Ice observation thread???

[FASTEDDIE29]

Not sure if many will partake but thought it would be nice to start an ice quality thread. Let’s keep everyone safe! I fished the big pond all weekend and by the end of the day Sunday there were some very soft edges and rather large open water patches near homeowners docks, etc, etc!!! The ice was consistent all around the lake at 6-9 inches. We’re definitely taking a big hit today! It sucks but the show must go on regardless. On that note feel free to chime in! I’m headed to Home Depot to get a new plank after work, LOL!!!:D

Saturday looks like a beautiful day to be on the ice granted it doesn’t all
disappear!!!:cool:

[icebadger]

good point eddie the ice is going to "take a hit" in the next couple of days.planking is a good idea but you have to be able to "read the ice". holes made by fishermen and natural cracks can eat away and cause weak spots. i have seen holes become like toilet bowl drains they get very wide in a matter of just one day you add the power of the yellow devil in the sky(the sun) and you have the making of dangerous ice conditions . also be aware of honeycomb ice that stuff is dangerous as well. please remember to ware a pfd a have a set of picks with you at all times. carry a spud bar as well to test any ice that you are not sure of. it hopefully will get cold again, let's be safe out there we all have loved ones that want to see us return safely at days end.

[akoop]

Budd Lake - Sunday (01/21/18)
8" - 9" of good ice

[bunker dunker]

bubblers are a reel problem.the can really make short work of weak ice.

[Adrenalinerush]

Doubt after today there will be safe edges anywhere. Generally, the smaller and shallower the body of water the quicker the edges go. Be safe in general but especially on the smaller, shallow impoundments.

[Andrushkin33]

So far the ice been holding down quiet nicely in my drink...


On the other note, should be still ice fishing well into future ... don't go alone, make sure you have everything you need and you will be ice fishing come weekend with no issues.

Andre

[Cape Cod]

Really good idea. Better to be safe! Hopefully some upcoming nighttime temps will harden some spots.

[Jigman13]

Good idea with This thread Eddie. Might save someone's life!

I'll look to check some local spots and report back if I can get away from work on an extended lunch break.

[catfishonthelake]

Was out on Little Swartz on Sunday. There was a solid 7- of black ice underneath the little bit of snow, but was getting sloppy by the end of the day. I was all the way on the other side of the lake and was one of the last people off. On the long walk back there was lots of water coming up through existing holes and the lake as a whole didn't look so hot. I can't imagine the heavy rain and near 60-degree temps today didn't put a hurtin' on a lot of stuff. Planks at best this weekend, life preservers at worst. Be safe guys.

[phil]

This blows. My son actually wanted to go out again this weekend. Not doing it if i have to worry about a pfd and planks. Hows the ice in maine lol

[saxmatt]

I started with 6-8" of black ice with snow yesterday and be the end of the day there was 1/2" of water on the ice and it was starting to honeycomb. The ice will be sketchy after today, especially around the edges. The next 2 days should firm up the ice but I'd bring a plank and wear ice picks around your neck this weekend.

[FASTEDDIE29]

I really appreciate all that chimed in so far. Let’s keep people safe! Ice fishing is great especially when enjoyed with friends while grilling some good eats! Catching the target species are always an added bonus of course. Be safe this weekend if your headed out! Also, if your not comfortable venturing out, just don’t do it! Especially if your alone! Anything can happen at any given time on the water and hardwater! TIGHT LINEZ and FLAGS FOR ALL!!!

P.S. Look for another cold blast to come in early February! We may have the Ice Gods on our side to end the season!!!:D

[Punkinhead]

I'm one of those guys that gets on the ice in the dark for that early morning bite. Decided to wait for the sun to come up so I could better see the ice. So now I'm just killing time writing this reply. Be safe out there.

[Rich196]

To ALL you ice fishermen.... BE SAFE OUT THERE. There is NO fish worth not returning home to your family for. If it's not safe, don't go. There will be plenty more ice in the month to come.

[Chrisper4694]

here's the problem...you're going to have all black ice again when it refreezes and any open water along the edges, old holes, etc is going to probably at least skim over by saturday again. it's going to be very hard to tell the difference in a lot of spots between 4" ice that didn't fully melt and 1" ice that reformed

[Chrisper4694]

just heard they let more water out of monksville...def watch the ice there with that

[fishingbuddies]

Anyone have any ice reports?
Will the weekend be safe in your opinions?
:confused::confused::confused:

[AndrewT]

Is there any open water anywhere besides RVR?

[Cape Cod]

Had a solid 5” by Allamuchy today. Edges were pretty solid and ice was not making any noise either. Only jigged for about 1 1/2 hours. Action was slooowww.

[NJSquatch]

Saw guys on in Woodport. Not sure how they got on since the edges by my house are trashed. The wind put a real hurting on them.

I am going to assume it is going to be hit or miss. Western shorelines on the bigger lakes are likely not safe.

[Skunk City]

Had between 6"-8" on a small Sussex County lake today. Edges were good, no issues getting on and off.

[Chrisper4694]

fished saturday north NJ, the open water was getting much wider but the 7" ice we were fishing was fine. about 3/4" got honeycombed by 3pm. edges were fine still where we got on and off but other edges were open water.

[Andrushkin33]

Budd Lake this weekend.

Edges were solid. Ice from 5 to 7 inches. Singing all weekend.

Spring by the castle area had open water.

Slow fishing but a chunky Larry was landed.

