Fishing Lure

Happy Winter! Lake Waconia officially started its freezing process on Monday, 12/1/25. The cold temperatures this week have certainly helped the ice start getting thicker!

Today, December 4, 2025, Jimmy and Avery took a walk out to Waconia Bay and the “Walleye Hump” between the marinas to conduct ice checks. Because of our findings, we need to let you know that our bait shop and access will remain closed this weekend.

During our walk, we drilled roughly 75 holes. We found ice ranging from 3.25 inches to 5 inches overall.

The light snow we had this week covers most of the surface. This snow is insulating the ice from the extreme cold air, which is the main reason why most of the ice is still hovering around the 3.25 to 4.25-inch range. Specifically, where the snow is a little thicker, ice is 3.25 to 3.75 inches. Where the snow thins out, ice is 3.75 to 4.25 inches. Where exposed black ice is scattered with no snow, ice measured from 4.5 to 5 inches.

If you’ve driven by or around the lake this week, you likely noticed some large open water areas starting near Cemetery Reef and extending to the east and northeast side of the lake. They were steaming this morning and will hopefully cap over with ice soon. Unfortunately, birds like swans, ducks, and geese have been keeping some of these spots open. Thankfully, these aren't where most folks like to go early-season, but will need to be watched as ice continues to grow.

If you venture on the lake in the coming days, we always recommend you bring a chisel, check ice ahead of yourself and follow DNR ice safety guidelines.

We look forward to updating you next week with bait shop opening hours!

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