Spring?

[CrappieJohn]

For the last fewweeks I've been watching eagles in the trees along the river behind the house and mourning doves at the feeders in the yard. A week or so ago we even had a couple of vagrant robins there with the doves. It's the third year we have had doves and robins all winter. So how are we to tell when spring is around the corner? I guess we all have our little pointers that we look for. Mine is the tackle boxes and visits to the stores to look at the all of the new and improved things that somehow I can live without.

Maybe it is just me, but I think retailers are dragging their feet this year. What's with all this ice tackle still up? I'd have packed that away the day after New Years and put out the open water stuff ....just like they get toys out for Christmas right after Labor Day now. I mean hey....Lets push this spring stuff. I want open water!

I have'nt really seen too much out there in the line of new plastics. Stanley has a line of 1.5 and 2 inch crappie sized WedgeTail minnow plastics that is fairly new to the market place. And Culprit came out with a couple new colors late in the season last year in their PaddleTails. Other than that, things have stayed pretty static. But I still make my twice a week forays to the good shops , just to see if I overlooked something of importance. I still drive out to my favorite lake every other day and watch the little run of open water gradually encroach on my first-open-water-spot. I make a bi-weekly jaunty over to the heated lake in town and toss twisters for crappies "just to keep in jigging form".

The boat and I have been to the river once now and maybe next week will see more of that activity start up. Another dam has opened up and the fish there will enjoy some non-pressure for a short while, so my chances at a 10 pound waldo are good there. If I weigh my druthers, I prefer the smell of outboard exhaust over propane exhaust. And the hole I will fish doesn't have a ring around it made of ice.

I guess I have to admit that first ice is a fun time. But the life expectancy for ice fishing with me is short in duration over the course of a winter. By January I am looking for the open water again and will follow it more readily than fish under the ice.

Many, manty years ago an old friend told me I didn't know what I was missing when I told him I didn't ice fish. If I am going to subject myself to the cold, I will always prefer to do so in the boat. And for those of you who don't winter fish from a boat......you don't know what you're missing.

[fisherking01]

As for me, I know it's spring when the phone rings and I have to go to work. That's my gig for wishing for ice as long as we can get it. I too like the open water and have in the past been blown off, froze out, snowed out, cold rained out, and chased off of open water by the elements many times, I'm getting lazy! I'll stick to the trap and stay on the "calm" water. I'll leave the open water to you until I can't walk out anymore.

I do like to read about the open water adventures, so keep on writing!

Good luck on them large eyes, that's the part I miss!

[delmuts]

i'm with you tom! the only thing i've really need to pick up is some plastics that i like for crappies. i see cabelas has then in 25 pc pks. still need to pick up a spool or two of the small braids to try on my lite and ultra lite. i'm anxious since i got my hands on some 2# sloar XT last year. i love that stuff for panfish! still have to go browsing in the stores. ( my eyes sight is ?? maybe i missed something ? )

[fisherking01]

Well, the phone rang today, back to work for a while. Hope to get to the cool cats this weekend! After that I guess my fishing boils down to a rush rush weekend thing. For all of you heading out in the boats soon, I wish you well, and great fishing! And I bought my new license before the call to come to work, one would think fishing should take precident over work for the year. I guess fishing time is just that much more valuable now.

[BDR]

I am with ya Tom! I have really become pretty die hard when it comes to ice fishing, But I am really looking for ward to days of standing on the bank with the kids pullin in those spring Crappies.

Once those shorelines open up my back seat is reserved for the ultralight and tackle boxes.