Is it worth going to un-known ...lakes/ponds?????

[ronbgood55]

I see/hear a number of ice fisherman showing pic/reports of nice catches on ponds and lakes that are un-known to me. Driiving  40-60 miles to a pond I known little about sounds bad??I just read a report out of Mich./Minn. that 122 ice fisherman had to be rescued. The  name of  the Lake was Red...there was  sollid icve but the solid ice broke away from the shore  leaving 30 FT of open water. We are not the only place on earth reporting poor ice...Japan...records from 1400...poor ice..../Finland  records ..1600  poor ice The Great Lakes ..50 yrs....poor ice. You might say what does  got to do  with going to un-known lakes/ponds to ice fish..   I remenber  a while back going to a un-known pond a punching hole s in 8" of ice and going 50 yds. beyond and with my hand auger 2 turns have water came up..that is not  a nice feeling....I found out  later that the pond was spring . feed and I found the spring. I bet you guys have  problem going to un-knuwn areas also...Take Care Guys

[stripernut]

I have always loved going to a new spot, studying the maps, picking the best spot, and figuring out the plan of attack... The harder to get to the better; open water or hard, always trying to find that underfished spot. You can ask many of my poor angling friends that I have dragged to that "Undiscovered County", but more often than not it has paid off, not just in fish but memories that will last a lifetime. Often extra care must be taken, with a spud or even other anglers. One year Will (Bait Bucket) and I drove hours North in VT (free fishing day) to fish a lake that was new to us. As the free fishing day was for 24 hours we got to this new lake at about 1 am, but we waited another hour to let the snowstorm and blinding wind let up a bit. Both Will and I had looked over the Bathymetric Charts and when we compared notes we had picked the same spot! After a LONG walk out we were set up and jigging in a Pop-Up by 2:30 am (getting little Lakers right off) The reason I am telling this story is the locals started showing up around 4 am and giving us dirty looks... It was not until around 3 that afternoon that one of the locals asked who told us out of staters were to fish (I know he was thinking MASSHOLES) and was a bit unbelieving when I told him we figured it out for ourselves. As we broke down and hoofed back in, many other anglers asked who had told us where to fish. Their attitudes left us a bit worried about our tires... Some like new spots and change, while others are happy with the "status quo". Neither is wrong, but for me, I want to see what is around the next bend, so give me the new waters, new species of fish, a new technique, a new time of day, and best of all a new tug on my line!
So, yes it is worth going to the un-known... At least it is for me.

[Ruimachado]

Love exploring new places, that's how you stay on top of your game, if you fish the same place all the time and set up on the same area every time you get lazy and don't learn new lessons.
Extremely fun chasing new species, that's what drives me everyday, I get almost obsessed with being successful, to the point where if I can't figure it out I will continue to put my time into research and on the water
As far as safety, that's the main reason I always have my spud bar, doesn't matter if it's middle of the season and there's trucks driving on the ice, I don't trust any ice I haven't checked myself, too many times I'm fishing the edge of the safe ice and people just walk past me into 2" of ice without spuding or ever checking the ice, then they freak out when they start drilling...ice is unpredictable, just because there's someone out there doesn't mean that you won't go thru, although it makes me feel a little safer when at least there's someone else on the pond, at least there's someone that will hear my shouting for help if I fall thru(don't intend to, but never know), fishing with friends on new water is usually my safety crutch, we keep some distance from each other but follow each other on the way in and out with me checking the ice in front.

[ronbgood55]

I love yesterday....new lures, new bait,etc. .  but I am talking about now  2023-2024 poor ice...not like it was 10-20 yrs. agoI go back when there were no augers and cutting a hole took some effort...And the reoport .  " Get out my hole"  meant something.   I am agery on what is hapening now   2025 does not look that good either.

[Rangerboats391]

my rule has always been, " don't leave fish, to find fish" old tournament rule. I have done all the experimenting in my younger days and have my personal favorites to fish

[ronbgood55]

good advice Ranger......I hope it sinks in before they do

[iceiceice]

I see/hear a number of ice fisherman showing pic/reports of nice catches on ponds and lakes that are un-known to me. Driiving  40-60 miles to a pond I known little about sounds bad??I just read a report out of Mich./Minn. that 122 ice fisherman had to be rescued. The  name of  the Lake was Red...there was  sollid icve but the solid ice broke away from the shore  leaving 30 FT of open water. We are not the only place on earth reporting poor ice...Japan...records from 1400...poor ice..../Finland  records ..1600  poor ice The Great Lakes ..50 yrs....poor ice. You might say what does  got to do  with going to un-known lakes/ponds to ice fish..   I remenber  a while back going to a un-known pond a punching hole s in 8" of ice and going 50 yds. beyond and with my hand auger 2 turns have water came up..that is not  a nice feeling....I found out  later that the pond was spring . feed and I found the spring. I bet you guys have  problem going to un-knuwn areas also...Take Care Guys

Makes sense we're not the only ones reporting poor ice conditions, 2023 was the warmest year globally on record. The 10 warmest years on record all occurred in the last 10 years.

When it comes to going to places that are new to you, I think its worth remembering that every place was new to you once. If you've never been to a spot, try and get some local intel ahead of time if you can, make sure you've got your spud bar and a buddy if possible, and don't be afraid to turn back if you notice the ice getting too thin. But by all means, if you're feeling the itch to check out new spots, scratch that itch. Part of what I love about fishing, and hunting for that matter, is that it gets me out into places I've never been, exploring a new-to-me piece of water and getting to know the place.

[fishermantim]

With how bad the conditions were this season, what I would do (and have done in the past) is use the open water season to explore new waters.
That way when winter roles around again you will have more options to choose from.

[BASSQUATCH]

With how bad the conditions were this season, what I would do (and have done in the past) is use the open water season to explore new waters.
That way when winter roles around again you will have more options to choose from.

That's great advice and something I've been doing for decades. Much easier getting around in the summer exploring new ponds , finding parking areas and access to places you want to try in the winter.