How bad is it getting for the rest of you northern bassers? I’m jonsing something fierce and can’t even use pike and walleye to get by because conditions in MI are tough and the inland season close is fast upon us. Steelhead are not the same, but will have to do to atleast be fishing.

I will be out trying as soon as we get some good, consistent warmth to get them atleast thinking about it. Every single rig has fresh line and is rigged and ready for deployment. My boxes are cleaned out and back in order and I need nothing for the spring start to our season. Man, I cannot WAIT to go bass fishin’!

The few warm days we had recently really put the bug in me. Still a couple weeks away from ice-out here in upstate NY but the river is flowing again, as swollen, muddy and icy as it is. I’ve strung up my reels, selected my baits, and got the batteries ready to throw in the charger.

As I get older, it seems like I have more to do in preparation for the start of the season haha. Prob cuz I never had a boat before. Still need to address a potentially bad wheel bearing on the trailer, but I feel your pain. We had a record cold winter in Maine. I’m guessing there’s still 15” or more of ice. We have a while still….

Not good @JonB2 , Not good. I've donated a few jigs, finesse swimmers, and tubes to the lake michigan rock deity, would certainly love one of those "tugs" to be able to swim. Last year, 3/18 was the day I got on the smallies working their way to the harbor mouths, so hopefully soon after these winds die down. My next hope/disappointment is looking like Thursday.

scott

If you want to drive to SE Massachusetts & Cape Cod, we're just opening up now. 😉 The Agawam River and Long Pond Harwich are open. I hear that Great Herring is open too, but I've not confirmed it.

It's been a LONG winter, but thankfully, the season is upon us.

I kinda got the itch about 2 weeks ago when it was abnormally warm out. I respooled some reels and bought my 2026 license.

There’s probably still at least 15 inches of ice on lakes around here, maybe more to the north. But there is very little snow, so I thought maybe by the end of the month there would be open water.

A massive storm is coming later into tomorrow and is going to drop a foot of snow, or more. So we’ll be going backwards for a while.

Just part of living in the northern quadrant. My house will still be here after a blizzard.

I’ve been working on my pitching. 😂

I have no words, only a picture of misery and despair.

It's still only March.

Local action is a ways off for this guy.

It's easy for me to know because today I was doing this, so . . . . .

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1469284261556816/

A-Jay

We’ve had open water for the last week but winds have been in the 25-40 mph range, or solid rain storms constantly rolling through.

Next week is the plan, hopefully if the predicted snow for Monday/Tuesday stays away 😤

The local river was froze over since November. Finally there was enough water to clear the ice out, and now we have high winds and high water.

we’re getting closer but it’s been a long winter. 🙄

As @gim stated we here in the north are getting a blizzard/snow dump/temp drop - and it is supposed to carry on thru Tuesday/Wednesday - so we have gone back into the freezer with snow and minus temps.....

So far there are about 6 inches of snow here - always hard to tell as there are 50 mph winds and it blows all over the place - one side of the house has 3 inches, the other side has 9 inches, it's all about the howling wind here as to where the snow piles up

It looks like @A-Jay got more snow than us - I am going to wait and see if the wind will settle down a bit before breaking out the snow thrower

I’ll just bring this back up……still waiting. Looking to be record late ice out here in central Maine. My father said about 20” still on a lake just an hour north of me this week. I’m gonna guess we are looking around the 10th til we open up. Might be able to travel south a bit next weekend and hit a spot from shore

I feel so bad for you guys!

The weather here has been crazy, although I did hit a pond for an hour or so last week. I've mainly been concentrating on getting the boat ready. I should be able to finish that up on Sunday. My grandson is off next week and we hope to get out on the water a couple of times, weather permitting. We've got some new water to check out and there's no better season than right now to do that.

If there's a silver lining to the heat wave we have been having in the West, it's the fishing. Everything is open and warm enough that the fish are active. I might try to put the boat in soon, but I pulled a trout and a bass out in short order on Wednesday -- both on a finesse T-rig.

Ponds are open around here and the rivers are back down to more reasonable levels after the big rains a couple weeks ago. Larger lakes still have ice, but its coming off.

As usual for me at this point in the Spring, the main obstacle right now is not conditions, but work/life obligations and lack of free time.

The North Woods is still in a state of suspended animation.

It's melting pretty well, day & night.

It's just that there is so much snow and ice that it takes a while to get through it all.

Still looking at at least 3 weeks would be my guess.

I'm trying to stay in shape either way.

https://www.facebook.com/reel/2523235391405281

A-Jay

Still waiting here, but am now hyper prepared. Bass might be in trouble this season with how hungry and ready I am. Cannot WAIT for that first day I’m able to get into some prespawn fatties!

A few lakes near me in the Twin Cities went open today.

But we're gonna go backwards now into more of a "wintry" status. Much colder temps, rain, snow, or both.

My boat and gear is ready to be used, but now I need Mother Nature to cooperate. That may not happen for a while.

My earliest ever date on the water was April 6 (panfish).