Willoughby Ice Conditions

[thefishingweatherman]

Anyone been by Willoughby lately? Curious how the ice is looking. I imagine it's not quite completely frozen over, but perhaps there's some ice on the north and south ends by now?

[keithm87]

It locked up saturday, reports are that there are shacks north end off the beach, and that there is 5 inches by the boat launch. Willo builds quick. I would be cautious out in the deep water south of the launch as that was the area that locked up last.

[seymourbass]

As of Saturday 1/12/19  1:30 PM I saw :

 chunky refrozen ice from south beach 3/4's of the way to Devils rock

 then open water to just north of the brook that comes off Pisgah

 Chunky refozen ice from there to Mill brook.

Open spots in front of Mill Brook and slightly north of State Access
 
North of Grey rock looks like virgin ice without chunks.

[Fishingvermont]

willoughby was more than half open water on saturday morning with no shanties anywhere near the lake. maybe a bunch of shanty's showed up in the afternoon and another quarter of the lake froze during the day but i doubt it. There was open water 200 yards strait out from the boat launch so i doubt there's 5 inches of ice there.

[TRT]

Willy opening day ice take your spud. I walked out one morning opening day 20 years ago.
Ice was good on shore an about 20 yards off shore it changed color not easy at night to pick up the change.
As I approached the color change my bro kept telling me in the wind/cold its open?
There was a 50 foot stretch the blew out about 3 feet wide. Black ice can be tough to read...
 

[thefishingweatherman]

Thanks for the reports guys! Think I'll steer clear of there this weekend.

[Light liner]

I was planning fishing willy this weekend but the ice isnt safe yet.
And more snow to hurt what ice we have.

[keithm87]

It was -20 there on Sunday morning and didn’t clear barely broke 0 all day. The sat images and reports on Facebook are that its locked end to end. It set sometime Saturday into Sunday. Sunday night was again -15 that cold will build 3 inches of ice in 12 hours from skim ice. We have had cold since it froze, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it was all of 5-7 inches out off the access, BUT I wouldn’t want to be the first to check it either.

[thefishingweatherman]

It was -20 there on Sunday morning and didn’t clear barely broke 0 all day. The sat images and reports on Facebook are that its locked end to end. It set sometime Saturday into Sunday. Sunday night was again -15 that cold will build 3 inches of ice in 12 hours from skim ice. We have had cold since it froze, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it was all of 5-7 inches out off the access, BUT I wouldn’t want to be the first to check it either.

Sweet! Good to know! That lake scares the crap out of me till there's at least a solid 8 inches or so. I'll give it a couple more weeks. 

[keithm87]

I fish champlain in the summer a lot out in the 400FOW, with 3-4 foot waves sometimes, and I have never taken the boat to willo because it scares me. It is a VERY intimidating waterbody, the way the wind can pick up there is crazy, the big mountains on both sides, the insane cliff drop offs underwater, 30ft from shore in 180 FOW... Definitely a lake you don't want to take a polar plunge in, they may never find you if you do. But the locals seem to REALLY trust the ice that builds there, full size trucks on 7-8 inches of ice.

[TRT]

Dudes - no way a lake makes 3 inches of ice in 12 hours at -20 thats total crap.
I've been on Willy first ice and she made a good inch from 2.25 inches to 3.50+ in a
long weekend at sub zero temps.

The knuckleheads went across the lake with a four wheeler that Sat morning.
I stopped 100 yards from shore.

I will post ice conditions I find on Willy & Seymour Monday (no service up there). 

[FreshwaterPhil]

Was thinking of coming down to VT to chase lakers on Willoughby and/or Seymore in a few weeks, as I've never ice fished in VT yet. In general, are they caught jigging with flashers, or live baited tip ups? How crowded do these lakes get on weekdays?

