Mother Nature hasn’t done any favours this year for you ice fishing fanatics who like to drop a line in Lake Simcoe to search for whitefish or lake trout.
Same goes for the lake’s ice hut operators.
Since lake trout and whitefish became fair game for anglers Jan. 1, little if any hard water action on this province’s sixth-largest inland body of water has taken place.
That’s primarily because outdoor temperatures, which have gone up and down like a toilet seat, have prevented Lake Simcoe from freezing over.
“There’s a lot of ice, but a lot of open stuff too,” said Bob Avery, a spokesperson from Bonnie Boats in Jackson’s Point. “There’s a lot of ducks still swimming out there.”
For ice hut operators to put their shanties out, it will take a good week of consistent temperatures at or below freezing to solidify open areas, Mr. Avery said.
At best, he predicts it might not be until February before they can begin renting huts.
“January is definitely out of the question,” he said.
While fishing for lake trout and whitefish are put on hold for now, anglers can still get in some good yellow perch action in shallow-water areas, including Cook’s Bay, Virginia Beach and Beaverton.
There’s at least 10 inches of ice in these relatively sheltered areas, he said.
Since these areas solidified in early December, the action was excellent, said veteran Lake Simcoe ice fishing fanatic Wil Wegman.
As of late, he said the action overall has “dropped from excellent to very good”.
“There’s still lots of perch being caught,” he said.
But of the fish being caught, a good number are small in size, he said.
Patient anglers will catch a good supply of eating-sized fish measuring from nine to 11 inches, he said.
To catch these delectable delights, simple live minnow rigs can be employed.
However, as an alternative and a challenge, Mr. Wegman suggests a variety of artificial baits can be equally effective including:
• Small but heavy finesse jigs such as Mormyshkas tipped with real maggots or Berkley Gulp maggots;
• Jigging Shad Raps, Swedish Pimple and transparent bead combinations;
• Nils Master, Meegs, HT Alien jigs tipped with Berkley micro power craws and;
• Badd Boyz tipped with a Berkley micro bait.
Be sure to have a variety of colour combinations handy.
Because the action can be consistent when fish are located, perch fishing is popular. The beginner or once-a-year angler can get in on the fun by wetting a line in comfort in propane-heated huts rented by commercial ice hut operators.
For a listing of operators on Simcoe, you can log on to: www.fishontario.com/icefish.shtml
For the angling fanatic with their own portable hut or the capacity to move about the lake in search of fish, check with local tackle stores to see where the action is taking place. Failing that, you can log on to an angling website: www.fishonlineca.com to get the latest updates on the hard water action.
Anglers should check with the 2005-06 Ministry of Natural Resources Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary or website at: www.mnr.gov.on.ca/MNR/pubs/pubmenu.html#fish for licence requirements, catch and possession limits and baitfish restrictions.
If you’re planning on placing a hut on the southeast portion of Lake Simcoe, you must be registered by the Ministry’s Aurora District office (905-713-7400). Registration is free. It helps prevent anglers from abandoning their huts.
Tent-style huts made of cloth or synthetic material less than two square metres in area when erected do not need to be registered.
All huts must also be removed from Simcoe by March 15, the same day lake trout, whitefish and walleye season closes on the lake.
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