It's hard to believe Christmas is behind us and we still do not have safe ice on many lakes. Although we do have a few spots with walkable ice, this does not mean you should try to drive a minivan out there. Yes, that actually happened last weekend on North Long.
After checking two smaller lakes north of Brainerd and finding only a little over an inch of ice we were getting a little disappointed. Finally North Long was next on our hit list, and sure enough there were a few fishermen out there. There were a few ATVs and snowmobiles driving around so we figured it was the place to be. And even out there we found a few spots with only 2.5 inches of ice and there was still a spot with open water. We ended up only getting a few fish but it was nice to get out.
So even though I have had plenty of time to get ready for ice fishing I did something the other night that I had never done before. I am usually pretty prepared for anything, checking my equipment over and over. After stopping at S & W and getting bait, then dragging my portable all the way across the lake, then drilling holes, I noticed something. Not one fishing rod in my fish house, not even a chunk of line to use. Talk about devastating-all I could do was sit there and watch fish swim by on my locator. Luckily I had a friend coming out to fish, but it was the longest hour of my life. Hopefully the new year will bring us some cold weather and more ice, until then be safe out there.
