Never Stop Exploring

I spend a lot of time on the internet searching through Navionics, biologist reports, and satellite images in hopes of finding new locations to fish. Sometimes my findings are successful, while other times I spend the entire day scratching my head. The days where things come together makes the strings of bad days all worth it. I snuck out early with a buddy to fish big water that offered a steep break on most likely questionable ice. We were each geared up in an Ice Armor by Clam "Lift Suit", a throw rope, floating ice picks, and Kahtoola Microspikes just in case. Our process to the desired fishing location was to take a few steps and check ice. There was no need to rush with the winter we are having. Once arriving at the waypoint safely on 9" of ice, we cut some holes. The start of the day was plagued by small white perch. As the sun started to rise a crappie here and there started to come topside. The bite got better and better until about 9 am when they completely disappeared. We cut a string of holes circling the hot spot and located their direction. For the next 3 hours, we followed them finding the deepest water which almost resembled a channel. After a few moves, it became apparent that the crappie bite was over when the bass moved in. We followed the fish for about 200 yards before hitting bad ice and turning back. The day was a success and another spot with quality fish was added to the playbook. It will be a while before going back but it's nice to know that the options for successful outings are expanding!