2021/2022 Cold Lake Fishing and Ice Reports

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by Hartly

Going to be out there this weekend. How's the fishing been at the marina? Can any one suggest a good area to fish ? Brining a bunch of kids for my sons birthday. Thanks

All the normal haunts are hit and miss but if you’re out on first light chances are you will get a few then hunker down for the sit....out front of the marina is not too far out for this to happen then when they get bored pack up and head to town.

Same can be said for French bay if you get out on the ice from the MD park.

Your not in the situation to run and gun so I would keep it fun for the kids.

[58thecat]

Just went out on the lake to see how truck travel was, 4 wheel drive and good tires (mud/snow) and you can get around again.
Snow has gone down 6-8 inches over the last three days, slushy but doable just keep the momentum up and pick a good spot to stop.
I intentionally stopped on deep spots but right away back up 10 yards just in case I needed to make a run at it to get out.
Personally when I get out in a few days I am taking the quad, if I had a sled that would be my choice.
There was trucks out but mostly sleds and quads all across the lake, French bay, garnet, centre bay, marina area and saw sleds out over by English bay too.


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[Binati]

Good news. Was getting pretty worried about travel on the lake for next weekend.

[Dylan hunter]

Originally Posted by 58thecat

Just went out on the lake to see how truck travel was, 4 wheel drive and good tires (mud/snow) and you can get around again.
Snow has gone down 6-8 inches over the last three days, slushy but doable just keep the momentum up and pick a good spot to stop.
I intentionally stopped on deep spots but right away back up 10 yards just in case I needed to make a run at it to get out.
Personally when I get out in a few days I am taking the quad, if I had a sled that would be my choice.
There was trucks out but mostly sleds and quads all across the lake, French bay, garnet, centre bay, marina area and saw sleds out over by English bay too.


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Thanks for all the updates and info!!

Looking like this weather is going to be good for the tourney!

[58thecat]

Rained pretty much all night, was going to go out but still raining out,soup city
Colder forecast for tomorrow.
Gonna call the MD about French bay campground area to see if I can get it cleared up of All the snow/slush.
First year taking over the park from the province and don’t think they knew how much that area is used.

[Weavster]

Was out there running and gunning on my sled yesterday. There is some pretty ugly flood water out there some areas over a foot deep of water. Any of the heaves have water sitting on both sides of it making them tough to cross. Sled is nice to get around seen a few of other truck trails where there was lots of shovelling going on in spots. There are a few decent trails out to the main spots. The snow is very wet and heavy with the warm weather but has shrunk down considerably. Fishing was really good tho so use caution out there chasing them fish!

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by Weavster

Was out there running and gunning on my sled yesterday. There is some pretty ugly flood water out there some areas over a foot deep of water. Any of the heaves have water sitting on both sides of it making them tough to cross. Sled is nice to get around seen a few of other truck trails where there was lots of shovelling going on in spots. There are a few decent trails out to the main spots. The snow is very wet and heavy with the warm weather but has shrunk down considerably. Fishing was really good tho so use caution out there chasing them fish!

Dam Matt your a crazy bugger! raining, snowing, blowing but I guess you can’t catch fish sitting on the couch

[Ken H]

Originally Posted by Weavster

Was out there running and gunning on my sled yesterday. There is some pretty ugly flood water out there some areas over a foot deep of water. Any of the heaves have water sitting on both sides of it making them tough to cross. Sled is nice to get around seen a few of other truck trails where there was lots of shovelling going on in spots. There are a few decent trails out to the main spots. The snow is very wet and heavy with the warm weather but has shrunk down considerably. Fishing was really good tho so use caution out there chasing them fish!

Would you mind letting me know how deep you were fishing. We have been out all day and only had two hits. Both in the 35-40 foot range.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by Ken H

Would you mind letting me know how deep you were fishing. We have been out all day and only had two hits. Both in the 35-40 foot range.

Usually that’s a early morning bite/evening bite but if not pull out to 90 or deeper fow.

Try to set up in an area that has a relatively good drop in a short distance, fish the entire shelf, top,mid and bottom.

Lots of banging on the bottom, slight twitches, then feel up and see what comes up for a looksie...

Seems to be most lakers are cruising the bottoms right now so drop a line on the bottom with a 5-6” herring

The thing that gets me is they play cat and mouse sometimes which keeps you interested but in reality you might be better off to move and hunt down a more active area....run and gun style produces more fish this time of the season.

Good luck.


Ohhh if you see Matt out there just follow him around he likes company

[58thecat]

Tent is catching.
LOL


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[FAST_FREDDY]

I was out on Fri and did fairly good landed 8 lakers now keep in mind that was dark to dark(all day).had a few other strikes.

and 58th is right they were playing cat and mouse all day tried the chase nothing tried the drop nothing and everything in between the only thing that worked was the bottom with slight movement even that it took a lot of convincing there were fish on the Garmin all for about 2 1/2hrs of the day.

fished in 85 fow.

to bad you cant drive on in truck to much snow blowed up on to the shore area but quad and tracks worked fine wasn't to much slush on the lake.

These are the 2 best of the day.

IMG_20220211_110907 (480x640) (480x640) (300x400).jpg
IMG_20220211_151558 (1) (300x400).jpg

[Ken H]

Originally Posted by 58thecat

Usually that’s a early morning bite/evening bite but if not pull out to 90 or deeper fow.

Try to set up in an area that has a relatively good drop in a short distance, fish the entire shelf, top,mid and bottom.

Lots of banging on the bottom, slight twitches, then feel up and see what comes up for a looksie...

