Ice Fishing Report 02-10-21

It’s hard to believe that it’s nearly mid-February! Wow. The seasons fly by. The main body of the ice season has passed, and while there are still a few viable weeks of fishing left, I still feel the urge to write a brief recap: It seems like just yesterday, we were getting our gear ready for the ice fishing season and hoping that the ice would come on swiftly and strong and thick-without snowfall.

As it turned out, the ice took a millennia to come on this year, and when it finally got going it was suppressed by above average temps! The whole while, anglers stood and wondered and watched to see if we’d get the inevitable snow fall; the one that would kill our ice making. It never happened. At last, eager fishermen were on the ice once again, and ice fishing in Otter Tail County was in full swing. While (fast) ice making never took off, most lakes made enough ice by early-January so that anglers could get their trucks and heavy fish houses on the lakes.

Incredibly, winter waited until now to give us our first arctic blast of the season! It feels great. I think a Minnesota winter would be amiss if there wasn’t a good strong cold air mass to cool things down. The ice has responded; it has become very hard and crisp-and makes a nice “cracking pop” when you drive on it. If your auger blades aren’t sharp you’ll struggle to cut it.

I enjoy ultra cold ice fishing on the open ice-I always have. It feels fresh, free, and unrestrictive. What do the fish think about an arctic blast? They don’t skip a beat; the cold air means nothing to them. I’ve seen very good fishing this week and I’ve seen some sluggish fishing. The only real factor that has bearing on the fish and their swinging moods is the barometer; and my professional advice in regards to tracking barometer measurements…. is to completely avoid it. Don’t care about it-ignore it. Just know that it’s there, the same way it is in May, or July, or October. Just fish. Fish through it. There is no way to actually know when a barometric pressure change will destroy your fishing (or make it amazing for that matter), nor is it possible to know how long it will last. Treat cold fronts and major winter arctic blasts and depressions as a challenge. Dig deep. My number one piece of advice for arctic cold ice fishing is: wear good wool or Alpaca socks-I’m partial to Alpaca socks. Good Luck fishing Ottetail County this week! Enjoy the cold crisp air while we have it and go catch some fish.

By Ross Hagemeister, meisterguideservice.com