2014

Ice anglers having great action for crappies, bluegills and perch, with good open water fishing below area dams for walleyes; in and amidst the lakes and the Wisconsin River in Wisconsin’s Marathon and Lincoln Counties (near Mosinee and Wausau).

It’s important to note that unlike many other areas in Wisconsin, the season for walleye, and northern remains open on many waters of the central Wisconsin area.  Check with the Wisconsin DNR to insure that you fish on waters where the season for these gamefish has not closed.

Ice fishing continues to be good in the central Wisconsin area with outstanding catches of panfish.   Crappies, bluegills and perch are going strong with the best action in the early morning until about 10:00 am and then again from about 3:30 until dark.  Most of the action is associated with weed lines and open pockets in the weeds.  Tear drop jigs with waxies or small minnows have been working the best but some days plastics are working better on the larger fish.

Open water has arrived in the central Wisconsin area and anglers are doing well on walleyes below area dams.  Jig and minnow combinations are working in deeper water, and crankbaits are working in the shallower areas early and late in the day.

(This report based on interviews with licensed guide and trapper Phil Schweik and licensed guide Glenn Moberg, of Hooksetters Fishing & Hunting Guide Service, Mosinee Wisconsin).

The bite for crappies, bluegills and perch is fair, while travel on the ice remains difficult; all in the Eagle River, Wisconsin area.

Ice conditions in the Eagle River, Wisconsin area remains good, but travel on the ice is very difficult.  There are increasing amounts of ice and snow which hampers travel.  Use a snowmobile, truck, or ATV, and stick to traveled routes.  It’s very easy to get stuck right now.

PANFISH:  Crappies, bluegills and perch are putting on a fair bite in the Eagle River area.  Fish two locations:  Main lake mudflats in 35 feet of water, where the fish are holding near structure like cribs, brushpiles and downed wood; or fish 10 feet of water or less in and around old remaining weeds.  Use a spike, waxie, wiggler, or crappie minnow under a slip bobber or hooked up to a small jig.  Micro plastics have also been working.  The perch are tight to bottom, with the crappies and gills suspending anywhere up and down the water column.  Depth is day and lake dependent, so make sure you use electronics, or you’ll end up catching little or nothing; and try to be as mobile as you can under the difficult travel conditions on the ice.  The fish are scattered so you’ll need to try different spots and depths before you locate them.  Each day will be different.

Crappies and will rise higher and higher in the water column as a steady melt takes hold, but that is not the case as the moment, and that’s why electronics are so necessary right now.

(This report based on Creative Brilliance interviews with Eagle River guides “Muskie Matt” of Wild Eagle Lodge, “Ranger Rick” Krueger of Guide’s Choice Pro Shop, and Mat Hegy).

Ice anglers having great action for crappies, bluegills and perch, with some OPEN WATER fishing below area dams for walleyes; in and amidst the lakes and the Wisconsin River in Wisconsin’s Marathon and Lincoln Counties (near Mosinee and Wausau).

It’s important to note that unlike many other areas in Wisconsin, the season for walleye, and northern remains open on many waters of the central Wisconsin area.  Check with the Wisconsin DNR to insure that you fish on waters where the season for these gamefish has not closed.

Ice fishing is as good as it can get!   Anglers have been hammering the big bluegills, crappies and jumbo perch.  Most of the action is coming from mud flats in 10 to 16 feet of water working suspended fish that are moving through the area.  For the most part anglers are using our electronics to find the fish and then once they’re found the catching is the easy part.

Anglers are starting to hit open water below area dams in search of walleyes. Anglers that are out are doing OK on fish from 14 to 24 inches by using jig and minnow combinations.

(This report based on interviews with licensed guide and trapper Phil Schweik and licensed guide Glenn Moberg, of Hooksetters Fishing & Hunting Guide Service, Mosinee Wisconsin).

The bite for crappies, bluegills and perch is good to excellent, while travel on the ice remains difficult; all in the Eagle River, Wisconsin area.

Ice in the Eagle River area, remains good, but travel is very difficult.  Slush and snow abound.  Many anglers are sticking to foot travel, with some using snowmobiles, although snowmobiles are not doing that well, either.  Stick to traveled routes only, and remain very cautious as at this time of the year, the ice starts to fissure, erode, crack and degrade.

PANFISH:  Crappies, bluegills and perch are putting on a good to excellent bite in the Eagle River area.  The panfish are locating in two areas:  Main lake basins, in 25 feet of water or deeper; or mudflats in 25 feet of water or less.  Perch are right to bottom, with the crappies and gills suspending.  Suspending depths are day and lake dependent, so make sure you use electronics to locate the depth that the fish are locating at on any particular day or body of water.  As the fish are quite scattered right now, you never know where you’re going to find them.  Use a waxie, wiggler, spike or crappie minnow on a small jig or under a slip bobber.

(This report based on Creative Brilliance interviews with Eagle River guides “Muskie Matt” of Wild Eagle Lodge, “Ranger Rick” Krueger of Guide’s Choice Pro Shop, and Mat Hegy).