Seems to be most lakers are cruising the bottoms right now so drop a line on the bottom with a 5-6” herring

The thing that gets me is they play cat and mouse sometimes which keeps you interested but in reality you might be better off to move and hunt down a more active area....run and gun style produces more fish this time of the season.

Good luck.


Ohhh if you see Matt out there just follow him around he likes company

.

Thanks for the advice. We found fish around 80 feet. Missed a bunch but managed to ice one laker. We had a pretty steep learning curve and I’m sure there are many more lessons to be learnt with the lakers. Tube jigs were not working for us. The one we caught was on a spoon.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by Ken H

.

Thanks for the advice. We found fish around 80 feet. Missed a bunch but managed to ice one laker. We had a pretty steep learning curve and I’m sure there are many more lessons to be learnt with the lakers. Tube jigs were not working for us. The one we caught was on a spoon.

You showed up during the month of tuff times, early ice is just crazy then they get picky but come March they turn on again especially the last two weeks.

This wk-end was the spoons banging off the bottom very suttle with a few rips to keep them entertained but yup slow.

Lay a herring on the bottom and hope works too

Pepperoni didn’t pan out but I was glad we brought it out with us

[AlbertanGP]

There are very few fish I would part with a good stick of pepperoni for. But a nice Cold Lake laker is definitely one.

[Binati]

Getting exciting. Was going to pack short for the derby but the Temps lowered 10 degrees in 2 days. Bringing up the shack but wondering if quad or skidoo would be better for getting around. We could bring both but would rather just one.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by Binati

Getting exciting. Was going to pack short for the derby but the Temps lowered 10 degrees in 2 days. Bringing up the shack but wondering if quad or skidoo would be better for getting around. We could bring both but would rather just one.

Skidoo.

Therefore no matter what the lake throws at you your good to go!

Best of luck!

[eman]

any problem getting around with truck ?

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by eman

any problem getting around with truck ?

Nope, to-date all frozen solid and you can get around in 4 wheel drive and good tires rather easily but we are forecasted for more snow which can be a pain in the arse depending on how much then toss in the drifting too

Like I mentioned if I was to travel up here and had a sled it would come with me.

[Weavster]

Originally Posted by Ken H

Would you mind letting me know how deep you were fishing. We have been out all day and only had two hits. Both in the 35-40 foot range.

We been catching in anywhere from 50-120 fow the last week or so

[Weavster]

Was out yesterday most of the snow had shrunk down there is a hard crust 1.5-2" then softer snow or flood water underneath. The sled just stays on top of the crust but the trucks were breaking through from the trails I seen looks like they were getting around fine to most places.

The fishing was awesome lots of fish chasing hard and hitting some bigger baits which is nice to see again!

[OL_JR]

Has anyone accessed via the cold river, curious if they have been plowing the road through there.

[58thecat]

Well we got snow, wind, cooler temps forecasted for the upcoming tourney so be prepared but hey what would it be without Mother Nature not having a say in things

Not fishing the tourney personally as had plans out of town now think I will squeeeeze a Saturday in just to watch the laker madness

Yes it is a sickness and one can see it in the angler, the fast twitching eyes, agitation, sleepless nights, frostbite body parts and a body stench that you don’t realize until on your way home standing in line to pay for your gas people actually social distance from you

Good luck to all and be safe out there.

[HL_transplant]

Originally Posted by OL_JR

Has anyone accessed via the cold river, curious if they have been plowing the road through there.

Last I heard was pressure ridges were an issue from the cold river side. Thus was about two weeks ago but they said sleds only.

[Brodhead]

How busy can we expect the lake to get this weekend? I see that the tournament is full of 400 people so can I expect alot of the close, accessible spots to be super packed? I'm thinking about introducing a friend to lake trout fishing on Saturday or Sunday, will French bay be plugged with people?

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[Frank_NK28]

It's a good weekend to stay off the lake if you're not taking part in the tournament. There won't be a moments peace.

[Afrayedknot]

Originally Posted by Brodhead

How busy can we expect the lake to get this weekend? I see that the tournament is full of 400 people so can I expect alot of the close, accessible spots to be super packed? I'm thinking about introducing a friend to lake trout fishing on Saturday or Sunday, will French bay be plugged with people?

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I'm sure it will be a gong show lol. Especially with it being the free fishing weekend too. When I signed up I thought the tourney was 200 people like last year I can only imagine french bay, provincial, & the marina are going to be packed. If you can get away from these spots you should be alright. I don't have a sled so I'll be pushing my truck to it's limit to avoid the crowds lol.

[OL_JR]

Good luck to those participating in the tourney this week, curious what the big fish will be. What won last year? I wanna say 34 and change but can't remember exactly.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by Frank_NK28

It's a good weekend to stay off the lake if you're not taking part in the tournament. There won't be a moments peace.

Ohhhh I have a spot that is peaceful and people don’t venture over....mad trappers hat and boots only on to check outside lines....maybe toss in a happy dance too and people just move on


Like last years tourney little villages popped up over certain areas, safety in numbers, herd mentality but the lake is huge and there’s are some beauty spots far away from the villages.

[58thecat]

If anyone wants to follow the tourney here’s is a link.
Nothing huge yet but it is still early.

https://www.anglersatlas.com/tournam...hingTournament

[Brodhead]

Originally Posted by 58thecat

mad trappers hat and boots only on to check outside lines....maybe toss in a happy dance too and people just move on

Hahah better make that a quick check outside in this weather or there's risk of lost members

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