First Ice

I have been dying to get my early Christmas present out on the ice. I have a new 8 inch hand auger that has been patiently waiting for this big seasonal storm to subside so it could finally taste ice. Things worked out well today with beautiful weather and lower winds than I expected. I hit the ice in the afternoon and spent most of the time enjoying the heat of the sun on my black winter coat. There wasn't another soul around. I had it all to myself.

Baking on the ice was fun, I had a couple of beers and was in heaven, but a trout or two worth of action would have been nice as well.

I had drilled two holes in deeper water but the weed bed was too large to really take advantage of the depths. Later on, I moved in closer to the dam and drilled another hole over a sandier and open area. This time I actually saw a fish pass through the hole almost at once. He continued on, but five minutes later I saw a murky dark shape and my twitching white jig disappeared. Setting the hook produced one of my best brook trout of the year.

He swam back down the hole with a bruised ego, but none the worse for wear. This is only the second brookie I have caught in this lake but the few that are in here certainly are quality fish. That was it for action... I was more than satisfied with my first winter day out on the ice.