Dicey ice? Not for walleye anglers on Saginaw Bay
Written by Grand Rapids Press   
Tuesday, 03 February 2009 22:23
It's a little unnerving to look across the vast expanse of ice and see pepper specks of life three or four miles offshore, the huddle of ice fishermen on a cold winter day.

It's even more unsettling to saddle up an ATV or snowmobile and think you are about to become one of those guys after a 20-minute ride across Saginaw Bay.

The whole way out there, you can't help think: You've done a lot smarter things in your lifetime.

But the allure of catching the main ingredient in a walleye dinner is as powerful as it is popular. At least 200 vehicles were parked at one of many access points along the bay last week. All of them had trailers toting snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles.

There is no discernible structure on Saginaw Bay. There are no major drop-offs, weed beds or sunken islands. The bay's bottom is as featureless as a saucer, complete with a massive underwater dimple known as "the black hole."

Dave Vance, of Clare, consulted his GPS and figured we were on the southwest tip of the black hole. Whatever the case, we set camp above 22 feet of water, 100 yards from the nearest fisherman.

John Williams, of Shepherd, suffered the first casualty of the trip when he neglected to secure his ice fishing rods.

They bounced out of the plastic sled we were hauling, which gave the fishermen behind us a lucky bonus.

As the sun began its slide to the horizon, and the wind lost its strength, I heard snippets of conversation from the fishermen in the area. Some of them were talking amongst themselves. Others were chit-chatting on their two-way radios.

"I've only had one fish in the hole."

"How deep you in?"

"What color spoon did you catch it on?"

Gradually, the conversations and the whine of power augers and snowmobiles subsided. It seemed there were at least a thousand anglers, including me and Vance, who were lost in walleye fishing's bewitching hour: twilight.

Like magic, my fish finder came to life. The little blip from my lure was courted by another bigger blip from a fish. The fish looked over the entree I was offering, said "no thanks" and slowly drifted away.

"That scenario has been a recurring theme this year," said Ernie Plant, a manager at Frank's Sporting Goods in Linwood. "We've heard a lot of complaints from people who say that the fish will show up on the screen but thumb their noses at the bait. If you can figure out what the fish want, the action can be excellent."

"This year, we have great ice," Plant said. "We've had a lot of cold weather, and there's hardly any snow on top. It's very easy for snow machines and four-wheelers to get around out there."

Still, Plant recommended caution when traveling to and from the walleye grounds. He suggested staying on the trails, traveling in pairs, keeping a hand-held GPS nearby and having other safety equipment accessible.

It's smart to have flares, flashlights, spare batteries and cell phones on board in case an emergency situation develops.

Vance used his propane lantern to keep tabs on his two-rod setup, but it could have done double duty as a hand-warmer or space heater. Vance said it is too hard to concentrate jigging two rods at once, so he barely touches one that he calls a "dead stick," just a quarter-ounce plain jig head with a live minnow. He changes baits on the other rod until he figures out what the fish want.

That strategy proved to be the difference between Vance's four walleyes flopping on the ice and my one. All five fish were 18 to 22 inches, perfect eating size. While I stuck with a Little Cleo for most of the night, Vance changed lures after two fish rejected his presentation.

What proved hot?

"Tonight it was a do-jigger," Vance said, "But on any given night, you never know. A few years ago, all they wanted was a glow-in-the-dark Little Cleo. Then it was a white Swedish Pimple. You could say the walleyes in Saginaw Bay are in cahoots with the lure manufactures because I keep buying the hottest lure to come down the pike."
< Prev   Next >
 
You need to login or register to post comments.
Discuss...