So luckily around me I've got several options at ice out: stocked trout within 15 minutes of my house, bluegills and crappies 40 miles north of me, pan fish up at the chain of lakes where my parents live about 1.5hrs away- have a couple boat canals that load up with crappie and bluegill, a water outlet for perch and a small weedy lake that holds yellow bass and perch shallow pretty early and if the river is right water wise I have a few creeks that fill up and hold channel catfish and even a pike or two.

 For you North country anglers what species do you normally target right after ice out? Sorry to bring this up so early in the winter..I know we have a long road ahead of us.

Pike would be my first choice.

Pike on the local lake. They spawn right at ice out or a little before and the state nets them right along shore for breeders. They net plenty of 40” fish each year so it’s worth a trip or two. It’s also the same lake I caught a 4-03 smallmouth last year in 40 degree water so if the pike aren’t cooperating I’m bass fishing.  

I hope none as I hope we don’t get iced over here in MO.

Usually crappie here. No good perch or walleye fisheries within an hour, and I’m not much into river fishing these days. Yellow bass come with the territory around here year round. Spring white bass run is a blast, but it’s a bit later than ice out.

Bass season is open year round, provided you C&R and use artificial only before June so as soon as the ice on the lakes melt it’s bassin’ time for me. But some streams will open up before that and I’ll be able to target native brookies and both wild and stocked browns and rainbows. 

We don't really have an ice out most years, but usually pike, pickerel, crappie, and yellow perch. 

1 hour ago, DitchPanda said:

 For you North country anglers what species do you normally target right after ice out? Sorry to bring this up so early in the winter..I know we have a long road ahead of us.

Brown Bass ~ and I don't always wait until all the ice is out . . . . 

A-Jay

Crappie - the closest bass season has opened after ice out was 2018 when Ice-Out was declared on Minnetonka only 7 days before the season opened. On average, there's a month of targeting crappie, sunnies and perch before targeting bass is legal.

2 hours ago, Team9nine said:

Usually crappie here. No good perch or walleye fisheries within an hour, and I’m not much into river fishing these days. Yellow bass come with the territory around here year round. Spring white bass run is a blast, but it’s a bit later than ice out.

The white bass run is something I wish we had. I lived in Illinois for a year as a kid and we fished below a big dam year round. In that year me and my dad caught hundreds and hundreds of white bass.

1 hour ago, A-Jay said:

Brown Bass ~ and I don't always wait until all the ice is out . . . . 

A-Jay

Ah yes I remember this video

We had some ice on a few lakes last week, so I get to say bass 

Around here, it’s big, hard pulling lake trout. The first little while after ice out can be dynamite for huge lakers as they move right up into the shallows to chase spawning smelt and other baitfish. We usually troll with inline planer boards and jerkbaits, or flashy spoons, and get some real monsters. I’ve caught them up to 40lbs in waist deep water as soon as the ice goes out. Once the first of May rolls around, I switch gears to big, shallow pike. Super fun to sight fish for until the water warms and they creep a bit deeper towards the main lake basins. 

Definitely crappie here too. Occasionally run into a few sunfish mixed in.

 

I only target them because the other seasons aren’t open yet here in MN.  Once walleye, bass, and muskie season opens here I have no interest in targeting panfish anymore.  
 

I usually fish in a crappie contest on Tonka the Saturday before opener.

1 minute ago, gimruis said:

Once walleye, bass, and muskie season opens here I have no interest in targeting panfish anymore.

I target the crappie off-and-on through the season - gotta have something to put in the freezer.

2 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

We had some ice on a few lakes last week, so I get to say bass

ice out doesn't count if your lakes freeze for a total of 32 hrs a year.

2 minutes ago, DitchPanda said:

ice out doesn't count if your lakes freeze for a total of 32 hrs a year.

It was still ice ! And it still melted 
 

3 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

It was still ice ! And it still melted 
 

Your right I didn't specify a time limit. I did however say north country anglers...and since 3\4 of the US is north of you....I'm just sayin

1 minute ago, DitchPanda said:

Your right I didn't specify a time limit. I did however say north country anglers...and since 3\4 of the US is north of you....I'm just sayin

Ok you can have your thread I’ll go sit in the corner 

3 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Ok you can have your thread I’ll go sit in the corner 

Ahh heck I don't wanna be that guy..the excluder. Come on in buddy.

Just now, DitchPanda said:

Ahh heck I don't wanna be that guy..the excluder. Come on in buddy.

Gotta understand these southern boys - a thin film of ice on a puddle and they're crying cause it's the start of the next Ice Age. ?

3 minutes ago, DitchPanda said:

Ahh heck I don't wanna be that guy..the excluder. Come on in buddy.

Oh it’s too late now 

 

 

y’all have fun talking about snowblowers 

2 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Gotta understand these southern boys - a thin film of ice on a puddle and they're crying cause it's the start of the next Ice Age. ?

I was grillin in my driveway in a T shirt in 37 degree weather. Guys down south would think I was insane, but if we have a nuclear winter we shall see who lasts longer.

 

4 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Oh it’s too late now 

 

well now I've gone and done it

It used to be eyes and brown bass, but then last fall happened. Y'all know what I'll be up to when the lid comes off.

Stripers. I have the Hudson River about a half hour away, but I’ll drive a little farther south to go after the early stripers. 

No waiting for ice out for trout around these parts.  The fishing is still great.