Southeast Wisconsin Fishing Report 1/22/2013

Bring on the cold!  Well..for a little while.  With the cold weather following the warm up, the ice conditions will be really solid for the remainder of the year.  7-8” of ice seems to be the average on Waukesha and Washington County Lakes.  Larger lakes like Oconomowoc, Pine, the South end of Nagawicka, North end of Nemahbin, and the Narrows on Big Cedar all deserve respect when traveling out for the first time.  Take your safety equipment (lifejacket, spud bar, ice picks, rope, etc.) in order to truly enjoy your experience.

Waukesha County
Big Muskego:  This continues to be one of the best lakes in the county for chasing tip-up flags.  Although the number of large northern pike caught on tip-ups through the years seems to be decreasing somewhat which could be from the hot summers we’ve been having, the action stays pretty consistent for both the Pike and the Bass.  Having said that fish in the 31-33” range aren’t uncommon in a given week.  Large medium shiners work best.  The ice is stable, again, after the cold weather at an average of 6”.  There was a weak spot out in front of Hunter’s Nest access point so be careful in this area yet. The panfishing on this lake is almost none existent for those who jig.  Sure, you’ll get an occasional aggressive perch on a tip-up but the flasher will indicate that there aren’t fish easily found despite drilling many holes.  The Milwaukee Casting club will be hosting their annual Jamboree out on the lake January 26th.

Little Muskego:  Still a slight open area in the middle of this lake but 5-7” everywhere else.  There are some cracks in the ice as well so be mindful of that.  If you’re looking for panfish this year, I’d go somewhere else at this time.  Most success comes on the walleyes and bass.  A bass club will be holding their annual jamboree on January 26th out here as well.

Oconomowoc:  Caution on this lake from the access point on the northeast end of the lake is still heavily advised.  Experienced anglers and those who live on the lake are enjoying some wonderful panfish action right now on the north end of the lake.  You can be extremely selective if you plan on keeping fish for a meal and still enjoy catching some nice sized fish.

Pewaukee:  Northern Pike action seems to be popping for guys venturing to fish the Northeast end of the lake amongst the weeds.  Fish are averaging 27” in this area.  Action for panfish in front of the Waterfront has slowed considerably during the day.  Guys going out from the SandBar are having better success.  Caution is still advised on the West End of he lake especially around the island.  However, ATV’s are all over the east end of the lake.

School Section Lake:  Continues to be a great action lake for the kids.  Where else can you go for a short walk off the landing and have flags flying right after setting up.  Although most of the Pike are smaller snakes, a few largemouth are fun to fight, photograph and release.  Gills needs some sorting if you’re going to target them with small jigs (ratfinkees and ratso’s are doing well tipped with plastics--color doesn’t seem to matter).

Lac La Belle:  Despite the constant angling pressure this gem of a Waukesha County Lake is producing fish in the crowd.  A 35” Northern Pike weighing in a 9#’s was caught by a group that also boasted a few nice sized bluegills and even a few small walleye.  Guys monitoring flags from their cars in the evening are getting a few walleyes as well in the cold weather.  Guys accessing the lake further to the West are also jigging up some consistent white bass for fun while waiting for Pike flags.  Definitely worth it as a few mid-30” Pike have been iced on tip-ups and large shiners.

Fowler Lake:  The annual Wingers Jamboree didn’t have as many anglers out as in year’s past, BUT a nice 25” walleye was brought to the weigh-in station.  Apart from that a couple bass but no one set the world on fire jigging or with their tip-ups.  Crappies are being caught but it seems like once you’ve caught one, the sooner you move to the next hole the better as they become skittish very quickly.  Downsizing your jigs is certainly recommended, however guys with cameras are even reporting all panfish they are seeing are just in a negative mood.  The perch are your best bet for landing fish out here.  They’re relating very tight to the bottom and getting there attention isn’t hard but having a downsized jig size and spikes vs. wax worms will help you land these lookers.

Nemahbin Lake:  7” of ice on the southern end of Nemahbin.  Guys placing tip-ups on the drops are seeing flags fly with some decent Northern (27-29” class) and even a few largemouth bass are being caught and released.  The upper part of the lake is still unsafe.  Guys are beginning to venture onto the north end but 3” of ice is most common so be careful.  Not really worth it to go jigging up a few smaller bluegills in my opinion.

