12-11-2011

12-11-2011 Sun
1:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Weather: SW15, sunny, 40˚, two inches of snow cover, six inches of ice
Location: Trempealeau bike trail and Mississippi R. Round Lake
Bagged/caught: nothing/ Lots of small gills, kept 6
Partners: Roxy

Comments

I was taking Roxy out for her maiden hunt this year. I already decided that how she did hunting today would dictate how much rabbit hunting I would do this winter. The conditions were ideal: sunny, 40 degrees and two inches of snow. Everything was perfect except someone had beaten me to the spot. We hunted it anyway and we did run into three generations of hunters (grandpa, son and grandson). I was rather bummed, this is a very good spot and I had high hopes Roxy would start out strong.
Unfortunately she was pretty much a bust. She has some interest in rabbits, but the drive and search is just not there. I do not know how much more I will hunt her this year; I just do not think she will ever be a rabbit dog!
After the disappointing rabbit hunting session, it was time for a little first ice, fishing. My first stop was Mud Lake. I walked out without my gear, just to kind of scope the area out. There was one other fisherman and his son there. He told me they had caught a couple of perch and that was the extent of their success.
I by-passed Mud Lake and went to Round Lake. There was a fairly large group of fishermen here, so of course I assumed some fish were being caught. I set out two tip-ups and fished for pan fish with my other line. The ice thickness was more than I had anticipated and after chopping holes through six inches of ice I was tired.
The bite was not fast and furious, but I would have small schools of fish come through on a regular basis. I never did get a flag on any of the tip-ups.

Observations:

The water level on the Mississippi is very low this winter; I do not expect Mud Lake to be as good as last year on account of this low water. The rabbit population appears to be quite healthy.