Author Topic: Gull Lake 2021 (Read 19446 times)

smeltbuster · « **on:** Jan 05, 2021, 02:17 PM »

Hey everyone,time to fire up this thread! 1st. up, as of today,south bay is locked up & has been for a few days. 2nd. bay is about 2/3 locked up. Plan to check the ice tomorrow. There were a couple of guys that got on this past Sat.,but said that it was very sketchy. The rest of the lake is wide open. Hoping for some decent Smelt fishing this year. Marked quite a few big clouds of baitfish (Smelt?) this summer. Will keeep ya posted on what I find.

fishin4smelt · « **Reply #1 on:** Jan 05, 2021, 06:03 PM »

Looking forward to your posts Smeltbuster. We were only able to get out twice on the North end of the main lake last year. Hoping the ice develops earlier and stays later this year. Good luck & tight lines...

smeltbuster · « **Reply #2 on:** Jan 05, 2021, 06:29 PM »

Quote from: fishin4smelt on Jan 05, 2021, 06:03 PM

Looking forward to your posts Smeltbuster. We were only able to get out twice on the North end of the main lake last year. Hoping the ice develops earlier and stays later this year. Good luck & tight lines...

Glad to see your still around ! Smelt jr. & me were wondering about you 2 days ago ! Hoping to meet up w/ ya soon !

Fish Killa · « **Reply #3 on:** Jan 06, 2021, 08:11 AM »

Love the Gull Lake thread. Saw the guys on the camera. The western 1/2 of the south bay was open water a few days prior so keep that in mind once it is safe. Ice conditions vary greatly on first ice pretty much every lake you encounter. I've had good years and bad years in the bay with pannies on first ice. Don't get into the smelt much anymore except to catch Laker and pike bait.

Wgorby · « **Reply #4 on:** Jan 06, 2021, 11:30 AM »

Oh yeah!! Here we go....green light army!

smeltbuster · « **Reply #5 on:** Jan 06, 2021, 12:28 PM »

1st. ice report: South bay is locked up but I could not get on. still too thin.Have some potential bad news. The access at the south end is still available to use, however, there is a barricade & a sign stating that no sleds or snowmobiles are allowed. This has been put there,by the new owner of the store. I fear that some slobs will tear it down or remove sections of the split rail fence so they can get sleds down to the lake. We are 1 step away from loosing the only access on the south end of the lake. We lost the salon on 2nd. bay 3 yrs. ago. Its gonna happen,just a matter of when.The lake is down about 2-3' because they are replacing the dam on Gull creek. Refilling is scheduled to start in a couple of weeks. The lake is locked up to about 2/3 up 2nd. bay. The rest of the lake is wide open. They are also now plowing the snow at Baseline rd. right down to the lake,thus making it very hard to gain access there. About a 3' high snow bank blocking the access. Going to call Ross & Prarieville Twps. about this problem.Slobs have been messing it up for so many years,the landowners are probably trying to shut those access sites down. If you fish south bay,make sure to go in the store & buy something & thank them for the access to the lake. I am going to stop in & ask about doing the garbage can on the dock again. We really need to be careful about this one.

RoeBoat · « **Reply #6 on:** Jan 07, 2021, 07:54 PM »

Good report smeltbuster. I'm from Indiana and have never fished Gull but no matter where we fish we all need to be concerned about access and how we take care of the access and the ice we use!!!

smeltbuster · « **Reply #7 on:** Jan 09, 2021, 10:16 AM »

Quite a few guys on south bay this morning. The rest of the lake is starting to skim over.Hoping to get out,later today.

