Frozen Water Ahead!

It’s cold outside.  Deer Lake, located in the central part of Lakes Country is frozen—ice! I imagine that sometime during the weekend there will be the first sign of ice fishing?

While there are still some anglers floating in boats, our open water season in Otter Tail County has all but passed.  If you haven’t winterized the boat yet, you might want to put that chore on your to-do list.  Another sure sign of our passing season, is the impressive and unmistakable presence of the mighty trumpeter swans.  Within the past several days, they have arrived in large numbers.  You don’t have to look very far or very hard because they’re large and white and stand out when they forage in fields or sit on water.

If you spend much time outdoors in Otter Tail County this week, be sure and wear an article of blaze orange because the fire arms deer season is underway.  While there are still decent numbers of diving ducks and mallards in the area, the bulk of them have headed south.  As of this morning, many lakes and large “duck sloughs” have froze over so much of the easy and accessible hunting waters are literally closed until sometime in March or April.  If you’re after late-season ducks and geese around the county you’ll have to focus on field hunting for mallards and geese, or hit larger lakes for remaining divers that are still hanging around the area.

It’s been a shocking week for anglers, waterfowl hunters, and farmers in Otter Tail County—it got cold early this year and many of us were caught off guard.  I’m working quickly to get my ice fishing rental houses prepared for the fast-appraoching ice season, and taking inventory of my rods and reels and tackle.  Yep, it’s that time of year again.

Good luck deer hunting and be sure to dress warm while you’re in the deer stand!

By Ross Hagemeister | meisterguideservice.com