[keithm87]

 
I have found this to be fairly accurate and matches most other sources for growth of ice by temp. A lot of variables, but I can say that in 2014 in a 3 day cold snap on Champlain the inland sea went from open water by butler island to 12 inches of crystal clear ice. That was 3 days of -10 nights and 0 days. It was colder up in the NEK this weekend than that, and there wasn’t any snow falling, and a light breeze, that is ideal ice making conditions.



Here is another really great resource
http://lakeice.squarespace.com/ice-growth/

[keithm87]

Now if there is ANY snow cover or even frost layer it will cut growth dramatically so the areas that just froze will grow better than the areas that had been frozen and had some snow (ie in close to shore on north end)

[TRT]

Ok an presumes you have black skim ice, locks up evenly (Willoughby never locks up evenly with the wind) and have constant -15 or 20 below for
a 24 period..

Suggest walking out with a heavy spud rather than relying on tables. Two years steady cold and access area had $hty ice for
couple weeks. 

I've advocated walking out with a heavy spud for years. As I always set up in the dark for trout..

[jmaster69]

I wish I could get a straightforward answer. Half people say don't even think about it while the other half is saying there are shantys, theres no problem... With the front coming I want to be sure. Anyone have a credible actual UP TO DATE report. Not from last week or last year but TODAY

[Light liner]

If your not sure, dont take the chance. All kidding aside its a very
Dangerous lake for ice fishing.
Please be safe

[jmaster69]

Exactly why we are hoping to find a legitimate accurate report. There are shantys on the north end by the beach but it is only a few feet deep for a good 100 feet out. So its only normal that be frozen...

I am hearing more negative than positive... sounding like a no go

[thefishingweatherman]

Was thinking of coming down to VT to chase lakers on Willoughby and/or Seymore in a few weeks, as I've never ice fished in VT yet. In general, are they caught jigging with flashers, or live baited tip ups? How crowded do these lakes get on weekdays?

Both. Last year I landed a nice laker in 3 feet of water on a roe bag on a tip up. Thought for sure it was a rainbow till I got it to the hole! Jigging is my usual tactic though. It can be busy at the north and south ends especially, but that's cause that's where the safest ice usually is, and some would say, the best fishing. The mid parts of the lake drop off super deep extremely quick, and ice can be really sketchy. It can be fairly crowded at the north and south ends, but it's not usually that hard to find your own space away from the crowds. It's a big lake. Nice thing is that if the ice isn't safe in a couple weeks, you have a number of other nearby lakes that will, such as Crystal, Shadow, Echo, Seymour.

[FreshwaterPhil]

Both. Last year I landed a nice laker in 3 feet of water on a roe bag on a tip up. Thought for sure it was a rainbow till I got it to the hole! Jigging is my usual tactic though. It can be busy at the north and south ends especially, but that's cause that's where the safest ice usually is, and some would say, the best fishing. The mid parts of the lake drop off super deep extremely quick, and ice can be really sketchy. It can be fairly crowded at the north and south ends, but it's not usually that hard to find your own space away from the crowds. It's a big lake. Nice thing is that if the ice isn't safe in a couple weeks, you have a number of other nearby lakes that will, such as Crystal, Shadow, Echo, Seymour.

Thank you for the tips. I know some of those lakes hold monster lakers, which is what I hope to land. OK, realistically, I'll be very happy to hit anything double digit. Are there good numbers of big sizes in these lakes, or is it mainly smaller ones with the odd monster?

[thefishingweatherman]

Thank you for the tips. I know some of those lakes hold monster lakers, which is what I hope to land. OK, realistically, I'll be very happy to hit anything double digit. Are there good numbers of big sizes in these lakes, or is it mainly smaller ones with the odd monster?

They all vary, but the average sized fish on Willoughby is probably the largest, and it also holds the state record. Average sized fish for me there is in the 20 to 24" range.

[FreshwaterPhil]

They all vary, but the average sized fish on Willoughby is probably the largest, and it also holds the state record. Average sized fish for me there is in the 20 to 24" range.

