Fishing Lure

We headed out on the Polaris Ranger today (12/29/21) to get an ice update. We started at our access and checked some ice at and between the following areas- Waconia Bay, Under the Wires(between the island and peninsula), Center Reef, Pillsbury reef, Deep hole in Wagener’s Bay, Harm’s Point , south side of Coney Island, Cemetery Reef and then “The Walleye Hole” between the marinas. There is a fair amount of snow on most of the lake. You will see in the video attached to this post how the lake looks and how the ice thickness varies depending on how much snow is sitting on it. We found ice between 7 and 10 inches thick today. Most of the holes drilled today were in the 8 to 8 ½ inch range. 9 to 10” of ice is what we found on some of the small areas that have no snow.

It’s important to remember the springs that we marked exist and there is always a chance there are springs we haven’t found on the lake that will affect the ice. This year seems to be a very active spring year. We have marked some more small springs and bubblers in the Waconia Bay. We have noticed more gas pockets in the ice of Waconia Bay and Wagener’s Bay than most areas we have checked on the lake. If you want to err on the side of caution, waiting for thicker ice than we normally feel comfortable with isn’t a terrible idea.

We will be allowing single axle wheel houses pulled with atvs or side by sides through our access starting Friday 12/31/21. We will not be allowing cars or trucks through our access (even for shoreline parking) until ice improves more.

See you on the ice!

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