Iceassin · « **Reply #8 on:** Jan 10, 2021, 05:19 AM »

Quote from: smeltbuster on Jan 06, 2021, 12:28 PM

1st. ice report: South bay is locked up but I could not get on. still too thin.Have some potential bad news. The access at the south end is still available to use, however, there is a barricade & a sign stating that no sleds or snowmobiles are allowed. This has been put there,by the new owner of the store. I fear that some slobs will tear it down or remove sections of the split rail fence so they can get sleds down to the lake. We are 1 step away from loosing the only access on the south end of the lake. We lost the salon on 2nd. bay 3 yrs. ago. Its gonna happen,just a matter of when.The lake is down about 2-3' because they are replacing the dam on Gull creek. Refilling is scheduled to start in a couple of weeks. The lake is locked up to about 2/3 up 2nd. bay. The rest of the lake is wide open. They are also now plowing the snow at Baseline rd. right down to the lake,thus making it very hard to gain access there. About a 3' high snow bank blocking the access. Going to call Ross & Prarieville Twps. about this problem.Slobs have been messing it up for so many years,the landowners are probably trying to shut those access sites down. If you fish south bay,make sure to go in the store & buy something & thank them for the access to the lake. I am going to stop in & ask about doing the garbage can on the dock again. We really need to be careful about this one.

Hey smeltbuster? When you say NO SLEDS do you mean the Jet Sled types that you pull by hand? Just curious.

smeltbuster · « **Reply #9 on:** Jan 10, 2021, 08:15 AM »

Quote from: Iceassin on Jan 10, 2021, 05:19 AM

Hey smeltbuster? When you say NO SLEDS do you mean the Jet Sled types that you pull by hand? Just curious.

Thats what I am assuming,considering that there is a Barricade /fence that they built across, where you walk down. It says Pedestrians only, & is only wide enough to walk through. There are guys out there right now w/ sleds. I plan to go very light,when I go & will carry a small Jet sled & my gear down to the lake.The sign is was put up by the landowner. Its not like there is a lakewide ban on sleds. Dont know the reasoning for it,but I will try to find out.

smeltbuster · « **Reply #10 on:** Jan 10, 2021, 08:58 AM »

Watching the baycam this morning. Lots of Trespassing going on.

Jaybes · « **Reply #11 on:** Jan 10, 2021, 09:33 AM »

Had a decent first night on the ice last night. Crappie were tight lipped but managed a few. The small smelt are back in the Bay again this year & stole quite a bit of my bait last night. Saw a couple small Pike brought in on tip ups but not keepers.

I went out when the crowds were gone, and I gotta say I was pretty disgusted with the amount of trash left on the ice after one day of fishing. Not a good start to the year.

Iceassin · « **Reply #12 on:** Jan 10, 2021, 02:36 PM »

Quote from: Jaybes on Jan 10, 2021, 09:33 AM

Had a decent first night on the ice last night. Crappie were tight lipped but managed a few. The small smelt are back in the Bay again this year & stole quite a bit of my bait last night. Saw a couple small Pike brought in on tip ups but not keepers.

I went out when the crowds were gone, and I gotta say I was pretty disgusted with the amount of trash left on the ice after one day of fishing. Not a good start to the year.

Imagine that

A******s!!!

Smeltman · « **Reply #13 on:** Jan 10, 2021, 06:08 PM »

People really need to get a clue about the trash. Most lakes that I fish aren't that bad. Gull seems to be one of the worst, I figured it was because of the drunks with smelt fishing at night. I guess I'm wrong. They are ruining it for all of us. Just plan old SLOBS

smeltbuster · « **Reply #14 on:** Jan 10, 2021, 07:43 PM »

Hey Smeltman "HI"! I just got home from my 1st. smelt trip of the year, on south bay. I had Fun! never had a bite,didn't mark anything but it was still good to get out. Lots of holes out there & very little trash tonight. I was the only one trying for smelt. There were 3 guys Crappie fishing,but I dont think they were doin much. Hoping to get on 2nd. bay in a couple of days. Also, for any of you that want to get some of those Gull Lake Smelt Flies,they are available at the following places. The Outdoorsman Pro shop in Jenison, Bargain world in Hudsonville,Kens sport shop in Delton, Gull Lake Party store on the North end (also excellent Indian food), Capt. Mo's on South bay & D&R Sports in Kalamazoo. I will also be selling them on the ice if you can find me ! NFS in Battle Creek. Message me if you are in the area & want some. Hoping to start posting more nightly reports. Also, about 3 1/2"-4" of ice on the bay.

wmu1989 · « **Reply #15 on:** Jan 11, 2021, 04:51 PM »

Quote from: Iceassin on Jan 10, 2021, 02:36 PM

Imagine that A******s!!!