We get a ton of those up here, unfortunately the season is closed up here all winter for lakers. The ones I do catch are accidental while fishing for perch, rainbows or browns. Planning the trip for mid February, figuring ice should be safe then. Are frozen smelt legal for bait to tip spoons with in VT, or does bait have to be purchased from licensed bait shop?

[thefishingweatherman]

We get a ton of those up here, unfortunately the season is closed up here all winter for lakers. The ones I do catch are accidental while fishing for perch, rainbows or browns. Planning the trip for mid February, figuring ice should be safe then. Are frozen smelt legal for bait to tip spoons with in VT, or does bait have to be purchased from licensed bait shop?

You're in Quebec right? Is it closed to lakers everywhere in the province? That really stinks if so! I imagine Memphremagog could be epic for lakers in the winter on the Canadian side... Anyways, here in VT I don't think it matters what sort of bait you use, or from where it was obtained, so long as it's dead. Someone here will correct me if I am wrong.

[FreshwaterPhil]

You're in Quebec right? Is it closed to lakers everywhere in the province? That really stinks if so! I imagine Memphremagog could be epic for lakers in the winter on the Canadian side... Anyways, here in VT I don't think it matters what sort of bait you use, or from where it was obtained, so long as it's dead. Someone here will correct me if I am wrong.

Memphremagog and Massawippi are full of them on Quebec side. Most lakes with lakers get shut down in winter, but those 2 and few others in that region are exception to the rules and other species are allowed, with lakers being incidental catches.

Good to know about the dead bait, NY has crazy strict rules, and so do we in Quebec. Your help is much appreciated, will message you if my plans come through and I make it down there in February.

[shippeevt]

We get a ton of those up here, unfortunately the season is closed up here all winter for lakers. The ones I do catch are accidental while fishing for perch, rainbows or browns. Planning the trip for mid February, figuring ice should be safe then. Are frozen smelt legal for bait to tip spoons with in VT, or does bait have to be purchased from licensed bait shop?

you can use only bait bought from a valid bait shop. If you use smelt they need to be caught on that body of water and not transported off...

[fishingidjit]

We get a ton of those up here, unfortunately the season is closed up here all winter for lakers. The ones I do catch are accidental while fishing for perch, rainbows or browns. Planning the trip for mid February, figuring ice should be safe then. Are frozen smelt legal for bait to tip spoons with in VT, or does bait have to be purchased from licensed bait shop?

All bait must be from a VT bait dealer OR caught on the body of water you are on and used that day-no transporting those fish caught on any body of water off the ice.

[thefishingweatherman]

All bait must be from a VT bait dealer OR caught on the body of water you are on and used that day-no transporting those fish caught on any body of water off the ice.

I'm pretty sure that applies to live bait only. I believe dead baitfish can be used from anywhere.

[SoVT Troutbum]

Any bait used in Vermont must either by harvested from the body of water you wish to fish or purchased from a commercial dealer specifically for that body of water. This applies to dead fish as well. You also can not bring in bait fish from other states/provinces unless it is commercially processed (does not need to be frozen or refrigerated) and raised in a hatchery approved by VT fish and wildlife. These rules are pretty clear in the Vermont fish and wildlife fishing guide...

[keithm87]

Only commercially available dead bait can be used on waterbodies. You cant catch a smelt on on one lake and kill it and go to another body with it legally.

5.2.3 "Baitfish" means fish species and parts thereof, living or dead, used

for the purpose of attracting and catching fish.

5.3.1 Personally harvested baitfish may be used only on the same

waterbody from which they were collected.


5.4.9 Commercially prepared and preserved baitfish and fish eggs

available from retail stores may be purchased and used as bait, and may

be taken home and kept for later use, provided they are retained in the

original packaging at all times.

[FreshwaterPhil]

Ok, thanks again all of you, I see we ain't the only ones with strict baitfish rules. No problem, I'll tip my jigging lures with either local bought bait or mealworms.