Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Forget Ice Fishing for this Weekend!

Just a quick update for my readers that live in Pittsburgh and elsewhere.  Don't bother coming to Erie to ice fish this weekend.  The warm temperatures along with numerous rain showers have made the ice very hazardous.  It is supposed to get cold again in a couple days so the ice may form again.

The good news is that the streams are blowing out and running high.  Therefore, in a couple days there might be some very good steelhead fishing in the area streams.  We should get at least a couple really good fishable days before the streams freeze again. 

I will try to get out and take pictures of stream conditions tomorrow. 

Sunday, January 27, 2013

2013 Ice Fishing Season Underway

Today, I headed out to Presque Isle for a scouting expedition.  This past week has been cold and I ventured out to see how thick the ice is, and to see if anyone was catching any fish. 

The ice in Misery Bay which is on Presque Isle is pretty safe.  It appears to be about 5 inches of good clear ice and a lot of fisherman were on it today.  The fisherman I talked to were catching quite a few bluegill but I suspect that a few crappies are being caught also. 

Ice fisherman were also seen off of the foot of Chestnut and off of the second parking lot on Presque Isle.  The ice at both places looked a little sketchy to me so I did not venture out on it.  I like ice to be 5 or 6 inches before I am comfortable.  All it takes is falling through one time and it changes your perception about ice fishing.  Sure, it is lots of fun.  But it is also important to be very safe and comfortable while you are doing it.  When I fell through the ice, there was no warning.  The ice did not crack nor shake; I took one step and then the next thing I know I was flailing for my life.  Luckily for me a couple friends were behind me and pulled me out with a big stick.  Falling through the ice is no picnic and everyone going out on the ice should be prepared in case you hit a spot that is thin and go crashing through.  It is always a good idea to go with someone and carry a big towel and change of clothes in your vehicle.  Also, be sure that you have those fancy hand picks that you can use to drive into the ice if you go through.  They will keep you up and can help you crawl out onto safer ice.

I filmed a short video today and you can see it at my youtube channel: JeffTom66.  Over the next few months I am going to be filming quite a few videos so please stop by and subscribe.  May your lines be tight and your hooks be happy!

Friday, January 11, 2013

Forget Steelhead Fishing in the Streams this Weekend!

A real quick update to help out my readers that are in Pittsburgh and elsewhere.  The warm temperatures along with rain have raised the area streams to extremely high levels.  They are running very high and muddy.  I don't think there will be any stream steelhead fishing this weekend.  Perhaps, Sunday afternoon at the earliest.

Steelhead are also in the bay and strong southern winds are forecast for tomorrow.  These conditions won't be bad for fishing on the north side of the bay.  The new Sons of Lake Erie Pier should be a good spot this weekend, as well as the public dock and maybe even off of the Chestnut pier where they rent boats and jetskis during the summer months. 

High stream levels are blowing out the mouths of the streams so the smaller stream mouths should be good fishing this weekend.  The smaller streams include Trout Run and Godfrey Run on the west side. 

On the positive side, when the streams go down there will most likely be steelhead everywhere!  Next week should prove to be excellent fishing.  Use bright egg patterns or live eggs in cloudy water and a real good tip is to tip your egg with a maggot.  The steelhead seem to go nuts for a squiggly maggot popping out of a bright salmon egg!  Good luck fishing!

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Lake Erie Ice Fishing Season Is Not Looking Good.

The recent warm weather has melted the nice clear ice that was developing up until a few days ago.  The Presque Isle Bay ice is unsafe and it is not looking good right now for a lengthy ice fishing season.  One of the positives is that the bay does freeze relatively quickly.  If we get a week and a half of cold temperatures, the ice will be good. 

I will post when the ice is safe and you can venture out on it.  Being a heavy guy, I don't go out on the ice until it is 5 inches thick.  Some people go out on 3 inches but sometimes this practice ends up in a wet, cold, outing.  It is better to be safe than sorry so please be careful if you plan on going out on ice thinner than 5 inches or so. 

I don't know about you guys but I have bought a bunch of new ice fishing equipment so I hope I get to use it this year.  The best month to be out on the ice is March if there is safe ice.  Hopefully, a cold February will appear and along with it good, hard, and clear ice. 

I recently was asked what kind of fish we catch through the ice on Presque Isle Bay in Erie Pennsylvania.  We catch perch, with many of them being jumbos, black and white crappie, bluegills, largemouth bass, quite a few steelhead, and occasional northern pike, walleye, and smallmouth bass. 

Steelhead are commonly caught in real shallow water near shore.  Most of the fisherman venture out into the deeper water to catch tasty jumbo perch.  Crappies, bluegills, and bass are usually found in 4 to 8 feet of water.  The ticket to catching fish through the ice on Presque Isle Bay is to move around until you find fish.  Many times one hut will be killing the fish while 25 feet away they are catching zip. 

Stay tuned for more ice fishing reports as the weather improves.  Let's all cross our fingers and hope we can get out on the ice this season!