The scumbags that are littering the ice won't stop because we tell them to do so on this forum. They probably can't figure out how to turn a computer on let alone find this forum.

smeltbuster · « **Reply #16 on:** Jan 11, 2021, 06:11 PM »

Quote from: wmu1989 on Jan 11, 2021, 04:51 PM

The scumbags that are littering the ice won't stop because we tell them to do so on this forum. They probably can't figure out how to turn a computer on let alone find this forum.

OH believe me, they can see & respond to this stuff. Posted something on a FB page yesterday about all the trespassing going on out there. Some of the comments were absolutely disgusting. I am no longer on that page. From the responses I got, I figure south bay will be shut down w/ in 2 yrs. if not this year. The loosers think that Gull is a public lake & they can go across any property to get on it. They are going to find out that is not the case. Maybe a trespass ticket will change their minds. Just sayin..............

wmu1989 · « **Reply #17 on:** Jan 11, 2021, 08:03 PM »

Quote from: smeltbuster on Jan 11, 2021, 06:11 PM

OH believe me, they can see & respond to this stuff. Posted something on a FB page yesterday about all the trespassing going on out there. Some of the comments were absolutely disgusting. I am no longer on that age. From the responses I got, I figure south bay will be shut down w/ in 2 yrs. if not this year. The loosers think that Gull is a public lake & they can go across any property to get on it. They are going to find out that is not the case. Maybe a trespass ticket will change their minds. Just sayin..............

My point is the losers aren't going to stop just because we tell them to do so on this forum. They are big time losers and just don't care. You just can't fix stupid. Luckily I have access, but still their actions piss me off.

smeltbuster · « **Reply #18 on:** Jan 11, 2021, 08:44 PM »

Quote from: wmu1989 on Jan 11, 2021, 08:03 PM

My point is the losers aren't going to stop just because we tell them to do so on this forum. They are big time losers and just don't care. You just can't fix stupid. Luckily I have access, but still their actions piss me off.

I agree. the store access is my only spot on the south end. I dont really fish there very much. Just sad too see so much disrespect. We have lost so many access points the past 20 yrs. because of slobs. They just dont care. I was really surprised to see that the barricade was still up yesterday. The baycam also showed lots of guys walking on @ the Jaqua dock. Very few guys have permission to do that. Pretty sad.

Jaybes · « **Reply #19 on:** Jan 11, 2021, 09:20 PM »

Quote from: smeltbuster on Jan 11, 2021, 08:44 PM

I agree. the store access is my only spot on the south end. I dont really fish there very much. Just sad too see so much disrespect. We have lost so many access points the past 20 yrs. because of slobs. They just dont care. I was really surprised to see that the barricade was still up yesterday. The baycam also showed lots of guys walking on @ the Jaqua dock. Very few guys have permission to do that. Pretty sad.

I talked to a few guys on the ice today and I can tell you that barricade they have up is the reason many are trespassing at Jaqua...they can't get their flip shanty's over the barricade. It's no excuse for trespassing, but that's likely the reason we're seeing more people getting on an Jaqua.

The barricade is intended to keep snowmobilers away, but in my opinion that's pretty silly because in the decades I've been fishing the south bay I can count on one hand how many snowmobiles I've seen get on there! There's one guy with a SnowDog that occasionally gets on there, but that's about it.

FYI I caught ONE smelt tonight in South Bay. One.

smeltbuster · « **Reply #20 on:** Jan 11, 2021, 10:33 PM »

Never seen a snowmobile come down those steps. As for catching a smelt tonight; You Da Man

. I am going to try for 2nd. bay Tues. nite. Maybe I can catch 2

.

