It's the first week of March and from Shelburne Bay to the south (including South Bay) on Lake Champlain is open! There are some isolated random spots with ice but she's open. Too bad it's 37 days until catch and release starts.

(I have the itch bad...)

That 37 days is gonna go by so slow man! Maine just changed the law last year? Or the year before so we can fish as soon as ice out no waiting I'll give it about 2 weeks and most lakes will be ice free here. Springs finally within sight!

My buddy got stopped last year after C&R closed by a Warden and was getting questioned pretty hard about it.

Warden, "What are you fishing for?"

Friend, "Perch"

Warden, "Those are bass baits."

Friend, "I didn't tell you I was very good at it."

Warden laughed and all went about their business.

That 37 days is gonna go by so slow man! Maine just changed the law last year? Or the year before so we can fish as soon as ice out no waiting I'll give it about 2 weeks and most lakes will be ice free here. Springs finally within sight!

That's Very nice - I wish Michigan would do that.

Some years there's ice right up to a week before the opener of catch & release ( Last Saturday in April).

Other years (last Year) the ice is gonzo first week of April.

Currently, it's a complete frozen white out here, so none of this is even applicable.

A-Jay

I LOVE PA. When it's not open bass season, it's C&R. There's no closed bass season except on certain approved trout waters.

It used to be closed in NY too, now it's C&R year round, (a few bodys of water are still closed) and "keep" or as I like to call it, tournament season, runs from the 3rd Sat. in June till the end of Noevember. You can't use live bait during the C&R only part of the season. I had lots of private water around the farm that I could bass fish during the "closed: season years ago, and I often did a lot of Pike/crappie/walleye fishing in the old days