It appears as though Ol Man Winter is going to give us a good ice fishing season for a change.
A check of Michiana bait shops Thursday indicates anglers are starting to move around on most lakes in northern Indiana and southern Michigan lakes.
However, the snow cover still makes it a guessing game, especially on those deeper, slower freezing lakes and those where the geese and swans have worked hard to maintain some open areas in the middle. Anglers are strongly urged to tread carefully when walking on lakes they havent tested.
Ice thicknesses being reported range from as little as 4 inches to as much as 10 in areas where people are fishing.
Are the fish biting? You betcha. Just about all anglers are reporting some successes, especially those fishing for bluegill and pike.
Bonnie Kelley of Kelleys Bait in Lakeville, Ind. said Pleasant Lake at her doorstep has been producing a lot of nice gills and that some anglers were catching walleyes at Lake of the Woods near Bremen, Ind.
At Wawasee, bluegills and crappies are coming out of 17 feet of water.
Farther to the north, Mike Covey of D&R Sports in Kalamazoo said anglers are getting pike on tip-ups and crappie fishing has picked up in the events. Gravel Lake north of Marcellus is kicking out some bluegill and a few walleyes.
Darrin Schaap of Clear H2O Tackle in Edwardsburg said anglers have been all over Eagle Lake, catching bluegill and pike. He also noted that Burch, Shavehead and the north end of Garver Lake werent quite ready.