Great action for panfish, walleye and northern; in and amidst the lakes and the Wisconsin River in Wisconsin’s Marathon and Lincoln Counties (near Mosinee and Wausau).

It’s important to note that unlike many other areas in Wisconsin, the season for walleye, and northern remains open on many waters of the central Wisconsin area.  Check with the Wisconsin DNR to insure that you fish on waters where the season for these gamefish has not closed.

Panfish have been taking center stage in the central Wisconsin are now that the weather has warmed up. The bite has been fantastic on a lot of area lakes.  We are also having a great walleye bite as well as catching some monster northerns while we are fishing on the backwater areas of the Wisconsin River.

Get ready, because  the best part of ice fishing is here and as the season progresses we will continue to see things heat up even more.

(This report based on interviews with licensed guide and trapper Phil Schweik and licensed guide Glenn Moberg, of Hooksetters Fishing & Hunting Guide Service, Mosinee Wisconsin).

The bite for crappies, bluegills and perch is good, although travel on the ice remains difficult; all in the Eagle River, Wisconsin area.

Ice conditions remain good in the Eagle River area, but travel conditions continue to worsen.  It’s very difficult to get out and around on the ice right now.  There’s lot of snow cover and slush.  Use a snowmobile and make sure you stick to traveled routes.  Easy to get stuck and mired.  Caution, as always, remains the watchword when fishing on the ice.

PANFISH:  Crappies, bluegills and perch are putting on a good, all day bite in the Eagle River area.  The panfish are locating in two different areas. There are basically two types of lakes in the Eagle River area — one type are the lakes that are 20 feet of water or less, and the other type are the deeper lakes that go more than 30 feet of water in depth.  You can fish the deeper lakes, by hitting main lake basins in 30 feet of water or MORE.

Or you can fish the main lake basins of shallower lakes that go 20 feet of water or LESS.  Right now the panfish are scattered, and the fish are heading deeper to find relief from the lack of oxygen nearer the surface, caused by a lack of sunlight.  The methods for catching fish remains the same, regardless of the particular lake you fish.  Perch will be tight to bottom, with crappies and gills suspending.

Best to use electronics like a “flasher” to locate where the fish are on a particular day and lake, as it varies — meaning the depth you’ll find the fish is day and lake dependent.  There is no “one size fits all” right now.   Use a spike, waxie, wiggler or crappie minnow on a small jig or under a slip bobber.  A number of anglers have also been using micro-plastics with good success.

(This report based on Creative Brilliance interviews with Eagle River guides “Muskie Matt” of Wild Eagle Lodge, “Ranger Rick” Krueger of Guide’s Choice Pro Shop, and Mat Hegy).

Walleye, crappies, bluegills, perch and northern all hitting; in and amidst the lakes and the Wisconsin River in Wisconsin’s Marathon and Lincoln Counties (near Mosinee and Wausau).

It’s important to note that unlike many other areas in Wisconsin, the season for walleye, and northern remains open on many waters of the central Wisconsin area.  Check with the Wisconsin DNR to insure that you fish on waters where the season for these gamefish has not closed.

Great action this week…  Good thing for us is that the waters we fish in the central Wisconsin area are basically never closed as they are almost all associated with or on the Wisconsin River.

Walleye action in the central Wisconsin area has been very good for both numbers and size along with good catches of crappies, bluegills, and perch.  The northerns have been feeding aggressively in shallow water and will continue to move even shallower as they prepare to spawn.

With the long winter and heavy snows we have had this year it is almost impossible to get out on most area lakes without the use of a snowmobile or by foot travel.  With that said, there are upcoming deadlines for ice shanty’s to be removed.  The DNR is working with anglers in the area due to the fact that many cannot get to their structures at this time.  Anglers with ice shanties on the ice are being asked to contact the local DNR with questions and answers as to getting their shanties off in a timely manner, and to avoid costly fines that could be associated with not getting them off by the deadlines.

(This report based on interviews with licensed guide and trapper Phil Schweik and licensed guide Glenn Moberg, of Hooksetters Fishing & Hunting Guide Service, Mosinee Wisconsin).

Northern and panfish action good, with walleye fair; all in the Eagle River, Wisconsin area.

Ice conditions in the Eagle River area are good, but travel is extremely difficult — lots of snow and slush to contend with.  Stick to well traveled trails, and be extremely cautious as with the impending warm up, the ice will become “iffy” in many areas, and while looking safe, is not.

NORTHERN:  Northern in the Eagle River area are moving to weed edges and adjacent hard bottom areas.  Use a medium to large shiner or northern sucker under a tip up.  You can also try a large jigging spoon (unbaited is just fine).  All day action.  Bite is good.

PANFISH:  Crappies, bluegills and perch are locating in two areas in the Eagle River area.  Try main lake basins in 30-40 feet of water; or fish shallow basin lakes in 15 feet of water or less on mudflats and weed beds.  The perch are tight to bottom.  The crappies and gills are suspending quite high in the water column — but that is day dependent, so best you use a flasher to locate the fish and save time and effort drilling lots of useless holes.  Use a spike, wiggler, waxies or crappie minnow under a slip bobber or on a small jig.  All day action.  Bite is good.

