MANITOBA
Eastern parts of the province did not get as much snow as the north and the western areas. Varying temperatures are creating a bit of uncertainty on ice conditions. Caution as always this early in the year is advised.
If you plan on waiting a bit to make sure ice conditions are safe you might want to consider a DYI project by making a floor for your ice shelter this year. A few years back I bought those foam interlocking pieces that made life in my popup tent so much easier. I found this great video on YouTube that shows you how to make one for yours.
NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO
The nice thing about this part of the world is the myriad of lakes that can be accessed by snowmobile, lakes that don’t see any open water pressure. With more snow on the way this week it is time to get your machine ready. Meantime YouTuber Jay Siemens just posted a great video from last April when he headed to the Red Lake district to fish for pike. In many areas of Northwestern Ontario, pike season remains open all year long.
SASKATCHEWAN
Eastern parts of the province got a lot of snow and some cold temperatures, enough to create decent ice on some of the lakes. Out in the western part of the province guide and Hooked Contributor Daryl Gilbert and his partner head out for some first ice walleye on Lake Diefenbaker.
You can visit with Daryl on his website at http://darylgilbertoutdoors.com
ALBERTA – WES DAVID
Alberta experienced two weeks of chilling temperatures which helped the new ice to form and set up on Alberta waterbodies. However, Alberta was also blanketed with heavy snowfall with some areas of the province getting over a foot of snow. The heavy snowfall blanketed the new ice and acted like insulation. As I write this fishing report, one of Alberta’s famous Chinook winds has moved in and daytime highs are reaching +7 Celsius. To be on the safe side, I rarely venture onto the ice until the New Year. However, I did head out to two local trout lakes to check the ice and see what the trout were up to.
The last 10 days of November
During the last 10 days of November, the ice was about three inches thick, and the water temperatures dropped to 3.5 Celsius as the days got noticeably shorter and the first of the winter storms blew in. However, water lay on the top of the ice beneath about a foot of snow, so I didn’t venture out very far.
The few rainbow trout I saw on my Aqua-VU cameras had no interest in feeding or doing much of anything. The trout were holding on the bottom and were relatively inactive. It was as if Mother Nature triggered something within the trout that told them tougher living conditions lay ahead, and the trout were conserving their energy until the weather stabilized. I felt the same way and didn’t stay long. I will stick with my plan of waiting for the New Year before I venture onto the ice. However, when I returned home, I began gathering my ice fishing gear out of summer storage in anticipation of the new ice fishing season.
Wes David Host & Producer of Fishing the Wild West TV