Update on the trip my father in law and I took to Granby area. We went up Tuesday in a blinding snow storm. Had to wait at Berthoud Pass for the road crew trying to trigger avalanches with the cannons. That took an hour or so. Got up at Lake Granby at about 10am. Wind was whipping incredibly bad. Decided to find a bait shop to get advice. Ended up at one, can't remember the name, in Grand Lake. The guy running the shop was a great help. Turns out he guides, so he has my dream job. I would like to guide also, but I am pretty sure you have to be able to catch fish to guide. He told us where to go at Grand Lake to catch some fish. Saw a marine map in his shop of Grand Lake and Granby. Grand Lake is very deep, 270 ft, and it drops off very fast. My father in law and I were about 20 yards from the shore. It was about 14 feet. The guide came out and ran his snow machine after I told him that there was a lot of water/slush and snow on the ice. I knew it was safe, but my father in law who had never ice fished was a little unnerved. I fell in a hole that the guide had drilled the day before. Got one leg wet up to the knee. Showed my father in law that there was at least 16 inches of ice. The eskimo shelter I have had for the past five years broke and was half way collapsed. There was little wind at Grand Lake, that is why we fished there. It was still very, very cold and snow was blowing into the shelter which could not zip closed because it was broke. Used meal worms, raw shrimp, and night crawlers but only caught one little brown about ten inches. Used jigging raps, cast masters, and tube jigs. Got bites on every kind of bait used, but mostly nibbles. It was caught by the father in law, and that made me happy that he didn't get skunked like I did. I did lose two fish at the hole, and got many bites. Fished until about 330 and then went to the Trail Riders Motel. I was very pleased with that place. The rooms were awesome, reasonably priced, and the owners were really nice people. Call ahead for reservations.
Wednesday, morning we decided that we wanted to go to Williams Fork Res. We learned that you can keep up to 8 Lakers a day, and they also have a healthy population of Rainbows and Browns. You would think that being allowed to keep 8 a day fishing might be good because the fish are overpopulated. Well, it might be because there is so much bait in the Reservoir that the fish don't bite so well. That is why they are overpopulated. I have seen that many times. This is getting a little long, I know. Fished in 40 feet of water, had to walk about a 1/4 mile to get there. The weather was spectacular. Chilly at first but not a breath of wind up till we left at 11am. Learned from another fisherman that the fish had been biting very well in 14 feet depth close to shore (Rainbows and Browns), and that the Lakers hung out in 40 ft of water. The biggest rainbow I ever caught through the ice was only in three feet of water, that is a story for another time. Williams Fork is supposedly 40ft deep at the deepest point. There were about six people on the other side of the lake. They had to walk over a mile to get where they were. That must have been the spot. Too far away to see if they were catching anything. My father in law did not want to walk that far in the horrible slushy conditions. I didn't care to either. The ice is still really thick under the slush, so no worries there. Didn't see but a couple fish on the fish finder, and just a couple nibbles and that was it. It sucked, but still better than sitting at home.
Did order a new shelter, a Frabill. Can't wait to get back up there and try again. I might go to Granby weather permitting next time.
A little side note about using shrimp. I started using raw shrimp when I lived in Alaska, and it works well. The more you let it get stinky, the more you seem to get bites. Lol, I use the same bag of shrimp usually all Winter or until I can't stand the smell anymore. Just leave it out of the fridge for a day or so, and put it into a zip lock baggy. Use it and refreeze what you don't use and thaw it out again next time. The shrimp that has not been peeled or cleaned works best, but it is hard to find here. Make sure you don't get the cooked kind.
I have never used sucker meat, and I will probably try it because fishermen say it works well for Lakers. I know shrimp works well also from using it over the years, but you also have to be over fish to get bites.
Fishing was slow, bites were lethargic at best, and slushy conditions from the new snow that fell. I want to thank everybody that posts on this site and gives advice and ice conditions. I have ice fished all my life, but will always be open to suggestions and gladly accept any advice from other anglers.