Hardwater1109 · « **Reply #21 on:** Jan 13, 2021, 12:47 PM »

Hey Smeltbuster, always appreciate you dropping your knowledge. We will be heading out on Saturday to search for some smelt and lakers. If you made it out to the second bay, how much ice was out there? Just curious, do you find any luck prior to dusk? I had my daughter on the ice a few years ago, hoping for some gills, and she caught her first smelt at 4pm! Here's to a great season!

smeltbuster · « **Reply #22 on:** Jan 13, 2021, 01:00 PM »

Hoping to try for 2nd. bay tonight. Trying to get someone to go w/ me in case I have issues. Fished for Gills yesterday on south bay & had no luck. There is about 4" on south bay. As for smelt biting before dark: YES it happens especially on cloudy days. Usually the last 1 1/2 hrs. of daylight, On bottom. I would'nt get your hopes up too high for lakers. There are still a few in there. If you try for them on 2nd. bay,use shiners 1/2 way down to bottom in 50' + depths. The rest of the lake is pretty much locked up but still unsafe. Checked the bible conf. yesterday & there were still a few open pockets of water. Also checked out the new dam on Gull Creek. Looks like it will be a while before it is done. The lake level should remain low until it is done. Dont know what will happen to the ice, once it starts coming back up. One more thing on the smelt: I marked a TON of baitfish this past summer while trolling. Hopefully ,most of them were smelt. Did catch 1 Laker this year. Potted out & full of smelt & plastics.

dfman · « **Reply #23 on:** Jan 13, 2021, 01:11 PM »

According to the website, the spillway will be opened up on 01/25.

smeltbuster · « **Reply #24 on:** Jan 13, 2021, 08:37 PM »

Quote from: dfman on Jan 13, 2021, 01:11 PM

According to the website, the spillway will be opened up on 01/25.

Thank you sir ! Forgot about the website. As for fishing 2nd. bay tonight, No Way. There is a very defined line in the ice at the narrows between South & 2nd. bays. The ice on the north side is JUNK. Tried it in 3 different spots & my spud went thru w/ 1-2 wacks about 18"-24" north of the line. Did hear of 2 guys walking out there last night & they told a guy that they shouldn't have done it. They did catch some smelt, I was told. I did get some nice gills tonight on south bay. They were biting pretty good for me & another guy. I will keep checking the ice on the lake @ access points. As for now,it will be at least 2-3 weeks before the north end is ready. Thats if Ma Nature cooperates.

smeltbuster · « **Reply #25 on:** Jan 16, 2021, 07:23 PM »

Quick update; A fair amount of the lake is opened back up,but should lock up this week. South bay is fishable but use caution. Fishing is spotty. I had 2 afternoons of decent gill fishing. Today,lots of dinks & no keepers. Seen 2 guys walk on 2nd. bay tonight from south bay. Dont know how they made it out there,but they did. I checked it 3 days ago & it was bad. Everyone was watching them to see if they were going to get wet. I will keep posting every few days on what I find. Also, Gull Lake Smelt Flies are now available @ Smitty's sport shop in Battle Creek, in the Urbandale area, near the M-37 & M-89 intersection. This makes 7 busineses that are now carrying them. Coming next year: 5 fly & 2 fly pre tied rigs, w/ a snap swivel to add a Hali. Hoping to get the flies into other parts of the state, but its a 1 man operation ran by a guy that loves to hunt & fish.Sometimes that messes w/ production !

Smeltman · « **Reply #26 on:** Jan 17, 2021, 01:32 PM »

Thanks Smeltbuster for your report. I am itching to get down there. I might have to wait for the north end to get enough ice. Or come down and start knocking on some doors to get access on the south end.

dfman · « **Reply #27 on:** Jan 19, 2021, 11:18 AM »

Lots of guys on the bay cam today. Anyone e doing any good?

sparky13 · « **Reply #28 on:** Jan 21, 2021, 08:00 PM »

Has anyone been out to see if the ice is holding up for this weekend?

dfman · « **Reply #29 on:** Jan 22, 2021, 07:59 AM »

Quote from: sparky13 on Jan 21, 2021, 08:00 PM

Has anyone been out to see if the ice is holding up for this weekend?

While I am stuck at work, I'm watching a bout 6 guys on the south bay fishing right now.

News:

Author Topic: Gull Lake 2021 (Read 19446 times)