1-19-13 Sat

1-19-2013 Sat 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Weather:
W 15, 46 ˚, cloudy, 29.67 rising
Water:
639.48 steady, 14.6 kcfs, very clear
Location:
Pool 7, Third Lake - Trempealeau
Caught:
Nothing
Partners:
Josh B. and his wife and friends

Comments

It was a surprise ice fishing birthday party for Josh Bungartz. His wife had called me a couple weeks earlier and wanted some help finding a spot to have a surprise ice fishing party for Josh. She did not want to have to drive a vehicle onto the ice and she wanted to find a spot where they could put out some tip ups.
I knew the lake was pretty much off limits, because this time of year about the only place you are going to have any luck on tip ups is either out by the runway lights or to the west of Red Oak Island. Either way, without having the ability to drive out, the walk would be over a mile and would not work out for a birthday party.
The only place I could think of was Trempealeau’s Third Lake. I have never ice fished this lake before, but I knew it was a popular spot and I also knew Josh had ice fished it and had good luck with tip ups here.
The ice fishing really sucked, I only saw one thirty one inch pike caught. I guess some bluegills were caught right away in the morning and lots were seen on the camera, but almost everyone had tip ups out and was just socializing, so the pan fishing was pretty much ignored.

Observations:

The morning started out sunny and warm, but in a very short amount of time the wind picked up and the temperatures started to plummet. The ice thickness was around the twelve inch range. The water was very clear with abundant plant life below.