GREAT OUTDOORS: Ice fishing on lake is for real now

After debating whether to encourage people to go ice fishing last weekend, I decided to wait another week to endorse the idea. A thaw, icebreaker activity and strong winds resulted — until recently — in melting and shifting ice that created open water in Lake Erie's South Passage. However, greatly improved conditions now prevail and it is much safer for people to enjoy some of the best ice cover seen in years on the lake and elsewhere. More than a week of frigid temperatures that followed a significant snowfall created conditions that are now supporting widespread ice fishing. At the time of this writing, the most reliable ice field, as usual, is between the islands, but numerous snowmobilers have also successfully made trips over from Catawba and Marblehead to Put-in-Bay. Unfortunately, there has been an active, wide crack off the shoreline to the west of Port Clinton that is restricting travel to the reef area for all recreational vehicles except airboats. In fact, multiple ATVs have broken through thin ice when anglers drove over new ice that was liquid the previous day. Fear not that you are missing your chance to fill your freezer with succulent, firm walleye fillets, as fishing has predominantly been slow. Many "skunks" have been reported despite marks being seen on the depth finders of most anglers. The best catches that I have heard about were taken by anglers using the latest technology — Forward Facing Sonar that allows better pinpointing of fish down below. However, some of my reliable sources have successfully landed three or four walleyes with additional fish also being lost on the way up to the hole, sometimes within sight. One friend of mine bagged three walleyes with the biggest weighing in at 5½ pounds last Sunday near Green Island and the other pair each measuring around 17 inches. There have not been any large catches of yellow perch mentioned yet, but some white bass have been caught, with one trophy specimen that measured more than 19 inches taken near Rattlesnake Island. Fishing success rates will undoubtedly change before long, as tremendous numbers of walleye and perch populate the Western Basin with even more to come as they stage in this end of the lake ahead of their spring spawning season. Charter captains meet in March Tory Gabriel, Ohio State University's Sea Grant Program Extension Leader & Fisheries Educator, announced that registration has begun for the 45th Annual Charter Captains Conference, scheduled for March 7 at Bowling Green State University's Firelands Campus in Huron. The conference is open to all interested anglers and boaters who want to learn the latest information and news about fishing and navigating in Lake Erie. For a $25 registration fee, attendees can get updates about the lake's sportfish populations, fisheries research, U.S. Coast Guard rule changes and ODNR Division of Wildlife and Watercraft law enforcement and incident summaries. Speakers include Matthew Leibengood, Lake Erie Wildlife Law Enforcement Supervisor, and Capt. Walt Hodgkiss of Lake Erie's Parks and Watercraft. "On The Water Marine Insurance" tips will be offered by Eric Fisher. For the recreational fishing crowd, there will be ODNR/Division of Wildlife summaries of the "Status of Lake Erie Fisheries & 2026 Fishing Outlook" by Eric Weimer, Supervisor, Sandusky Fisheries Research Station; "Central Basin Walleye Spawning" by Andrew Gable, Fisheries Biologist, Fairport Fisheries Research Station; and "Ohio Commercial Yellow Perch Fishing: What you need to know" by Travis Hartman, Lake Erie Fisheries Program Administrator. Lunch and refreshments are provided. To register, go to https://Go.osu.edu/occc by February 25.