Category: General

The weather is playing a huge factor on the accessibility of ice and open water around Green Bay. Early this week boat fishing was excellent, with anglers averaging 30 or more walleyes per trip on the Fox River. Hair jigs, blade baits, rippin raps, and jigging with minnows or plastics were all taking fish. A few of the 25” or bigger female walleyes were caught, but the majority of the fish are 17-22”. As of late Thursday, skim ice returned on the river, delaying boat fishing till it warms up. On the Bay, remnants of ice remain around Deadhorse Bay, Suamico, University Bay and Oconto, but great care needs to be taken on the ice. Wind plays a huge role here, and large floating sheets of ice shift with changing wind directions. Check with Smokey’s before going, and use caution. Fishermen are taking pike, perch, and whitefish on the ice. Be safe, and take a kid fishing.

Yah, only at Smokeys
Capt Jerry Ruffolo
Anglers Plus Guide Service
920-973-2868

Sent from my iPhone

The weather is playing a huge factor on the accessibility of ice and open water around Green Bay. Early this week boat fishing was excellent, with anglers averaging 30 or more walleyes per trip on the Fox River. Hair jigs, blade baits, rippin raps, and jigging with minnows or plastics were all taking fish. A few of the 25” or bigger female walleyes were caught, but the majority of the fish are 17-22”. As of late Thursday, skim ice returned on the river, delaying boat fishing till it warms up. On the Bay, remnants of ice remain around Deadhorse Bay, Suamico, University Bay and Oconto, but great care needs to be taken on the ice. Wind plays a huge role here, and large floating sheets of ice shift with changing wind directions. Check with Smokey’s before going, and use caution. Fishermen are taking pike, perch, and whitefish on the ice. Be safe, and take a kid fishing.

Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt Jerry Ruffolo
Anglers Plus Guide Service
920-973-2868

First and foremost, no ice is ever safe ice.
Since I did spend a little time looking ant and walking on a little bit of Green Bay ice this weekend, I felt
one more report was needed.
Both in person visually and the satellite pictures from the weekend make the ice on Green Bay look like
it is in good shape, when in fact it is not. Prior to the snow fall last week most of the outer areas of
Green Bay were open water with a few ice flows. The near shore areas had very suspect and punky or
“Honeycomb” ice. With the little colder weather much of the open water areas slightly skimmed and
then the snow fall coverage has made this ice look like better than it is.
In just about every location and or landing along Green Bay both east and west shores there are areas
where there is a “crust” of 2”-3” of ice covered in snow with slush under it. Let me be clear, this is VERY
DANGEROUS ICE! It is not only dangerous for any kind of Snowmobile, ATV, and UTV traffic for sure it is
also dangerous for walking traffic. It is not clear hard ice it is soft crusty ice with little to no strength.
There were reports along many areas of the East shore where anglers were “Breaking through” when
and getting wet when walking out. I personal walked around several large areas like this up near
Sturgeon Bay this Saturday.
IF you are thinking about trying to walk out on any ice left on Green Bay pay close attention to your
winds and bring a spud to check the ice as you go don’t take any areas for granted. USE EXTREME
CAUTION this cannot be stated enough.
My advice would be to make other plans and stay off the ice.
No fish is worth your life!

Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt. Robert Claus
FinFanatic Charters
920-360-2904
finfanaticcahrters@yahoo.com

First and foremost, no ice is ever safe ice.
Howdy folks this will be it, the last report for a short Green Bay ice season if you want to even call it
that.
The major ice pack on Green Bay has blown apart and moved out to the open water. Satellite pictures
from Sunday Jan 19 th tell the tale of lots of open water up through the entire Bay.
There is some ice hanging on in protected areas like Dead Horse Bay and Suamico and University Bay but
all these areas have take a beating as far as ice strength the last week and from hear on out all ice on
Green Bay should be considered extremely dangerous. Use extreme caution on any let over shoreline
ice.
Many areas I was scouting over the weekend even though on top the ice seemed good I had ice from 8-
12” in areas around Sturgeon Bay but drilling half way through it the partial hole would fil up with water
seeping from underneath in a few minutes.
I did hear of some Pike still being caught in the shallow water in Suamico and Dead Horse Bay on tip ups
with large shiners. Perch activity as usual was better away from the commotion.
Reports are Red River and Bay Shore alone with Volks all have ice but it is not great and with open water
near by all these areas are susceptible to instability with winds. Reports of some Whitefish catches were
still coming in over the weekend along with a few Walleye.
Little Sturgeon Bay and Sawyer Harbor both have people still out fishing but travel should be limited to
foot traffic or ATV/Snowmobile but with those be very careful as the ice around points and various
structures is very soft and there are more cracks and shoves where ice is buckling all over these areas in
the last week. Some Pike coming in the back of Little Sturgeon along with a few decent perch. Box Tip
ups and Tip downs were key for Perch along with Tip ups with large shiners for Pike action.
Downtown Sturgeon Bay went from completely iced in a week ago to all open water shore to shore.
The impending snow storm this week will make the conditions even more suspect to trouble.
My advice, make other plans for the upcoming weekend…. If you do decide you want to venture out on
the ice please, please, please, do not become a statistic use extreme caution.
No fish is worth your life!

Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt. Robert Claus
FinFanatic Charters
920-360-2904
finfanaticcahrters@yahoo.com

With the unseasonably warm conditions here, the Fox River, along with its launches, opened to fishing last week. Many boaters took advantage of this mid-winter break, and busted out the boats. Walleye fishing was excellent on the river, with the best bite going on mid-river structure edges. Jig/minnow, jig/plastic, blade baits, rippin raps and hair jigs took the most fish. Conditions on the river are likely to be in flux, as winter looks like it will return by Tuesday this week with snow and colder conditions. Call ahead to Smokey’s for the latest conditions and information. Be safe and take a kid fishing!

Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt Jerry Ruffolo
Anglers Plus Guide Service LLC
920-973-2868

First and foremost, no ice is ever safe ice.
Well folks Mother Nature is kicking our butts! The remaining time of ice fishing on Green Bay should
officially be considered day by day and very dangerous. I never dreamed I would be giving that kind of a
report on ice conditions in the middle of February! All locations are seeing great deterioration of the ice
conditions and all the landings are getting bad as we are on day 2 of 5 with temperatures into the mid
40’s. If you are venturing out anywhere on Green Bay ice use EXTREME CAUTION and watch your winds.
There are too many areas of open water across the entire Bay and all the ice along the east shore is
suspect to move at any time and any location. Ice between the tails and in Deadhorse bay is still locked
in but travel with caution.
Reports were spotty at best for catches of Whitefish along the east shore. A limit is possible if you
capitalize on the active fish if you find them but for most catches of 1-5 fish were more common. Volks
landing, Bayshore, and Red River were the most popular along the east shore. Again, this week use
EXTREME CAUTION in those locations.
Dead Horse Bay, and the Suamico area have reports of mild Perch catches, along with a stray Walleye.
Numbers of people on weekends have kept the action slower. Tip downs are still the most productive
set up for Perch and trying to get away from others has been the best bet. Pike are still being caught on
tip ups with large shiners in the shallower areas.
Sugar Creek to Lime Kiln Rd up to Little Sturgeon had some folks walking out to try to find Whitefish but
there was a large open water area just outside those locations and I would advise staying off the ice
there.
Little Sturgeon had seen some perch activity on tip downs and jigging and even box tip ups but over the
weekend the activity level was slow for keepers due to the high traffic of anglers. You may have to sort
through the little ones to find a couple keepers. Pike activity in Little Sturgeon has slowed to almost
non-existent.
Sawyer harbor Perch and Pike catches both slowed the end of the week but there is still some activity
there for both. Please travel with caution in that area as there are rock areas and springs around the
bay will show themselves with this warmer weather.
The Fox River is completely un-safe for ice fishing at this point but keep your eyes peeled you may be
able to get your boat back out before the end of the week!
We pulled all our Whitefish rental shacks of the ice in Door County on Sunday and are now holding out a
last-ditch hope that we may get cold enough weather after Thursday to get out to fish some of the
shoreline spots one more time this season if the ice holds up…… but it is not looking good.
Be careful out there no fish is worth your life.

Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt. Robert Claus
FinFanatic Charters
920-360-2904
finfanaticcahrters@yahoo.com
www.finfanatic.net

First and foremost, no ice is ever safe ice.
The cold weather surely did not last long enough. Green Bay did make good gains on ice in about every
location, but the winds have certainly not been our friend. The Bay is not locked up and there are still
several significant areas of open water that have been lingering and will continue to cause trouble over
the course of the next few weeks. The up coming weather is also not doing us any favors as it will be
into the 40’s and some rain and snow and more high winds. Please use caution when venturing out at
all locations.
Most reports this last several days along the east chore have Whitefish fishing being very slow. Most
folks are reporting 0 to 5 fish and very very few limits. The moon phase and high pressure probably did
not help with any feeding activity. Fishing was too spotty to get a feel for the best tactics.
Dead Horse Bay, and the Suamico area are still producing some Perch catches, along with some Walleye
but the action has certainly slowed. Tip downs are still the most productive set up for Perch. Tipping
with a small shiner or Rosie Red. A few Pike are still showing up on tip ups shallow.
Lime Kiln Rd, to Little Sturgeon had lots of folks looking for Whitefish but the action along those areas
was also spotty at best. Along with locations like Riley’s Bay and Sand Bay. A few adventuress folks did
manage to sneak out to the south end of Larsons reef over the weekend but with the winds and weather
I would advise staying off those areas for now and if you do want to go check them out later this week
travel very cautiously as the possibility for more cracks to pop open is very real.
Little Sturgeon and Sawyer harbor both saw a fair number of Perch fishermen over the weekend.
Getting away from the majority usually resulted in better catches. Jigging and Tip downs were both
successful.
The Fox River has walkable ice on most of the river south of highway 172. Do still use caution this week
with the warmer weather pattern setting in. Walleye catches were reported to be good over the
weekend. A few Whitefish remain in the river and were showing up while targeting Walleye. Don’t be
afraid to try the shallow flats for some Walleye activity. Jigging raps tipped with a minnow head was the
best tactic.
We did run 8 of our Whitefish rental shacks over the weekend but like most guides we pulled them in to
shore on Sunday to wait out the weather early this week. Fishing for us was slow at best with 0 to 4
Whitefish caught per shack. We did manage a few bonus Jumbo Perch over the weekend to add to what
little action we had. Fish were very spooky, and the ice for 3 days was making a ton of noise.
Be careful out there no fish is worth your life. Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt. Robert Claus
FinFanatic Charters
920-360-2904
finfanaticcahrters@yahoo.com
www.finfanatic.net

First and foremost, no ice is ever safe ice.
Well, the cold weather is finally here, and the Green Bay big boat traffic has ceased, so we are all hoping
for much better ice conditions moving forward.
Green Bay waters are still not completely locked up, so paying very close attention to the wind direction
every day is still critical
Areas like Volks Landing and Bayshore Park and Red River the ice has become much more stable and the
fishing there has been more on the positive side than negative. Mostly Whitefish have been reported in
the catches with a Walleye showing up on occasion in all three locations. Jigging with weight forward
style jigs has been the most popular tactic. Tipping the jigs with Plastics like Keitech Easy Shiner or
Grumpy Baits Goby’s has been productive and some folks are having success tipping their jigs with a
minnow tail. #5 Jigging Raps are always a good choice for Walleye.
Dead Horse Bay, and the Suamico area are still producing some Perch catches, along with some Walleye
activity a few Whitefish. Crowds in areas have slowed the bite at times for Perch. Tip downs are still the
most productive set up for Perch. Tipping with a small shiner or Rosie Red. Word has it that Smokey’s
on the Bay has a fresh stock of Tip downs in store! Ask Jeff about them when you pick up your Perch
minnows! If you are looking for Pike on Tip ups or Automatic Fisherman rigs head shallow and look for
some weeds.
Sugar Creek to Little Sturgeon still had some unstable ice as of Saturday. The shove ice in those areas is
also bad and even when the ice locks up travel will be difficult.
Guys walking out at Lime Kiln Rd near Little Sturgeon are having some success with Whitefish.
Little Sturgeon Perch action on tip downs has been continued to be good and some Pike are being taken
on Tips ups with Large Shiners. Getting away from the other fishermen has been key at times.
The Sawyer Harbor area has also had good action for Perch and Pike. Tip up and Tipo down set ups are
doing the work here. Ice in these areas has been in good condition holding at 8”-9” inside the bays. Do
use caution still as there have been pockets that have been only 4-5” still as of Sunday the 29 th of
January.
Most other locations in Door County continue to have very bad ice conditions and it is suggested to stay
off until this cold weather has a chance to dig in and build some ice for us. At the very least scout and
poke around cautiously.
The Fox River has begun to skim up again, but I would hold off for several days yet before I would
venture out there.
We have begun putting our Whitefish Rental Shacks in Door County out on the ice as of Sunday. We are
hoping to kick off our season guiding starting Thursday. We will eb fishing near shore to begin and are
cautiously optimistic we will begin to look to the deeper water soon. If you are looking to book
something, give me a call, we have plenty of openings weekdays and Sundays. Most Saturdays in
February are full but March we have open spots still.
Be careful out there no fish is worth your life.

Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt. Robert Claus
FinFanatic Charters
920-360-2904
finfanaticcahrters@yahoo.com

First and foremost, no ice is ever safe ice.
Due to continued warm weather in our area, and the strong winds this past week the Green Bay has
continued to be spotty at best and dangerous. Ice was blowing around like a washtub most of last week.
Green Bay waters are still far from locked up, please pay very close attention to the wind direction every
day. Ice breaking operations and large boat traffic on Green Bay has continued but will come to a halt
after this week.
We do finally have a cold spell working its way into our area and hopefully the areas around the Bay will
begin to become more stable.
Dead Horse Bay, and the Suamico area are still producing some decent Perch action, along with some
Walleye activity a few Whitefish and some Pike on Tip ups.
In U-Bay the Joliet Part area has still has decent ice for walking out for those looking to find a possible
Walleye and a few Whitefish. Using weight forward style jigs and plastics or minnow tails would be the
suggested tactic, but Tip Ups and Automatic Fishermen set ups are also taking some fish.
Volks landing is fairly unstable at this point and should be avoided.
There have been folks continuing to walk out of Bay Shore landing targeting Whitefish. Action has been
OK most days, but you have to work at it a bit. A few Walleyes have even shown up at times. Most are
using jigging techniques like weight forward jigs and plastics or small gold jigs and wax worms or a
minnow tail.
Red River has seen a few brave souls venturing out but use caution there with the exposure to potential
cracks. I do not know how the fishing has been there, but I suspect a few Whitefish are around.
Little Sturgeon Perch action has been continued to be good and some Pike have been taken on Tips ups
with Large Shiners. Getting away from the other shacks has been key at times. The Sawyer Harbor area
has also had good action for Perch and Pike. Tip up and Tipo down set ups are doing the work here.
Most other locations in Door County continue to have very bad ice conditions and it is suggested to stay
off until the weather takes a turn for the colder.
The Fox River has open water. Over the past 4 or 5 days several boats have ventured out from both Fox
point and the fair grounds and Walleye action has been decent. Boat traffic will most likely end soon as
our temperatures drop again. For now, there is no safe ice on the Fox.
Looking at the extended forecast we are hopefully that we will begin running Door County Whitefish
trips the first weekend in February, but we will have to wait a bit to see what Mother Nature has in store
for us.

Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Be careful out there no fish is worth your life.
Capt. Robert Claus
FinFanatic Charters
920-360-2904
finfanaticcahrters@yahoo.com
www.finfanatic.net

First and foremost, no ice is ever safe ice.
Due to the lack of ice building weather in our area, and the strong South winds this past weekend the
East Shore of Green Bay has become very dangerous. A large portion of the ice pack blew out creating
open water areas even closer to shore. I highly advise not venturing out on any East shore ice north of
Point Sable until we get a blast of colder weather.
Green Bay waters are still far from locked up, please pay very close attention to the wind direction every
day. It now takes much less to separate the ice between you and shore and send you a drift.
Ice breaking operations and large boat traffic on Green Bay continue as the USCG Mobile Bay and
Mackinaw continue working in the main shipping lanes.
People venturing out on Dead Horse Bay, and the Suamico area are still finding some decent Perch
action, along with some Walleye activity. This ice will possibly take a beating with the rain and warmer
temps the next couple days, use caution.
In U-Bay the Joliet Part area has still has decent ice for walking out to chase some Walleye and Whitefish.
Using weight forward style jigs and plastics or minnow tails would be the suggested tactic. For Walleye
don’t forget to bring along your tip ups.
Little Sturgeon Perch action has been continued to be fair and some Pike have been taken on Tips ups
with Large Shiners. The Sawyer Harbor area has also had fair action for Perch and Pike.
Most other locations in Door County have very bad ice conditions with the wind conditions from this
past weekend.
The Fox River has open water. The wind and warm weather have moved all that ice. Do no venture out
on any ice on the Fox River.
Hopefully Mother Nature will give us a deep freeze in the future so we can begin to rebuild some of
what we lost.
Be careful out there no fish is worth your life.

Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt. Robert Claus
FinFanatic Charters
920-360-2904
finfanaticcahrters@yahoo.com