Time on the Water Canada

It ain't over till its over. Scraping out the last few days of deep water fishing and the whities are more than happy to extend the season. Berkley Power Minnow... drop shop was the key to pinning them right in the beak! Berkley Fishing Aqua-Vu Garmin Marine Clam Outdoors #lastdeepdays

Trigger a Reaction My new Tips and Techniques video. Aqua-Vu Clam Outdoors Garmin Marine Berkley Fishing #triggerareaction

The Directions to a Great Day on Simcoe Hop on the Trout Freeway to Whitefish Way. Get off at Burbot Blvd and head to Ling Lane. Make a left on the turn Pike to... Cisco St. Drill some holes and hammer them. Good friends James Gignac and Roy Adams had a free day so as much as like to avoid Sundays on the ice they twisted my arm. Glad they did because it was another spectacular double-digit day for me. All I target these days is trout but those pesky white keep hammering my Vibrado. At one point I got 5 in 20 minutes, all with all 3 barbs in the mouth. A few more earlier, 3 trout, and of course a lingadingding made for a pretty good day. James got a pair of monster trout and some whities and on his first attempt at underwater video he captured an incredible trout smashes vibrado clip, something I would try to get for weeks. Nothing is worse then icing a trout over 20 pounds and nobody is close enough to get a picture. I am testing some new ice lines. Firewire Crystal has been the choice of many deep-water ice pros for some time. Mostly because it doesn’t take on water like most other braids. It is indestructible, but it is a little stiff. But the new Fireline Ultra 8 Carrier has all the same qualities as the original but is now limp and smooth as silk. I have had 10-pound test on for the entire season and hundreds of fish later it is still as it was when I put on. As much as I like my Nanofil, and could never give it up for finesse fishing, my new ice line will be Ultra 8 as well as several open water applications like drop shot. The lake is in fantastic condition and although always dangerous in the wrong place, like near cracks, the cracks are pretty tame right now offering many crossing points. No extreme temperatures and 20+ inches of mostly clear ice make travelling great. This upcoming warm spell along with a ton of rain that has been forecast could change the conditions around cracks and more so, shorelines. Anywhere near river mouths will become extremely dangerous. The good news is that the ice is frozen to the bottom near shore on many access points. But there is a lot of cracks close to shore that will get very messy and unsafe as erosion right at the shore makes room for ice to move. We will have to see how much of the predicted rain and warmer temps we get to see how stable this ice stays. I don’t expect a lot of damage away from cracks, but the snow will be gone and there is going to be some big holes where anglers have drilled. An 8-inch hole can turn into 2 ft overnight. You might not fit in one but anyone can break a leg. We are passed the point in winter where we will make ice so it is all down hill from here. After the warm spell and rain, I expect perch fishing to really turn on as the big deep-water perch start to stage for spring spawn in shallower water. The ling will start spawning in the next few weeks and although many anglers don’t think much of them, they are a quality game fish and we would like to see those big females have a chance to spawn, so let’s throw them back for a few weeks. The Trout Freeway will be under construction until further notice. Berkley Fishing Garmin Marine Aqua-Vu Clam Outdoors #troutfreeway

Any Given Saturday I like to think of the ice season as a hockey game. We might be in the February Blahs but there is still lots of fish that are willing to pla...y the second period. This was my Saturday Clam Outdoors Berkley Fishing Garmin Marine Aqua-Vu #antgivensaturday

It's Getting Dark Down There What a difference from a week ago when the water was crystal clear, there was no snow on the ice and fish could see baits from a lo...ng distance. But with 20 inches of ice that has some character now and a foot of snow, the bottom is getting very dark. We are approaching or are in the Feb. Blahs and at a time when bottom baits become more effective, the poor light makes it harder for them to find. There is a two part solution we may have to use until the final period and last clear ice. Aqua-Vu Berkley Fishing Clam Outdoors Garmin Marine #darkdownthere

Ready for the Feb Blahs This might be one of the best ice fishing years I can remember on Simcoe. The whitefish have been plentiful and easy to catch. There is... lots of lakers around and for me, the ling have been following me and have become my new favorite table fair. We have between 16 and 20 inches of ice on the lake and with the exception of some nasty pressure cracks it is as good as its been since 2014. There is about 8 inches of snow in most places so its a little tougher for ATV's and walking.This ice isn't going anywhere soon and I expect we will be perchin into April. But, we have moved into Feb, and every year after the post spawn and early ice bit e things will slow down a little. The all day bite begins to narrow into a couple of hours during the morning and again a short afternoon bite. Two major factors at play. One is the post fall spawn bite is diminishing, and two, there has been thousands and thousands of fish taken already. There are lots of fish that have been stung by hooks and released and many released into a frying pan. Every weekend there is approximately 30,000 anglers out there and so far most are catching fish. What an incredible fishery! Soon, there is likely to be more lookers than biters and this can get a little frustrating for some. The good news is it hasn't happened yet. Fish seem to be a little more reluctant to bite at noon but James Gignac and I manage to ice about 10 during the off hours. Most seemed like reaction bite and I lost a monster ling at the hole. As soon as I seen the spots I was thinking of poor mans lobster for dinner. As the bite gets tougher its time to play the bottom more as much of the food supply like goby have been exhausted. Bad Boys, Meegs, and drop shots with small rubber baits should be the rule for the dead periods. Many fish will just investigate but some will make mistakes. Fish will mouth baits without any sign of a bite so keep the baits moving up slowly so there is some pressure to stop them by fish. Meanwhile don't fall asleep in the huts or miss the soft bites watching your phone. It's a great time for an underwater camera to watch when fish put baits in their mouths! Be safe and have fun. Fenwick Fishing Clam Outdoors Aqua-Vu Garmin Marine #febblahstocome