Category: General

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

First and foremost, no ice is ever safe ice. Please use extreme caution especially on any early ice.
Due to the lack of ice building weather in our area, walking out should continue to be the only option
when heading out on these ice conditions.
Green Bay waters are still far from locked up, please pay very close attention to the wind direction every
day. It does not take much to separate the ice between you and shore and send you a drift. Ice
breaking operations on Green Bay continue as the USCG Mobile Bay has been working in the main
shipping lanes since last week.
People venturing out on Dead Horse Bay, and the Suamico area are still finding some decent Perch
action. Tip downs with minnows have been the best bet in the shallower waters.
In U-Bay the Joliet Part area has still been good action for some Walleye and Whitefish. Using weight
forward style jigs and plastics or minnow tails have been taking most of the Whitefish. Jigging raps
tipped with a minnow head have been a solid choice for Walleye along with tip ups.
Folks walking out at Volks, Bayshore and Red River area are all finding mixed success daily in the
shallower waters with mostly Whitefish but a couple Walleye have shown up also.
All these locations up the East Shore will continues to be very suspect to the South winds. EXTREME
CAUTION is advised.
The Sturgeon Bay area is still very shaky for any ice conditions
Walking out on Little Sturgeon Perch action has been fair. 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.
The Fox River continues to be solid action for both Walleye and Whitefish. The warmer weather has
deteriorated the river ice in areas so use very extreme caution.
This next 10-day weather pattern will continue to see mild temps and some rain/snow. Hopefully
Mother Nature decides to give us a deep freeze soon so we can begin to move out to other popular
fishing areas. 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.
Please use extreme caution especially on any early ice. Walking out should be the only option on these
early ice conditions. Wear your ice picks spud your way-out checking ice thickness as you go. Tell others
where you are planning on heading out to fish and use the buddy system never fish alone.
Venturing out on Green Bay especially on early ice conditions pay very close attention to the wind
direction, it does not take much to separate the ice between you and shore and send you a drift. Green
Bay is NOT locked in at all making every location vulnerable to ice shifting.
Locations on the lower west shore like Dead Horse Bay, Suamico, and Hook Rd, Guys are walking out just
offshore finding 3”-5” and having some mild success for Perch. Tip downs with minnows and Rosie Reds
brining most of the success.
In U-Bay the Joliet Part area has similar ice conditions 2”-6”, some Walleye and Whitefish activity has
been had with standard jigging techniques taking most fish. Jigging raps tipped with a minnow head and
Jigs/minnow along with some plastics all having a few bites.
Moving up along the east shore there have been a few guys also walking out and finding mixed success
with mostly Whitefish. Volks and Red River being the main targets. All these locations up the East Shore
will be very suspect to the South winds we are going to experience. EXTREME CAUTION is advised.
The Sturgeon Bay area is still very shaky for any ice conditions outside of a few folks walking out on Little
Sturgeon to target some early ice Perch jigging and with tip downs and Pike on tip ups. Most other
locations in Door County have very bad ice conditions.
The Fox River has what seems is the largest gathering of early ice fishermen locally. Both Walleye and
Whitefish catches have been good from all reports. Jigging various baits like jigging raps, spoons, and
blade baits being popular among anglers. The river ice is also varied in thickness and travel should be
limited to foot traffic only at this point.
This next 10 days we will see warmer temps and some rain possibility enter our weather pattern so
please use caution on all ice in the area. No fish is worth your life.
It looks like more consilient colder weather is coming our way soon so stay tuned! Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt. Robert Claus
FinFanatic Charters
920-360-2904
finfanaticcahrters@yahoo.com

We have been getting flooded with calls asking where there is safe ice on the bay to fish. Remember ice is never 100% safe. With the cold weather we are experiencing this week some of the small bays are fish-able. On the west side Dead Horse bay has been producing some nice perch and pike are being caught off Hook Rd. On the east side fishermen are getting out of Joliet Park and are catching white fish and a few walleyes. Please do not venture out far from shore as the ice gets thinner the farther out you venture. On the Fox River the smaller harbors boarding the river has some safe ice on them. Perch, walleye, whitefish and crappie are being caught. Do not try to drive anything out on the ice at this time. Also beware of the ice breakers that will be in service through January on the bay and into the mouth of the Fox River. Always have the proper safety equipment with you and use the buddy system when fishing the early ice. for more information give us a call at 920 593 1749. Yah, only at Smokeys!!!

With docks being removed from launches and Mother Nature putting an icy grip on the Bay, this will be our last open water report of 2022. Once the ice is safe to fish Smokeys will have weekly ice fishing reports by Captain Claus, his reports will target perch, pike, walleye and whitefish on the bay of Green Bay and the Fox River.
The walleye bite continues to be good on the Fox River, as both day and night bites are still going strong. During the day, mid river edges of current are holding the most fish. Jigging hair jigs, casting ripper minnows, rippin raps, blade baits and crankbaits in rocks are taking the most fish. Trolling below the 172 flats and around University Bay was consistent, though ice formation is making the Bay unfishable. Trolled flicker minnows in purple and natural colors was best. Muskie action was slowed but some are still being caught. Trolling speeds of 2-2.5mph with shalllw diving crankbaits was best. Don’t be afraid to downsize your presentations for these large predators, as many fish are taken with 5-6” stickbaits meant for walleyes. Shore fishing has been hot out of Metro Launch and Voyager Park with nice catches of perch, walleye, pike and musky.
Thank you again to Tilky and all our followers of this report. Be safe, take a kid fishing, and I’ll see you in March! Yah, only at Smokeys!!!
Capt Jerry Ruffolo
Anglers Plus Guide Service LLC
920-973-2868