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The temperatures have managed to get above the freezing
point for the last couple of days. This means that it
is a necessity that all of the ponds that I drive by
on the way to work get checked for open water. I tend
to drive up the old US Highway instead of on the
Interstate Highway. This way I can pull over to the
side and really look at some of the ponds. That is not
appreciated on the Interstate.
A few of the ponds were showing what looked like a little
open water along the north shoreline. It was hard to tell
if it was open water or just a thin sheet of ice over it.
I did not hike out to see as my wife does not like it when
I get mud all over my dress shoes.
So at noon I headed out to the lake. Time to see if there
was a place to get a line into the water.
As I was headed down the hill to the parking lot I could
see about two dozen geese out past the end of the jetty.
That means that they were in open water. I did decide to
look at the water before I went back to get a fly rod.
What I found was that there was open water. The only
problem was the thin sheet of ice that went out about
six feet offshore. The place that I was at was on the
south shoreline of the lake. I went over to the next
jetty and looked at it. There was a little open water,
but the ice was breaking up some. The wind would move
this around some so it was hard to tell how much space
there really was.
Time to head farther up the lake, to where the bait-house
and swimming beach are. The two jetties there are on the
north shore and jut out into the lake facing south. I
wondered if there would be more open water there.
As I drove by the beach there were between 80 and 100 geese
in the water there and on the shore. It had about five feet
of open water along the whole shoreline. This looked to be
more promising.
I drove on up the road and turned into the parking lot near
the jetty. I hiked out to the end of the jetty to get a
good look. There was about five feet of open water off the
end of the jetty. There was another 20 to 25 feet of thin
ice out beyond that. Thin enough that the waves that moved
under it would make it move.
With a couple more days with temperatures above freezing
this water should open up. I will try again on Thursday,
March 8, 2007 to see if I can get a line in the water.
I try not to fish when those thin sheets of ice are
around, especially near the shore. I damaged two fly
lines when dragging the lines over the edge of the ice.
It is more damaging that a person would think. This might
also be because the lines I use are not the most expensive
in the world.
Hopefully I will get a line wet soon. I hope you can
also, especially those of you in the "frozen north" like I am. ~ Rick
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