The Ponds Are Frozen, What To Do?

 

Well, since my first fishing excursion of the year where I caught a crappie and a bass to now...the fishing has been severely limited.  In this picture above you can't really tell but the ponds are completely frozen over.  The ponds have been frozen over for the last two weeks.  We know because Lil' Shaka and I have been taking walks to check during the afternoons!  Last year we were fishing during this time and then the ponds froze over for a couple of weeks.

A couple days ago, it got warm enough to at least melt some of the ice on one of the ponds.  Check out the big lunker I caught on this tail spin. LOL!  I don't know if this little guy tried to eat my lure or if I just snagged him off the bottom.  I have no idea what species this little guy is.  Probably a bluegill.  I have not seen any other species besides bluegill, bass, and catfish in this pond.  It was a blessing to get a chance to wet a line, I will take it.  The sun was shining and the temperature was around 55.  It is amazing just how long it takes for lakes and ponds in this area unthaw from ice.  It is really because at night it has been getting into the teens in terms of the temperature.

If you can't fish, you can still work on getting new tackle.  We went to the Let's Go Fishing Show at the Gateway Convention Center in Collinsville, Illinois.  We went with one of our family friends that we fish with quite a bit.  We picked up some new baits.

Here is a pick of some of the jigs and soft plastics that we picked up.  I think the crappie and bass will KILL this bait when we get a chance to fish it.  I am looking forward to fishing as soon as the ice melts enough to wet a line again.

The other thing the Lil' Shaka and I are doing is preparing for a fishing trip we are going on at the end of January 2022.  We will fish Meramec Springs Park in Missouri again.  This is turning into an annual trip during this time of year.  The January/February fishing at Meramec Springs Park is "catch and release only".  In the picture above you can see I am preparing for trout and smallmouth bass.  Anybody else still love the Rebel Craws?  The Rebel Craw is one of the best lures of all time in terms of multi-species fish catching!  I highly recommend this lure for new anglers too that are just learning.  You don't really need to do much.  Just cast out, and then reel in slowly.

I hope you are all doing great.  The winter time is always tough for me personally.  I like to be outside in the warm sun.  But this too will pass, and the beauty of the whole things is the spring will be here as soon as we know it.  The fish will be biting!  Stay Committed, Stay Driven!

First fish caught in January 2022

 

Well, the first fishing excursion of 2022 was at a local pond in the regular location.  It was the same pond the Lil' Shaka and I fished at on New Year's Eve 2021, but the conditions were completely different.  It was only 30 degrees for the high!  Pretty amazing how fast the weather can change here in the heartland.

The first fish of the year 2022 for me was a CRAPPIE.  You probably could have guessed as much considering how cold the water was.  The temperature the next couple of days will get down into the teens.  When I walked up to the pond, there was noticeable ice on the pond in certain places.  So the water was extremely cold.

The second, and only other fish I caught on this day was a bass.  I was messing around with my ultra light pole with a little jig spinner and curly tail trailer...I was able to get bit one time on it as you can see above.  Overall, I did not find the crappie hole yet, and it might be too much of a drastic change in the weather for them.  If we get more stable low temperatures, we'll see if the crappie start to get more active.  Cheers to all of you, Stay Committed, Stay Driven.

January 3rd 2022 Baseball Workout

 

When I woke up in the morning, it was 18 degrees fahrenheit.  The high for the day got to a balmy 30 degrees.  Lil' Shaka and Lil' Sis do not go back to school until Thursday.  Today, we focused on some tee work in the garage, and then headed outside to hit heavy balls.  Nothing special, just gettting the time in needed.  Stay Committed, Stay Driven.

New Years Eve 2021 Fishing Report

 

It is already Monday January 3rd, 2022.  Wow!  Time flies already.  I wanted to make sure that I document the last fishing excursion that Lil' Shaka and I did for 2021.  This is a familiar pond that is in our regular rotation.  You've seen us catch som really nice bass and crappie from this pond many times over.  Well, on December 31st, 2021 we did really great with the bass!  We caught 8 or 9 nine total fish, with all of them being bass with the exception of one crappie that I caught on a lipless crankbait.

The temperature that day got into the low 60s.  I definitely think the water temperature was above 50 degrees which helped to get the bass active for the day.  It was mostly overcast for entire day with the sun barely peeking through the clouds ever so slightly.  The current was blowing into some of the points and a cove that we've had luck fishing at times.  The bass and crappie tend to migrate into the cove and sit off the points where the current is headed.  The wind is moving North West at this pond when this happens and it can produce fish the entire day.  

Sure enough, we were ON THEM right away!  This was the first one I caught on a trusty jerkbait by H20 Express, the Sexy Shad version.  The bass have been destroying this one this fall and winter.  I plan on continuing to use this jerkbait through the winter and pre-spawn.  I defintely think it will keep producing nice bass.

A big, big milestone was achieved by the Lil' Shaka on this fishing excursion.  He caught two bass (first ones ever) on a chatterbait setup.  The chatterbait color was all white and the trailer he was using was a zoom fluke junior in white as well.  The reason he decided not to use a normal paddle tail swimbait trailer is because he wanted to produce less action in the water for this time of year.  Well, that paid off!  He caught not one, but two nice bass with this lure.  Sometimes, catching your first fish on a lure is all you need to gain confidence with it.  I am sure he will now want more chatterbaits for his arsenal in the winter and pre-spawn coming up!

I wish all of you a wonderful and prosperous New Year in 2022.  I am blessed to have a great family.  I am blessed to spend time with the family at the end of the year.  I am blessed to have been given the time to reflect, and to think through how I can be better in the New Year of 2022.  I am blessed to have a chance to work with people that truly care about others.  Stay Committed, Stay Driven in 2022.  Good things to come for all of us!!!