Perch, Perch Everywhere!
But first, on the Ice Conditions…
Cause, well, that is what we do on Wednesdays!
This recent cold snap has done wonders for our ice sheet and we have now achieved 12 inches of ice just about everywhere you go. I have personally driven my truck out in three different areas on Devils Lake. I wouldn’t recommend driving everywhere, however, there are spots now that you can get out on with the pickup.
There are some ridges and cracks showing up and there was a Pick Up that went through in the Golden Highway area last Saturday. We knw the fisherman personally and he is a very accomplished ice fisherman so it wasn’t stupidity that did him in, more like rally bad luck. A hidden crack that met up with a small ridge caught his wheel and then gave way. Luckily he had a fish house hooked up and that kept him from going all the way to the bottom.
We aren’t sayig driver enerywhere right now, what we are saying is that if you drill as you go and use extreme caution, there are travelable spots by vehicle.
Just about everywhere is accessible with an ATV.
Snow Cover!
The other things that these super cold temps did was it kept the snow at bay. There is very little snow cover, just enough to take the slipperiness out of the ice sheet.
The BITE!!
So far this year, there are a lot of Perch coming our of those Early Ice areas. I mean a lot of Perch. At times it has seemed like they are everywhere. Some days they are super aggressive and some days a little less so, but there are many willing biters and if there has ever been a time to finally make that trip to the Big Devil, it sure seems like now is the time.
These Gold Nuggets came out of 20-22 feet of water on plain hooks and minnow and on Gold Varmints jigged with a minnow head. The mornings were better and they went a little stagnant in the afternoon.
And then there are days like today, when they fly up as your lure approaches the bottom and gets to about the 8 foot mark. The ole Vexilar just lights up like a…
well…
A Christmas Tree!
Find Your Tree……with Devils Lake Fishing Report!
The Perch this morning were hitting the jig, they were hitting is so hard that a few times we didn’t even need a minnow head on our Gold Varmints and Orange/Perch Varmints.
Less than 30 feet of water has been the key so far and almost all of the Perch we have run into this year have been intermediate.
There aren’t a lot of Super Jumbos, but a lot of Perch in that 10-12 inch range, perfect eaters.
Good Luck Out There!
Never been fishing there yet but your reports are sure getting me revved up!!!! Hope to be out very soon !
I’m heading up on the 20th with a permanent shack hope I will be able to drive mostly everywhere by then. Thanks for the ice report