Nagawicka Lake:  The south end of the lake has questionable ice conditions.  DO NOT try to access the lake from the boat launch area at this time--stick to using the beach.  Don’t walk straight out very far though--head south once you’re on the lake and make your way to the weed drops (where the summer buoys are located typically).  You’ll find better Pike action here but the size isn’t up into the upper 20‘s at all.  Mostly snakes.  The Kettle should be starting to heat up as crappies will begin to suspend over the basin waiting to eat some mid-winter hatching invertebrates.  Bring your Flasher to locate fish and your spring bobbers to land them!  A great tip is investing in #14-#16 tungsten jigs while jigging.  Tipping them with wigglers will also get your spring bobber moving a bit more frequently.

Moose Lake:  Tip-up action has picked up out here and several mid-20” Pike are being caught each day along with an occasional Largemouth Bass.  Bluegill are most often on the small side despite fishing shallow or deep.  Guys jigging panfish are reported a few crappie now and then, but generally on the small side as well.  Using a tip-down will offer more success especially if you use a 4-6# fluorocarbon leader and #12-14 size treble hook joining up with your fatheads or small shiners.

Beaver Lake:  Early ice saw Beaver putting out some nice sized panfish, however that bite has pretty much vanished.  Guys sitting out most of the day are reporting spotty action while jigging perch and bluegills.  Tip-Ups have been more like Stay-Downs this year as well.  Guys jigging after dark for crappies are being tight lipped but there seems to be an increasing number of them.  HINT--Buy Wigglers :)

Lake Keesus:  Anglers focusing on the night bite for walleyes are getting some action on tip-ups.  1 angler caught and released a nice 24 1/2”/6lb female after a nice photo.  Focus your walleye efforts on inside turns right now as they’ve been moving up and down during feeding windows for an easy meal.  Northern Pike action remains pretty consistent during the day compared to the action on many Waukesha and Washington County lakes.  Fishing in the bays and up by Camp Whitcomb seem to be the areas to focus on right now.

Washington County
Pike Lake:   8” of ice on most of the lake.  Guys fishing near Eagle Point on the Southeast side of the lake out from the park have been getting into some decent perch while jigging for walleyes using spoons tipped with a minnow head.  A few perch in the 9-10” range have been caught each night.  If you are looking for consistent perch action, set some finesse tip-ups (#12 hooks tipped with fatheads and 8lb fluorocarbon leaders in about 4-5’ of water adjacent to the larger weedbeds.  Walleyes are still coming to those anglers willing to stick it out after dark.  A few Pike on tip-ups have been reported but size has been lacking this year.

Big Cedar Lake:  Latest Ice conditions are reporting 8-10” of ice on the north end of the lake.  There is a bit of a heave at the base of the west launch site but it’s manageable and safe.  The south west part of the lake has about 8-9”.  Avoiding the Narrows Area at all costs is recommended even with the sub-zero temperatures.  The wind just didn’t allow for quality ice formation there. Now for the action, although it’s hard to call it that as things have been S-L-O-W.  A few perch anglers are reporting fish but they’re much smaller than in year’s past.  Jigging is producing fish in the 6-7” range being the most common.  Northern anglers are having a bit better luck using the biggest shiners they can find or smelt on the end of their tip-ups.  Most fish are 25-27” on average but a few larger fish 30+ have been reported.  A few walleye have been caught on tip-ups by anglers targeting smaller weed beds on the north end with tip-ups and a few who are brave enough to jig on the south end of the lake.

A great ice fishing jamboree will be held February 23rd by the Thursday Night Fishing Club from 6am-2pm out of Wegners, Cedar Lake Inn.  There will be payouts for fish and a raffle.  Every kid 15yrs old and younger in attendance will receive a free tip-up!  E-mail: fishinforwarriors@gmail.com for more info.

Chad Leton's blog is an extension of his youth guide service HookedUp101 Fishing Academy which serves Southeastern and Central Wisconsin.