Erie Ice Calling

Ice cover in the Presque Isle Bay area is getting thicker all the
time. Dave Lefebre photo.

Dave Lefebre with a
big yellow perch caught
during last year's trip.

When the ice clearly calls I only know of one reasonable response, and right now that call is coming from Erie, Pennsylvania, where it's 5 degrees at the moment, according to the little weather experts inside my computer. A possible plan to head north and fish the frozen waters of Presque Isle Bay and other Northern PA locations with bass pro Dave Lefebre had been hanging out there, but all hinged on the ice. The cold that's gripped a lot of the country over the past few days has a firm hold on the Erie area, and the ice is thickening in a hurry.

Yesterday, after scouting some ice and looking at the long-range, Dave said the time was right to settle plans for sooner, rather than later. Looks like I'll be pointing the go-cart north in a little more than a week. It'll be my first drive to ice country, which is kind of cool. Mostly, I'm mostly just excited to have an ice plan solidly in place. No temps above freezing between now and then and not a lot of snow, so the outlook looks great for high-quality ice

Last year we divided time between a bay off Presque Isle Bay and a cool little trout lake called Lake Pleasant, and we caught crappie, yellow perch, one largemouth, various sunfish and a couple of kinds of trout, that I can think of off-hand. Lots of fish and lots of fun. I'm not sure exactly where we'll fish this year, but I'm certain Dave will have a cool plan and all the right stuff for an outstanding trip. Stay tuned.