WALLEYE:  Walleye in the Eagle River area are off of break edges and on adjacent mud flats.  The walleye are tight to bottom.  Use a medium shiner or walleye sucker under a tip up, or try a jigging spoon tipped with a minnow head.  All day action with peaks in the evening.  The bite is fair.

(This report based on Creative Brilliance interviews with Eagle River guides “Muskie Matt” of Wild Eagle Lodge, “Ranger Rick” Krueger of Guide’s Choice Pro Shop, and Mat Hegy).

Outstanding action for giant northerns, with perch and crappies hitting strong, and a pretty good walleye bite; all in and amidst the lakes and the Wisconsin River in Wisconsin’s Marathon and Lincoln Counties (near Mosinee and Wausau).

Outstanding action for GIANT northerns in the central Wisconsin area.  Big  northerns well over 30 inches and even some over 40 inches have been the norm the past few weeks.  These are big fish that want a big bait.  XL-shiners and good sized suckers have been the bait of choice fished off tip-ups set along shallow weed edges in 4 to 10 feet of water.   Most of the action is coming at specific time periods (windows – where we get a bunch of strikes at the same time during the day) but the mid day hours still seem to be producing the best fish.

Perch fishing in the central Wisconsin area is going strong with limit catches coming on our guided trips.  Most of the perch are in the 9 to 11 inch range but we are seeing a few up to 14 inches.  Wigglers  are the bait of choice but spikes, waxies, and minnows are all working well too.  Most of these fish have been holding on the deep weed edges in 8 to 12 feet of water but as the winter is progressing we are seeing a steady movement of these perch towards shallower water.

The crappie bite in the central Wisconsin area has been steady all winter long with great action from good sized fish averaging 10 to 12 inches in length. Most of these fish are coming on rosie reds – minnows suspended below a slip bobber or tip downs.  Hole hopping is an option but with the way these fish roam, by finding a good location and staying put you will catch more fish.

The walleye bite in the central Wisconsin area has been pretty good with some really good fish pushing the 30 inch mark being taken lately.  Most of these fish are suspended over mid lake humps in 8 to 12 feet of water.  We are using large golden shiners and medium sucker minnows on tip-ups and by working jigging raps and puppet minnows along the bottom on medium action jigging rods.

(This report based on interviews with licensed guide and trapper Phil Schweik and licensed guide Glenn Moberg, of Hooksetters Fishing & Hunting Guide Service, Mosinee Wisconsin).

Panfish action good to excellent, with northern action fair to good, and the walleye bite fair; all in the Eagle River, Wisconsin area.

Ice conditions in the Eagle River area are good, with ice thickness 22+ inches on most area lakes.  However thick the ice may be, always be very cautious.  There are continuous thinning, cracking, and unsafe areas.  Make sure you know the lake you’re out on, or better yet, hire one of the Eagle River’s excellent and knowledgeable fishing guides.  They’ll put you on fish, where you’ll have a lot of fun, and be safe.  It’s still tough getting out and getting around on the ice.  There’s a lot of excess snow, with considerable drifting, and a good amount of slush.  Stick to traveled routes, and you should be OK — but only if you practice safety.  Don’t forget that.

PANFISH:  Crappies, bluegills and perch in the Eagle River area are locating in two places:  Fish mud flats on shallow lakes in 15 feet of water or less; or fish main lake basins on larger lakes in 20-50 feet of water.  In both cases the perch will be tight to bottom, and the crappies and gills will be suspending quite high up in the water column.  Use a flasher, and it’ll you a lot of wasted effort drilling holes.  As the weather warms (if it ever does!), the crappies and gills will start migrating even higher in the water column, until they’ll be right under the ice.  They’re not there yet, but the movement upward is beginning.  Use a waxie, spike, wiggler or crappie minnow on a small jig or under a slip bobber.  All day action, and the bite has been good to excellent.

NORTHERN:  Northern in the Eagle River area are in 15 feet of water or less in and around remaining weeds.  Use a medium to large shiner or northern sucker under a tip up.  You can also use a large jigging spoon — and you don’t have to tip it with bait — as the northerns will react to the motion of the spoon rather than any scent.  All day action.  Bite has been fair to good.

WALLEYE:  In the Eagle River area, the walleyes are off of break edges or adjacent mud flats in 30 feet of water or less.  The walleyes are tight to bottom.  Use a small to medium shiner or walleye sucker under a tip up.  You can also use a jigging spoon tipped with a minnow head.  All day action, with a little bit of a pick up around sunset.  The walleye bite is fair.

(This report based on Creative Brilliance interviews with Eagle River guides “Muskie Matt” of Wild Eagle Lodge, “Ranger Rick” Krueger of Guide’s Choice Pro Shop, and Mat Hegy).