Global warming it’s here

[Ice max]

Every year I get excited for the ice season, every year it’s less and less ice on the south shore.  There are so (MANY) great places around here but it’s the same thing. It’s cold for like a week or more and we just start getting sum ice and here comes the rain and the warm weather and it wipe’s out the ice over and over again. I know you can travel north for ice, it’s what we do now but it really sucks around here lately. BRING On THE COLD 👍👍👍

[SalmonAndStriper Stalker]

I agree. People call me nuts when I say I'm heading south for ice but they don't realize the fishing is that much better down there.

[bigfoot86]

Years past we had weeks of cold weather.  Doesn’t seem to be the case anymore.  That’s why I stopped winterizing my boat.

[mikez]

This past decade we have definitely had some tough (for ice fishing) winters, interspersed with a few normal ones.

I can't speak to long term (centuries or more), but in my ice fishing career, my average first trip was Christmas Eve. I mean local, not travel.
A few winters in the 80s were so cold, I ice fished the deep pools of the brooks.
Fishing before Christmas wasn't unheard of, fishing through the end of March as well.
And again, I'm talking local to me. I know guys out west do better for ice, as do those with high elevation spots. In recent years, local to me has been a crap shoot with first trips well into January and last trip in February.

[TheJigginJerk]

The long range forecast doesn’t show any really cold weather coming. The ice may never happen this season in south east MA. The ice was getting close to safe before this warm up.

[Papa Sly]

Im not sure I have fished 8 times already and 5 days straight. Was out on 9 1/2 inches yeaterday and needed a day off but will be out tomorrow. You have to spend the time to look for good ice and I am lucky to be retired.

[Sam Gee]

Im not sure I have fished 8 times already and 5 days straight. Was out on 9 1/2 inches yeaterday and needed a day off but will be out tomorrow. You have to spend the time to look for good ice and I am lucky to be retired.

5 days straight!! Quit braggin 

[Gansett]

Wasn't uncommon to ice fish before Christmas or hunt deer on Saturday and ice fish Sunday during shotgun season.

Those days have been long gone.

[TheJigginJerk]

Im not sure I have fished 8 times already and 5 days straight. Was out on 9 1/2 inches yeaterday and needed a day off but will be out tomorrow. You have to spend the time to look for good ice and I am lucky to be retired.

Those places with 9” should have 18” of ice by now.

[ronbgood55]

I remember in the 1960's of going out an shooting a deer here in Mass and going out that same week and ice fish in the Valley an getting a bucket of Gills/Perch to go along with the deer heart. It's not just Global Warming its DEEPER than that.....all those FLYING OBJECTS and The Ones Flying Around the SUN ...Washington has said noting about?  Remember That guy from England ...the big brain guy..Hawkins...He said "We will be visited by some people from outer space and, we better come out shooting in/about 2025.   "?"?" Thats almost HERE...Take care guys.

[Infiniti]

This conversation always goes around in circles with 50% of us saying there's tons of ice if you look for it and 50% of us saying there hasn't been good ice in 30 years. The fact of the matter is that this is a diverse state with high elevation on one end and an ocean on the other. People insinuating that others are just too lazy to find ice or that people are lying about what they have found would do well to remember that. As far as global warming is concerned thats not a can of worms I feel like opening, all I will say is that its way more complicated than people seem to think. We are technically still at the tail end of the last ice age, think about that. I'm not a climate change denier but the temperatures on this planet always have and always will fluctuate.

[rmoody79]

I have lived on the south shore and cape my entire life, 43yrs, on the cape as a child it was never a guarantee to have any ice, I had a home on ashumet in mashpee and probably ice fished on it 5 times my entire life.  In 2015, there was more ice than I have ever seen on the south coast and cape, enough to drive a car on.  20in in Plymouth, over a foot in sandwich, 6in+ in Orleans.  That was the latest I have ever ice fished, mass pike and I were drilling through 12in of ice well into March on peters pond.  That is the extreme exception, having little ice or no ice is the norm down here.  The ocean is still almost 50 degrees, guys are tuna fishing still right now, hard to make ice down here when the ocean is 50 warming the air all day.

[IceDog88]

The weather certainly has changed over the years and for the past 10 years it has definitely warmed up in the winters on average 5 degrees above normal. That is very disappointing for those who love to ice fish and can be very short when there are other obligations that we have to deal with and the weather changes for the worst when we have the opportunity.
But, I do remember ice fishing in the early 70s and 80s being on the ice fishing at Thanksgiving and fish well into March. Now, I try to make it out as best that I can and hope for the weather to cooperate. Best of luck to everyone who can get out and enjoy.

[SalmonAndStriper Stalker]

Earliest I have ever ice fished I'm mass in my short life is Thanksgiving day. Some years we get it and some years we don't.

[FishingNewEngland]

Every year I get excited for the ice season, every year it’s less and less ice on the south shore.  There are so (MANY) great places around here but it’s the same thing. It’s cold for like a week or more and we just start getting sum ice and here comes the rain and the warm weather and it wipe’s out the ice over and over again. I know you can travel north for ice, it’s what we do now but it really sucks around here lately. BRING On THE COLD 👍👍👍

Yep. Feel the same way. I'm in Norton, and the Reservoir is wide open....

[mikez]

We fished a trout pond open water yesterday, no where near the south shore. There were tons of people fishing including kayaks. Was like a spring day. Bizarre.

[teamtip-up]

It is depressing.   Went from cape ice nearly every year from mid 70’s thru early 80’s to cape ice being a unicorn today.   

Used to be Cars/trucks on ice nearly every year on Nippenicket in Bridgewater.  Lucky now to walk on it a few days a year.

Doubt anybody will be driving on the Cheshires and pontussacs until Feb if there lucky.   A misplaced snow storm and they might not even be safe for walking again until then. 

[Rangerboats391]

simply....it is what it is

[pmaloney86]

I blame the beavers....

https://www.yahoo.com/news/photos-space-show-11-000-221546256.html

[rdhammah]

typically, after this month, it starts to warm up. Last year was a short season around here at 5-6 weeks. I never thought that we wouldn't have a season at all.

[lowaccord66]

Oh well.  The boat fishing has been fantastic.

[SalmonAndStriper Stalker]

I put the ice gear away. I honestly don't think we will get much of a season and the places I want to fish won't get any ice at all. Trout are passing the time for me

[BogMan]

Was just looking back in my planner book and at this time last year we had a banner year on the ice. Got so many perch every time I dreaded going home to clean them. Still have a few in the freezer we gotta eat.