Once the temps start hitting 60, I'm out as much as I can. I think the weather here in Missouri is starting to turn, or I hope so. 

On 3/8/2020 at 8:43 PM, Boomstick said:

Up here in Mass, some lakes are starting to thaw! My son is still playing travel hockey and I need to get licenses too, so I'm not sure when I will get out.

Go south in Ma open water down here all winter 

6 hours ago, Mr. Aquarium said:

Go south in Ma open water down here all winter 

The rivers up here didn't freeze this year.

Finally starting to see some open water, but today it is snowing like crazy. 

 

The bass season doesn't open until June 18, but at least pike/walleye are in sight. Can't come soon enough with covid house arrest. 

We are open all year but we typically can "fish" from February through November if the weather holds. Water gets into the 50's in Late March. Tidewater VA Bass like 62* to 78* to start their spawn which can be late April to early June.

Started yesterday .The water was high and muddy 51 degrees water temp in the morning . Caught thirteen bass in the buck brush with 4 over 15 inches, on a hand poured spinnerbait .

On 3/1/2020 at 6:05 PM, Bigassbass said:

Fishing never shuts down for me unless it's snow on the ground which is rare here in the center of good ole North Carolina.  Went fishing today and the season is wide open, caught some nice crappie and lots of brim.  Going tomorrow think I'll keep a couple crappie to cook for dinner! 

Why would snow on the ground stop you from fishing? 

Year round here. Make 1 to 4 trips every week of the year. I just wish we didn't have two Summer's. Our Spring and Fall are only like 11 days long.

It never ends here. The bite does get really tough though. I'll go a few times a winter on nice days with little wind. You're usually fishing for one bite in the bigger lakes/reservoirs. But they really start getting active in March and spawn through April, even into May if it was a cold spring. I saw a few beds last Sunday so they're ramping up.

Season starts when I catch my first fish, which I have yet to do! I've fished a lot but at poor local fisheries.

 

I hate chasing that first fish of the year. I mean I LOVE it but gawd I feel like I'm in a nightmare sometimes where I've never actually caught a fish before, it was all just a crazy illusion. "Do I really know how to fish? Did I get lucky all those other times? Did I dream it all?"

 

If I didn't have my entire last season on video I might believe I'd never actually caught a bass. My head is a strange place indeed.

I fish all year as long as my waters are ice free. But I’d say my season really gets going mid March-early April depending on the winter. 

Usually mid to late April, shortly after ice goes.  It should be gone around here in the next week or so.  Can't legally target a bass (or walleye/pike) until May 9, however.  Muskie season doesn't open until June either.  So until then I mostly target crappies as an alternative.

17 minutes ago, gimruis said:

Usually mid to late April, shortly after ice goes.  It should be gone around here in the next week or so.  Can't legally target a bass (or walleye/pike) until May 9, however.  Muskie season doesn't open until June either.  So until then I mostly target crappies as an alternative.

Might be earlier - it is here. Black, Emerald and Seaton - all small lakes, part of the Minnetonka group - were open with boats on them yesterday. Cooks Bay and Spring Park Bay were 30%+ open with the rest being 'mush'.

I haven't been fishing since yesterday and I'm going again later today and tomorrow.

6 hours ago, gimruis said:

Usually mid to late April, shortly after ice goes.  It should be gone around here in the next week or so.  Can't legally target a bass (or walleye/pike) until May 9, however.  Muskie season doesn't open until June either.  So until then I mostly target crappies as an alternative.

Correction to earlier - I just came back from an errand and didn't see any ice at all. Might not be official, but I'm declaring Minnetonka as open.

 

DNR HAS declared some of the surrounding lakes as officially ice-free. Virginia, Langdon, Minnewashta, Steiger and Long got that designation this past Monday.

18 hours ago, MN Fisher said:

Correction to earlier - I just came back from an errand and didn't see any ice at all. Might not be official, but I'm declaring Minnetonka as open.

 

DNR HAS declared some of the surrounding lakes as officially ice-free. Virginia, Langdon, Minnewashta, Steiger and Long got that designation this past Monday.

 

There is a photo of Excelsior Bay open online, but you can still see ice further out as of yesterday.  After it rains tonight, I think we can declare it.

My season started in Early March but this thing going around the country right now has derailed everything I had planned for the Spring. I don't expect to catch anything until at least early May, the only waters I have been able to fish are pressured ponds which my county has now closed due to the outbreak.