Burt Lake Conditions

[Swedish Pimp]

Any word on Burt lake conditions would be greatly appreciated.

[icefishman]

I'm sure Burt is fine had friends out there last week an there was 15" of ice. Call Pat&Garys party and bait in Indian River if you'd like though.

[04EDGE40]

I just called Pat & Gary's and was told that Mullett is looking rough but Burt is better. There are only a few places to get on safely, but 10" still when you get out. She thought it was tightening back up with the weather the last couple days and into this week.

If anyone goes out there this weekend and can offer more info it would be appreciated!

[04EDGE40]

Anyone have any last minute updates on the conditions at Burt or Mullett?

We head tomorrow.

[04EDGE40]

I hit up Burt Lake today off of Hoppies. Plenty of ice out there. We saw half a dozen quads and a truck. I wouldn't risk the truck, but there was definitely enough for a quad. We went a couple hundred yards out from the launch and were on 11 inches of good ice with 3 inches of bad ice on top. Marked a ton of fish between 18-20 feet but didn't get one bite in 2 hours  . If anyone knows what the fish are biting on let me know! We'll be back out bright and early.

[jdgambler2]

fish longer than 2 hours !!!

[04EDGE40]

Ha we got there too late day one.

[DaveSS1]

Do any good day 2?  Burt can be a very humbling lake.  You can get on the fish one day and get skunked the next.  Set a tip up on the deeper structure and utilize as many set ups as you can as you can find the fish.  I typically will drill a second hole, 5-10' away from my tip up or automatic fisherman so if you do locate a school you can quickly jump in with your jigging rod and pick off the school.  Between the mobile dead stick (automatic fisherman/jawjacker,etc.) and your jigging rod you can cover a decent size flat in several hours if you are motivated.  The tip up set in deeper water I will rarely move, but the dead stick or mobile tipup will get moved as needed but usually close enough to my jigging setup so that I can keep any eye on whats going on.  Hope this all makes as I am writing this after a long day of work..

[WestSideAl8x8]

Headed to Burt tomorrow. Never fished it before. Where can you get on the ice, and what areas should we try for perch?

[04EDGE40]

Do any good day 2?  Burt can be a very humbling lake.  You can get on the fish one day and get skunked the next.  Set a tip up on the deeper structure and utilize as many set ups as you can as you can find the fish.  I typically will drill a second hole, 5-10' away from my tip up or automatic fisherman so if you do locate a school you can quickly jump in with your jigging rod and pick off the school.  Between the mobile dead stick (automatic fisherman/jawjacker,etc.) and your jigging rod you can cover a decent size flat in several hours if you are motivated.  The tip up set in deeper water I will rarely move, but the dead stick or mobile tipup will get moved as needed but usually close enough to my jigging setup so that I can keep any eye on whats going on.  Hope this all makes as I am writing this after a long day of work..

Day 2 was a joke. We got stuck in blizzard conditions and had to hunker down fast. I set us up on the spot that was marking on day one, but that was all the further we could get. We marked a dozen fish all day. Unfortunately we couldn't move with 2 inches of snow an hour and 20-30 mph winds. Getting off the lake was a nightmare pulling a sled through nearly 16 inches of light snow. We had to use my GPS to get off the lake because you could see about 25 feet in front of your nose. All in all a failed trip. We still had a good time, but the conditions made for a nightmare day 2 and we had to abandon day 3 due to the snow. I really don't think a quad could get out there today. A local guy said it was the worst storm he's seen in a while, so this weekend could be a no go if anyone is thinking about it. Another guy said he only got one fish all day, so the bite is definitely off. Thanks for the tips though!

[04EDGE40]

Headed to Burt tomorrow. Never fished it before. Where can you get on the ice, and what areas should we try for perch?

I would call Pat and Gary's before you go and see if the snow has packed at all. You'll have a very hard time with the amount of snow if it's still light.

[DaveSS1]

Day 2 was a joke. We got stuck in blizzard conditions and had to hunker down fast. I set us up on the spot that was marking on day one, but that was all the further we could get. We marked a dozen fish all day. Unfortunately we couldn't move with 2 inches of snow an hour and 20-30 mph winds. Getting off the lake was a nightmare pulling a sled through nearly 16 inches of light snow. We had to use my GPS to get off the lake because you could see about 25 feet in front of your nose. All in all a failed trip. We still had a good time, but the conditions made for a nightmare day 2 and we had to abandon day 3 due to the snow. I really don't think a quad could get out there today. A local guy said it was the worst storm he's seen in a while, so this weekend could be a no go if anyone is thinking about it. Another guy said he only got one fish all day, so the bite is definitely off. Thanks for the tips though!

That also sounds about right...welcome to Northern MI...Burt can be brutal with snow drifts as well.  A few years back the lake was almost unfishable due to deep snow drifts and slush pits that would swallow up your machine.  Was out on the north end in a white out going through 3-5' drifts and we managed to roll over into a slush pit.  He had to radio someone for backup so we could jack up the machine and heat/beat the frozen slush off the track on his almost 10k machine.....no fish were caught that day and I gained a lot of respect for that lake.

[DaveSS1]

Headed to Burt tomorrow. Never fished it before. Where can you get on the ice, and what areas should we try for perch?

There is a few public access points.  Maple bay on the west side is where a lot of people go this time of year for perch  The inner part of the bay is only 8-12' deep and tends to hold more weeds.  As you get outside the bay it drops off deeper and there is a slight flat out there. The other place to launch would be at the state park on the southeast side.  I know the perch will gather at the outlet/channel of the Indian river just north of the launch and around the corner from the point but I would imagine the ice might not be good there with the current.  I have done well in a boat there early spring.  The other place that holds perch would be the far north end.  I honestly don't remember if there was a launch there as we hammered down from the access point at White goose bay where 04edge accessed.  I hope this helps.  I am sure there is someone that lives up there that can provide better insight as I have only been up there a few times on the ice and some during the summer.

[WestSideAl8x8]

Thanks for the pointers. I have an 8x8 tracked Argo so deep snow isn't much of an issue.

[Swedish Pimp]

Oh I've seen an Argo stuck on Burt.

[Swedish Pimp]

We will be on the lake in the morning.Better bring your sled if your coming.

[Swedish Pimp]

There is a quad out here. Snow is still light and fluffy. Small areas of slush starting

[Gillhunter97]

Anybody know where they're getting out from? We've been going to Ellington and that is crap. Any help would be great!

[04EDGE40]

Anybody know where they're getting out from? We've been going to Ellington and that is crap. Any help would be great!

I was under the impression from locals that Hoppies was one of the few places still safe to access from. Maple Bay is reportedly prettybad, but I couldn't tell you first hand. Not sure about the DNR access.

[Swedish Pimp]

Whole lake was being fished by a high number of anglers on Saturday. Vehicle traffic in all areas.

[WestSideAl8x8]

We put on at Maple Bay. 14" of ice, with a 3" layer of slush on top. Fishing was good, but not a lot of keepers.

[Dosterma]

Does any know what the ice condition are like at Maple Bay?