Andre

[FASTEDDIE29]

Saturday on a NNJ Walleye Lake! Nobody catches Walleye through the ice on this lake. Ice ranged from 7-11 inches with very little meltage at the end of the day. Shoreline was a tad soft but nobody went through. Cold weathers coming back fair weather anglers. Looks like your going to be screwed til March easily. Bwahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!:D

[Cape Cod]

Looks like we are getting a nice little freeze coming up. Hope to get onto that NNJ lake your talking about. Tip-ups dedicated to the elusive eyeball and some jigging to pass the time.
Did see 1 guy out on Budd today (between launch and rt46). However I did not stop and do not know what the ice conditions are there.
Good luck to all and stay safe. 👍

[phil]

im off Thursday & fully expecting a heat wave to hit our area soon

[FASTEDDIE29]

im off Thursday & fully expecting a heat wave to hit our area soon

Not really! Thursday looks warm! After that, temps plummet and ice fishing continues........:D

[phil]

Hopatcong was nice today. 5-6" near dows. Looks like cold for a few more weeks.

[akoop]

Anyone know how the ice at Budd Lake is looking?

[saxmatt]

Anyone know how the ice at Budd Lake is looking?

It looks like a giant piece of Swiss cheese covered with Russians.

[Jigman13]

It looks like a giant piece of Swiss cheese covered with Russians.

Hahaha!

[acaravaglia]

Ha! @ Russian covered Swiss. Where's 2018 m&gs.

[FASTEDDIE29]

Fished the north end of the big pond today. 6-8 inches of ice all around. Lots of open water near docks! Bite was ok but only when it came to jumbo Perch and Bullhead Cats. This ice isn’t leaving anytime soon! Just be careful around the bubblers and land owners docks!!! Get em MANIACS!!!:D

[akoop]

I was ice fishing on Budd Lake on Saturday. Shocked to see about 1/2 the lake was open water. Fished between the beach and the theater and had a good 6" of ice. Slow day only 2 flags. NJ fish and game was out. Saw them ticket a guy for too many tip ups and a short pike.

[Skunk City]

Fished a NNJ Salmonid-stocked lake and had 6"-8" everywhere we drilled, solid shorelines. Had my license, tip-ups, and fish checked as I walked off the lake by a CO. When I suggested he check out Budd and Hopatcong to break up the Poachers Anonymous meetings, he said that he had been to both lakes already and observed illegal activities on both.

[baetis]

Fished Waywayanda for the first time on Sunday. A lot snow squalls. Solid 6-7" of ice. Tough day. 4 flags total and only two pickerel landed. It seemed like a lot of people gave up early.

[FishOnKV]

Was on 6-8" on Hopatcong in the Landing area yesterday. Got checked by a C.O. while getting off the ice. Good to see them out there

[NJSquatch]

Fished a NNJ Salmonid-stocked lake and had 6"-8" everywhere we drilled, solid shorelines. Had my license, tip-ups, and fish checked as I walked off the lake by a CO. When I suggested he check out Budd and Hopatcong to break up the Poachers Anonymous meetings, he said that he had been to both lakes already and observed illegal activities on both.

Good to hear they are out. Hopatcong is a blood bath

I tape a return address label on my tipups rather than writing on them.

[akoop]

Anyone know how the ice on Budd Lake is holding up?

[Cape Cod]

Any ice observations in NNJ for tomorrow? Thanks

[Andrushkin33]

Ice lookin good in my freezer.

On another note Budd Lake should be good to go.

People on Hopatcong right now with ice being 6+ reported.

Andre

[AndyS]

2 inches of rain coming and 50* temps, please be careful !!

[akoop]

2 inches of rain coming and 50* temps, please be careful !!

Not a good combination for ice fishing, great for the rivers!

[logs22]

Not a good combination for ice fishing, great for the rivers!

I came to the same conclusion and fished the N Branch for about 2 hours early afternoon sat. Steady drizzle throughout which got heavy to the point where I relocated to the best spot to fish on a rainy day...under a bridge. Hooked and lost one trout. Got soaked. Still the best two hours of my day!

[shrimpman steve]

Sorry I’m not there to check monksville for you guys. But I am sitting out in my backyard with a little fire going and it’s 70*:p

[FASTEDDIE29]

Well, myself and a few buddies were out on the big pond yesterday. Fishing was slow all over but the ice was 8-9 inches when I left with a little bit of water on top. Does the ice recover after rain like this? Nope! Not this time of year. Will we have some ice left when the storms done? Yes of course! The edges will be bad and the ice will get weak. It may be over in my opinion but I won’t know anything til next weekend. If you guys get out during the week please post your observations here. We gotta keep people safe! Winter swimming sucks, LOL!!! :D

[Chrisper4694]

Well, myself and a few buddies were out on the big pond yesterday. Fishing was slow all over but the ice was 8-9 inches when I left with a little bit of water on top. Does the ice recover after rain like this? Nope! Not this time of year. Will we have some ice left when the storms done? Yes of course! The edges will be bad and the ice will get weak. It may be over in my opinion but I won’t know anything til next weekend. If you guys get out during the week please post your observations here. We gotta keep people safe! Winter swimming sucks, LOL!!! :D

yeah that's my thoughts pretty much...february onward isn't great for making ice...it can hold ice, but who knows what will be left after all this warmth, rain, AND wind. We had 8inches too, but it was pretty soft already mostly...not looking good for ice fishing and the worst part is the ice will still be there so you won't be able to fish most spots with a boat either!

another teabagging from good ol' mother nature, thanks!

[Jigman13]

Extended forecast doesn't look good. More rain and near 60 degree temps! Time to tend to the rods and reels!

[FASTEDDIE29]

Another short season thanks to some rain and above average temps!!! It was fun while it lasted!!!

GONE BOATING!!! FASTEDDIE OUT!!!!!:D