Wisconsin Outdoor Report as of February 16, 2006
As of midday Thursday, southern and central Wisconsin were locked in one of the biggest snowstorms of this winter, with upwards of a foot of snow expected across some parts of the state, with lesser amounts to the north and far southeast. Many state parks and forests are expected to groom cross-country ski trails when the snow ends, and trails will likely be open and in good to excellent condition by Friday afternoon. Many counties may also open snowmobile trails. Snowmobile trails are opened on a county by county basis, with local snowmobile clubs that maintain trails determining when the trail will open. Contact county officials to find out if trails are open. Both snowmobilers and skiers should refrain from using trails until they are officially opened. Using ski trails before they are groomed can make grooming more difficult and using snowmobile trails before they are opened can damage trail surfaces. Call ahead to destinations to find out if and when trails will open.
Ice conditions continued to vary greatly across Wisconsin, but they may improve with colder temperatures in the forecast. However, with the news snow, anyone venturing out onto ice in the south should use extreme caution. Many lakes had open water or very thin ice, and the new snow will insulate the lakes from the frigid temperatures in the forecast. It will be very difficult to determine which areas have thin ice. In the north, many lakes still have heavy slush conditions. Anglers should be aware of the slush buildup around shanties and consider lifting their shanty off the ice before the below zero temperatures freeze the base to the ice making removal difficult.
Fishing activity may slow this weekend with the colder. In the north, crappie were suspending off the bottom in many lakes but some fish are also being caught near the bottom. Tip-ups continued to produce some walleye action but catches have been limited. Perch were beginning to move into the shallower weed edges with both small minnows and jigs producing action.
In the south, lakes that have good ice were receiving lots of fishing pressure. Panfish fishing has generally been good early in the morning, with some crappie action at dusk and into darkness. Game fishing has generally been slow, but some lakes have given up nice northern pike up to 10 pounds. Open water trollers continued to catch some walleye on Geneva Lake. Ice anglers were reporting some success on Dane County waters last week. All lakes have some areas of open water, with Mendota having the most. Perch and some bluegills were biting on Lake Waubesa. A few perch, crappies, and large bluegills were coming from Lake Kegonsa. Mendota tip-up anglers have been getting Northerns but walleye fishing is slow all over.
Cracks and open water continue to be a problem for sturgeon spearers traveling on Lake Winnebago. There is a wide range of ice depths and water clarity reports. Spearers registered only five sturgeon on the Tuesday, the fourth day of the season, bringing the total to just 75 fish since the season opened Saturday.
On Green Bay, fishing pressure increased by the end of last week. A yellow perch were caught at the Oconto harbor, Dykesville, Little Sturgeon Bay, Chaudoir's Dock and at Rite's Cove.
The Mississippi River water stage slowly rose again this week to 8.9 feet by the end of this week. The main channel was beginning to ice over again at La Crosse and was full of ice chunks at Prairie du Chien. Anglers who were still able to access the river reported sauger bit very well at certain times on some days.
Coyotes have been very vocal at night as they are near the peak of their breeding season. Owls are still calling, but many great horned owls have now begun nesting. Prior to the snowstorm, flocks of bluebirds were being seen in the south and great blue herons had returned to southern counties where they are fishing on lakes with open waters.
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