Five Ice Out Techniques to Land Big Bass

People complain too much about winter. I might at times, but it is a great time to catch up on projects, like a full renovation of a new (to us) fixer upper house or baby proofing for a 9.5 month old who is on the move. However, I am more than happy to see winter go, as spring means flowers, grass, and open water! To commemorate ice out this year, I wrote up a fairly in-depth blog for Wilderness Systems about how I approach ice out fishing. I think people complicate ice out too often, and although it can certainly be tough, stay patient and spend a little extra time looking for those keys area. It less about covering water, and more about finding and picking apart productive water. Below is the intro to the article.

"As winter finally fades, many kayak anglers throughout New England and other regions are getting to see open water for the first time in months. The period between ice out and the spawn is short in many of these areas, so the fish do not take long to get active and start feeding. Largemouth bass generally use channels, troughs, and ditches to move toward shallow areas that warm quickly. Smallmouths tend to school up around deep to intermediate structure before the pre-spawn kicks into full gear. These fish can be targeted with just a few lures, a depth finder or lake map, and some patience, and this is how."

The rest of the blog can be found over at the Wilderness Systems blog (click to re-direct and read). I hope you enjoy! Tight lines!