Summer in February?

[Prairieschooner]

Amazingly they are forecasting 70's and even 80's around here for Friday and Saturday. I may try to get out for the first time !

[lastchance]

Ha, where I live in PA we just a foot of snow with temps in the 20s. Wherever you're at go fishing!

[Rick Z]

My wife had a Dr. appointment today. Saw several ponds with some open water in the middle. Highs in the 50 the next few days with a lot of wind tomorrow.
Pretty sure Sat of Sunday afternoon the line will hit the water.

Rick

[mylobass]

We haven't even hit 50 for a low yet this winter! So hot the bass didn't know to spawn, worse no tilapia kill off so now they will have a banner year of over population.

[Linecaster]

Don't you like Tilapia? Here in North Texas we have hardly had a winter. Today high eighties.

[Prairieschooner]

Made it out yesterday; took my 7wt for no other reason than that it doesn't get fished much and it seemed to be saying, "Take me! Take me!" There's something about standing by the water and setting up a fly rod for the first time each season. Fly? When in doubt, a black wooly booger. No takes on that, so now what? Looked in the bottom of the bag and there was a foam hopper with a pheasant tail dropper left over from last year. Yeah, it's the wrong time of year for hoppers, but maybe. Walked around to a spot where the bass like to hide among some submerged rocks, and sure enough; a few bumps and dunks, a couple of misses, and then a hook up. I could barely feel him on that big ol' 7; he was about 7-8 inches by the spread-of-the-hand measuring system. Missed a couple more, then decided to hit another spot where I've had some good luck on cats, and thought they might be out scavenging. Tied the wooly booger back on, but they weren't.

But hey; mid-February, out fishing in a t-shirt, didn't get skunked...can't complain!

[cycler68]

The DNR says the ice is getting too thin and fragile for ice fishing up here in northern Iowa where I'm at. A small local lake I've been fishing for stocker trout hasn't had ice much thicker than 8-10 inches all winter. We are looking at a record breaking stretch of 8 days of highs above 60 in the month of February. Good bye ice fishing, hello open water fishing. Time to tie some more flies.

[FishnDave]

Cycler68,
Here in Central Iowa, the ice on all the local ponds is gone. On February 10, there were still some guys icefishing them. A week later on February 17, they 100% open! Crazy warm weather for mid-February! Its very unusual, but I can't say I don't enjoy it.
So, I took Friday off and tried out a new fly rod/reel.

Anyway, I fished 6 ponds on Friday. Caught 1 Crappie at the first one, 1 Bluegill at the second one, skunked at the 3rd, 6 Crappies at the 4th, Skunked at the 5th, and 4 Bluegills, 1 Crappie and 1 Bass at the 6th. Crazy day, slow fishing, but beautiful weather for it.




Lots of Muskrats out and about too:


Then I went fishing Sunday late-afternoon. Again, very nice weather. I was hoping to get a Pumpkinseed Sunfish, and was successful.

[Linecaster]

Very nice Pumpkin seed sunfish. Here in North Texas we have had a record 12 days of upper 80's. Trees and grass starting to green, early spring?

[bowfin47]

Dave,

Can ya' tell s a bit more about that little chartreuse jig/fly..

Bowfin47