February 2013 — John Gillespie's Waters & Woods

February 2013

Episode 5
Ice Fishing Crappie Bonanza
Show Date: February 2nd & 3rd, 2013
Location: The Chippewa Flowage; Sawyer County, Wisconsin
Guide: Ty Sennett [ 715-462-9403 | tysennett.com]

Ice fishing for crappie is one of our favorite things! It’s even better when they are bitting at a good pace. We’re out fishing with our buddy and guide Ty Sennett, on a body of water that has only recently opened up to ice fishing.

According the the Wisconsin DNR website; “The Chippewa Flowage, a 15,300-acre impoundment, is located in central Sawyer County, 15 miles east of Hayward.” They go on to say; “The Flowage offers a fishing experience generally found only on lakes farther north in Minnesota or Canada. Its seemingly endless maze of islands, points, bays, floating bogs and channels offers visitors numerous opportunities for exploration, discovery and a feeling of wildness within the northern forest landscape.” We couldn’t agree more, which is why we needed a guide. Ty tells us that the flowage is great for a myriad of panfish species, including perch, crappie, and bluegill. We are fishing in around 25 feet of water, and using Gulp and live bait. The bite is a bit slow according to Mr. Sennett, but we had a hard time believing him after all of the fish we caught throughout the day.

Episode 6
Cold Day on the Bay
Show Date: February 9th & 10th, 2013
Location: Sand Bay Beach Resort - Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
Guide: Pro Guide Dale Stroschein [ 920-743-5731 | wackywalleye.com]

Ice fishing can be a cold proposition, but we’ve been lucky so far this year. Until today, where we are braving the cold for some fresh whitefish. Dale Stroschein is our guide, and he has the equipment available so we can ice fish in just about any weather. We brave the elements for the ride out to the permanent shacks that Dale has for us, and once we’re inside with the heat on, you’d never know it’s -25℉ windchill outside.

Now we fish! We’re out once again this year with some great people for our annual Wacky Walleye & John Gillespie fishing outing. Whitefishing means jigging, which is always fun on the ice. We’re using jigging spoons tipped with a few Gulp waxworms. One hot tip that Dale found out a few years ago after missing a bunch of fish, was having a sliding treble hook just above the swivel. We pop from shack to warm shack, filming the great fighting whitefish. John even gets a chance to pull a few up himself.

We have a great time with everybody that came out, and can’t wait for next year!

Episode 7
Mixed Bag on Muskego
Show Date: February 16th & 17th, 2013
Location: Big Muskego Lake, Waukesha County, Wisconsin
Guide: Pro Bass Angler & Guide Matt Bichanich [414-331-1681]

This week we’re out fishing on a beautiful day, with our good buddy Matt Bichanich. He just started guiding a few times a year, so make sure to give him a call at the number above to see what open dates he has.

We are fishing Big Muskego Lake, setting up a bunch of tip-ups, hoping that a big pike will trip a flag that will lead to an unforgettable catch. Our tip-ups are set in weeds, this is generally where the game fish will be hiding. We are out with a big group, and everybody is doing something a little different. This always helps the group key in on where the fish are, and what they are biting on. We catch bass and pike on tip-ups, and crappie and bluegill on our jigging rods.

Episode 8
Winnebago White Bass Explosion
Show Date: February 23rd & 24th, 2013
Location: Lake Winnebago; Oshkosh, Wisconsin
Guide: Pro Guide Larry Smith [920-361-4996 | walleyeguide.com]

We love fishing! We especially love fishing when the fish are biting literally one-after-another. We have two days planned with our Winnebago guru Larry Smith. It’s an all-jigging affair, we’re using any pick of jigging lure tipped with a minnow head or wax worms. Day one is “one of those days” where the fish are feisty and plentiful! We have fantastic weather, around 40℉, with light and variable wind. At the end of the day, our crew of 11 iced a few hundred white bass.

It’s the second day we’re on the ice that reminds us that we’re in Wisconsin, and it’s winter. A massive cold front blows in, and the temp drops to single digits, and brings along 40MPH winds. Larry is always prepared, and has permanent shacks for his customers, and when he does get a chance to fish, he uses his truck as a wind block. The cold front slows the fishing considerably, so Larry is always on the move. The second day we moved spots 6 times, and his guests rest comfortably in the heated shacks as he tows them to the new location and drills new holes when we arrive.