Have
you ever driven by a frozen lake, seen people ice fishing and wondered why on
earth are they doing that?
It’s
a pretty simple answer: Ice fishing is a fun family event. It’s often much
cheaper than skiing or snowmobiling, and if you’re lucky, you can bring home
fresh fish for dinner after spending the day getting exercise outside on the
lake.
It’s
also pretty simple to get started. All you need is a way to punch a hole in the
ice, a rod, some jigs and a little bait. Some of the tackle shops in Grand County
will rent you everything you need for a fair price, and there are great fishing
guides in the area that can shorten anyone’s learning curve.
The
first step is deciding what you want to fish for. Rainbow trout are about the
easiest to catch through the ice. They cruise the shorelines, generally in 3-15
feet of water. When they are cruising, they will eat just about anything in front
of them and they put up a fun fight.
You
can find rainbows in just about every larger body of water in the county.
However, catching brown trout through the ice can be very challenging. They
bite in very low light conditions; the cold water slows their metabolism, so
they don’t need to eat as much and they are naturally a wary fish. Kokanee
salmon are pelagic fish that like to suspend in the water column. Sonar units
are a great benefit to catching these fish. They cruise the deeper water
looking for plankton, putting flashy lures in front of them will elicit
strikes.
The
best thing about salmon is, when you find them, a meal is generally easy to
catch. Most of the reservoirs have salmon. For the trout and salmon 4-6 pound
test line, small jigs or spoons and a wax or mealworm should suffice for gear.
Lake
trout are very prevalent in a few of the larger reservoirs. Sonar helps with
these fish, but it is not absolutely necessary. Lake trout can be found
anywhere in the lake, though 40-80 feet of water seems to be the most heavily
fished depths. Fishing the entire water column helps. Using heavier line and
larger jigs tipped with sucker meat should get strikes.
Let’s
go through a few bodies of waters to try. Lake Granby is arguably the most
popular lake in the county. It can be intimidating to some anglers just because
of its size. Lake trout are abundant as are rainbows and brown trout. Kokanee
salmon are very rare. Fishing access is plentiful around the lake.
Shadow
Mountain reservoir has rainbows, browns and kokanee in it. There are some
currents in the lake that keep the ice from forming here so be careful.
Grand
Lake is a great family spot. It’s a short walk to the fishing areas, and if
people decide they want to walk into town for coffee or food, it’s right around
the corner. Rainbows, browns and lake trout can all be caught. There is some
open water around the channel and Adams Tunnel, so be aware of this.
Willow
Creek reservoir does not see as much fishing pressure as some of the other
lakes, but the fishing can be great. Rainbows, browns and kokanee all swim
here.
Williams
Fork reservoir, is a peaceful lake without any snow machines allowed here.
Walkers have the opportunity to walk away from the crowds and catch rainbows,
browns, lake trout and northern pike. There are a few kokanees in the lake
also.
Wolford
Reservoir is best known for its great rainbow and kokanee fishing. This lake
has the biggest population of salmon in the area. For the more adventurous
types, waters like Monarch, Meadow Creek and a whole bunch more are accessible
by snowmobiles or snowshoes.
These
lakes also have brook trout in them. Please check the regulations for each body
of water because they can be different from lake to lake. It’s also a good idea
to bring binoculars. The areas around these waters are wintering areas for
deer, elk and moose.
Bernie Keefe, owner of Fishing with Bernie, and his team have been fishing guides in Grand County for more than 25 years. For more, www.FishingWithBernie.com.