Boat landing view on Lake Metonga, April 26, 2023. PC: Fox 11 Online
CRANDON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — With the start of the inland lakes sport fishing season just 10 days away, many are gearing up for opening day.
But what are the conditions?
Some Northwoods places like Lake Metonga near Crandon still have ice.
“Not good. The ice conditions, they haven’t been ice fishing out there for a couple weeks,” said Eric Zahn, Tamarack Outfitters Co-Owner.
With the end of April approaching, Eric Zahn says the ice season on Lake Metonga in Forest County is slowly becoming a memory.
“I don’t think anybody’s really been out there to check lately. I’m going to guess, it’s less than six inches, and there’s quite a bit of separation from the shoreline to where the ice is,” he said.
Just to the south in Oconto County, Derek Soletske says lakes in the Mountain, Lakewood, and Townsend area are ice-free.
“In the last two weeks, all of a sudden, everything seemed to start to break up. Chute Pond should be open, Archibald should be open. Maiden Lake, Wheeler, all those. Townsend Flowage Reservoir. All those should be open now,” said Derek Soletske, Mighty Fine Sport Shop Manager.
Soletske says the Mighty Fine Sport Shop is stocked and ready for opening day, as is Tamarack Outfitters in Crandon. Zahn says open water fishing gear is starting to sell.
“It’s all coming together, but we will be ready in time for the opener,” he said.
He says some sunny, warm, windy days will help.
“Right now, it’s getting to the point where it’s really black. And the darker it gets, the closer you are getting to open water. And nobody’s going to go through the cold water to try to get an ice measurement. We’re just going to wait for it to sink, or break up,” said Zahn.
The inland lakes sport fishing season begins after midnight on Saturday, May 6.
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