Crawford Creek Impoundment

The ice is 5 to 8 inches thick.  Anglers report marking a lot of fish, but they are having difficulty getting them to bite.

Badger Lake

Ice is around 10 inches thick on Badger Lake.  Anglers are catching decent numbers of bluegill and crappie with wax worms in 6 to 12 feet of water.

Brushy Creek Lake

There is about 6 to 10 inches of ice in the upper end of Brushy Creek.  Fishing is slow to moderate for bluegill and crappie.  Some nice walleye have been caught in 20 feet of water with jigging spoons and wax worms.

Bacon Creek Lake

The next trout stocking at Bacon Creek is scheduled for January 18 around 1 p.m.

Storm Lake (including Little Storm Lake)

Anglers have reported slow fishing, but the ice is around 12 to 14 inches thick.

Snyder Bend Lake

Ice conditions remain variable at Snyder Bend due to the supplemental water supply running intermittently.

Moorland Pond

The next trout stocking at Moorland Pond is scheduled for January 10 at noon.

Black Hawk District Farm Ponds

Anglers report 4 to 6 inches of ice on farm ponds in Monona County with moderate success for bluegills using wax worms.

For more information on lakes and rivers in the Black Hawk District contact the Black Hawk office at 712-657-2638.

Lower Pine Lake

We have received no information regarding fishing on this water body this week.  Bluegill – Fair: Reports of nice sized bluegills being caught.

Upper Pine Lake

A few portables shelters have been rotating on and off the ice.  We have heard of less than 4 inches thickness on both lakes. Four inches of ice is recommended for anglers traveling by foot with minimal gear. Crappie – Fair: Some crappies being caught.

Lake Smith

Smith Lake ice depth on Dec. 17 was 10-12 inches. Bluegill fishing is good as well as a few crappies.

Lake Catherine

Ice thickness is 8.5 to 10.5 inches. Fishing is slow.

Clear Lake

Ice is 10 to 13 inches. Anglers should avoid driving through the channel that runs from the little lake to the big lake as that area can be unsafe; take the highway around instead.  Crappie – Slow: We have not heard much for reports on crappies yet. Some are being caught along with the yellow bass. Try minnows in 12-20 feet of water for crappies.  Walleye – No Report:   Yellow Bass – Good: Action can be great when you find them. Some anglers have had large numbers this past week. Target areas with 6-12 feet of water.

Lake Cornelia

A lot of fishing activity on Cornelia last weekend. Some permanent shacks on Cornelia; ice depth is 8-9 inches.  Most fishing is being done in the deeper water on bottom with minnows.  Seeing catches of 60-70 fish after a couple hours of fishing.  Fish are running 7-8 inches.  Yellow Bass – Excellent: Anglers were reporting fast action on 7-8 inch yellow bass with a few crappies mixed in.

Little Wall Lake

Ice thickness was around 6 inches on Dec. 16th.

Crystal Lake

Ice depth was around 9 inches on Dec. 17th.  Bluegill – Good: Anglers have reported catching fish in 8 feet of water on tear drop ice fly tipped with insect larvae in mid to late afternoon. About half of the bluegills were right around 8 inches. Crappie – Fair: A few 8-11 inch crappies are being caught. Walleye – Slow: An occasional walleye is being caught by bluegill anglers.

Blue Pit

Blue Pit was stocked with 1,500 catchable size rainbow trout on Nov. 27th. They were not hit very hard by anglers before it froze up so there are good numbers yet. A minimum of 4 inches of ice is recommended for foot travel.

Bluebill Lake

Bluebill has around 10-11 inches.  Anglers are catching some bluegill, crappie, and largemouth bass, perch but the action is slow. Perch were biting on wax worms. Occasional catfish also on minnows.

Fin and Feather Lake

Finn and Feather has about 10.5 inches of ice and a few people have tried it – no reports. There was a partial winterkill last year but bluegills and bass were sampled this summer.

Reports on ice thickness of most area lakes have been from 6-12 inches this week. For lake updates and fishing information in the north central area contact the Clear Lake Fish and Wildlife office at 641-357-3517.

Big Spirit Lake

Bluegill – Slow: A few bluegills are being caught in Anglers Bay but action is limited to sunrise and sunset.  Crappie – Slow: Similar to bluegill the crappie are coming from anglers bay early and late in the day.  Yellow Perch – Slow: Only a handful of perch are being caught but the ones that are tend to be 10-11 inches a few smaller ones are also being caught. Walleye – Slow: Action has been kind of hit and miss with fish of all sizes being caught.

West Okoboji Lake

Northern Pike – Slow: Tip-ups baited with chubs or small bluegills should bring a few pike.  Bluegill – Slow: Bluegills have been difficult to find but a few are being caught by sight fishing in or near the weeds.

Scharnberg Pond

1,500 rainbow trout were stocked in mid November. Use jigging spoons or teardrop jigs just under the ice to a few feet down. A trout stamp is needed to fish for or possess trout.  Another 1,500 rainbow will be stocked on January 25.

For more information contact the Spirit Lake Hatchery at 712-336-1840.