resort in our Bay. I got pike on two consecutive casts in the SE Corner. I then bounced to LSB. Nothing going on there. I then headed to the SW Corner of the Big Island as the sun was setting. I got a pike on the Jackhammer as I was trolling for Tuma's spot to where I have caught fish in the past. That didn't work out, so I quickly went to NPBI and the  F Flat. I got two Platte Lake Specials at my waypoint. No clue what is so special about that spot. I'll give that spot one last shot when I take the Trophy out tomorrow.

Penultimate Trip In The Trophy Works Out At The Very End

Took a picture after I got the pike

It was way darker than it looks in this picture.

 3:30-5:30PM Old Resort Flat, NW Corner, NPBI, F Flat
47-50℉, MC, 0-4MPH NW

Started on Old Resort Flat. Missed a couple of bites and had a follow on the Jackhammer. After about 40 minutes, I bailed for the NW corner. There was activity by Rice Island, so I stopped there. Didn't get a bite and stayed too long. Made a quick stop at NPBI, nothing. Headed to F Flat, where I got a pike and two bass. The bass was where I got the bass last night, and the pike was around where I got the pike the previous night. Was so glad the Hail Mary paid off and got the skunk out of the boat. Decided not to try for crappie even though it was calm and I wasn't all that cold.

Big Pike & Bass On A Beautiful Night

Calm Night Was Just What This Soul Needed

34.5" LiveTarget Wake

3.37lb LiveTarget Wake Gill

4:00-6:30PM Reeds Across, F Flat, NPBI, Hole Our Bay

50-60, MC, 0-3MPH S

41-43℉

My plan was to only watch the first half of the Vikings game due to Daylight Saving Time ending. But the game sucked me in. But then the Vikes blowing the lead got me headed off to the lake in a frazzled state. As I was coming up the driveway, Steve waved me up. He was cutting down a tree, and I was lucky it didn't fall on me. Steve was blessed didn't get seriously injured twice. After the Vikes scored two quick touchdowns, the Offense went into hibernation vs. the Ravens. They were in the process of giving the Ravens their first lead of the game as I talked to Steve. When I was ready to head out, the Vikes had tied the score, and the game was headed to overtime. I didn't know how to get the game on my phone, so I listened to my Bass Tournament Morning Playlist instead. A text from Pete made me surmise we lost. Then I got a notification shortly after that Barr had made an interception. I'm not sure if the game was over when Pete texted, or he just gave up prematurely.

Anyway, I started working along and in the Reeds Across the Way, not even getting a bite. As I got to the path separating the South and North Bed, I started listening to the KFAN post-game. There was a little activity along the northern edge of the North Bed. I missed a bite there. I moved across F Flat. It was totally calm now. I had a good size pike follow the LiveTarget Wake to the boat. A couple minutes later, I got the 34.5-inch pike. I don't think the fish that followed was that big, but I could be wrong. It took me a while to land the fish. I played it until it was worn out, and it was barely hooked when I grabbed it. It didn't put up a fuss. I took a quick picture and released it without weighing it because I didn't have the scale ready; I didn't even know if it was in the boat. The scale was in my tackle bag, so I put it in the pouch up front where I usually keep it. About 5 casts later, I got the bass. I didn't get any more bites, and there was scattered activity over the flat once again. It was dark when I went to NPBI. Not sure if the fish I saw out there were shiners or small crips. I didn't put the Loomis 782S in the boat, Doh. I went in and got the rod. I looked unsuccessfully for crappie around the deep hole in our bay.    

 

Crappie Bust, Got a Couple of Pike In Sully

I need to trim the old beard and shave my head as well

 

4:00-7:00PM SPSI, Tuma's Point, Intersection, GOMH

45-58℉, PC, 0-7mph SSW

I got a little later start than I wanted. Tried SPSI no dice. Then I went and searched for crappies for an hour in Sullivan. That wasn't happening, so I mapped for a while. Then fished Tuma's Point. I was just about to move when I caught a small pike on the Jackhammer. I only fished maybe 10 more minutes, then headed to the Intersection. Caught one pike there in the rice narrows. It got totally calm, so I went out and hunted more crappie unsuccessfully. I was underdressed, and my hands were getting cold, so I headed in. Saw a bass and possibly an eye at the bridge.

Talked to Todd after I got back in. He had a deer spook as he was getting to his stand and saw one in the evening but could not get a clean shot as it went into a thicket.

Fishing With Todd On Deer Opener Eve

Todd caught the last and biggest pike of the night

5:00-6:40PM West Point to the old Resort

42-47℉, MC, 7-20mph SSE

Todd came up for his first-ever Deer Opener. He is going to be hunting Jenny's Property. We fished for around an hour. I got the first pike of the trip in front of Jenny's on the Jackhammer. I caught 4 more pike and a bass, that I forgot to take a picture of before I threw it back. I then gave Todd the Jackhammer. I caught a pike on the FireCraw chatterjig Todd had been throwing. Todd got the last pike of the night. We both missed our last bite of the night. I had  4 or 5 that didn't hook up and Todd had 2 or 3 that didn't hook up for the night.