Perch Clouds On A Very Cold Day!
With the onset of this massive cold front, we were very skeptical of whether or not we would run into any willing fish or not. A lot of times, big cold fronts have negative effects on the bite. The first day of the massive front seemed to justify our worry as we marked a lot of fish but didn’t have many biters except for some big Pike.
As the front edge of the front passed us and we settled into 4-5 days of brutal cold, the fish seem to come out of their funk and that lead to this mornings take, above. We were leaving the ice by 9:30 as the school just went off.
We found today’s take in 22 feet of water on a submerged flat above a steep drop. The school gave us two frantic flurries that got us to our limit. They went nuts on the 3/8 oz. Gold Varmint, rising up to meet it on the drop. We threw an orange one at them and they still bit but not as aggressively as they did the Gold. We threw 5-6 back and there was a mixed bag of marks on the bottom with the bigger Perch mixed right in with all sizes. Needless to day, there are just a lot of fish in this area.
Many of the schools of Perch that are coming out right now are in that intermediate, early ice depth range (15-29 feet). Not running into a whole lot of schools super deep, with 30-35 feet being the maximum that we have run into big numbers. Two of the days of the cold front, they only bit on dead sticks and plain hooks with minnows under a bobber. Two days, Friday and Today, they went after anything that was presented to them.
We have a warm-up coming mid-week and the start of that warm up might shut them down a little but I would say that by the weekend we will have some Perch frenzies going on.
We have been able to drive our vehicle onto the ice in two areas so far. Both times we drilled as we went. Found 15-16 inches in one area and 17.5 inches in the other. Putting on 1-1.5 inches in every 24 hour period with these ultra cold temperatures to some places are beginning to be vehicle worthy.
These big Pike kind of ruined one of our days. We were on a pretty healthy school of Perch when in moved the Pike and really shut the Perch down. They were still there, glued to the bottom, but the Pike were super active and kept us from catching many of our target species.
This Perch school is ripe to go off. They were there in great numbers, just real docile. We expect this to be the next big bite and are patiently waiting for them to go from real negative to real positive.
For the time being, we are going to focus our Perch Searches in those intermediate, early ice spots. Stay tuned to find out where we are or purchase our Early Ice packages and get on with the exploring on your own.
Walleyes??!!
If the White Tip is your favorite Species to target, we strongly suggest venturing up to the North end of the basin. Those Northern Feeder lakes are really producing some nice fish right now.
If you want to target the big lake for Walleyes, we suggest concentrating relatively shallow and on structure.
Humps and Points!!
The Walleyes we have caught have all been shallower than 25 feet of water and have all been on some kind of structure with steep points being the best areas that we have run into.
Kansas Kids!!
Father Kopec and his youth group from Kansas visited Devils Lake this weekend. Their long planned trip just happened to coincide with the Winter’s coldest weather so far.
I was a little worried with the plan to stay in an army tent using wood burning stoves. My worries were unfounded, however, as these old pros handled it with out a pause.
Although, due to family commitments, I wasn’t able to directly guide them on the ice, I was able to provide them with as much information as possible to get them on some active fish, regardless of the temperatures.
These avid fishermen did not disappoint. Though many of the fish were negative and pretty docile, they were still able to put a respectable bag together over the two days they fished.
Happy Customers!
We are always open to clients and customers corresponding with us with successes they have had as a result of their relationship with DLFR. Josh and his crew were with us on the ice for one day and then took Waypoint directions and ran with them and landed on the mother load.
If you want to add yourself to a post, share you successes with us: Email us at [email protected].
Good Luck Out There!
Travis your help made for a great trip in cold weather. -8 to-25º F. The cold made it harder to do a lot of hole hopping. You provided us the information to get there and we vectored in on them from there. Nothing like the perch “flurry” on Devils Lake when you get on em. The new guys with us were in awe of the perch “flurry”. Made our trip. All we needed was some direction on a big lake. Thanks too for the information when our diesel truck decided to gel up.
If anyone needs guidance, Travis did right by us.
Was my pleasure, we love when fellow anglers enjoy the wonder that Devils Lake can be through the ice. It doesn’t always work out but when it does it is a sight to see. the Vexilar Christmas tree on the Big Devil is awe inspiring!!
What areas of the lake if any could you get out with a wheel house and a pick up. Heading up next weekend.
Hey travis, just curious on ice thickness on the north end of irvine and access? Were going to be up there thursday and will probably drive out in a half ton chevy if we can thanks in advance for any advice!