To start off, one of the most important things when it comes to ice fishing is location. Location is everything on Lake Winnebago and for first timers the lake can be very intimidating because of the size. But I am here to help tell you where some of the best locations are right now to help put you on the fish. The two main areas in this lake that are popular for fishing and tend to hold a lot of schools of fish are the west and east sides of the lake. The north end typically does not have much action going on ever.
For people unfamiliar with the lake, I would suggest going out off the east side, anywhere from Brothertown to Pipe. These are great locations because there are plowed roads that the fishing clubs take care of for easy travel with a vehicle and ice conditions are usually safer on this side. If you are looking to target perch, you are going to want to be anywhere from 3/4 of a mile to 1.5 miles off shore. The perch right now tend to hold up close to transitions points, which are areas where the mudflats start to change and go up shallower.
If you are in search of the all mighty white "whitebass" anywhere from 3 to 5 miles out in the lake is where you are going to find the schools of whitebass as well as crappie. These fish tend to cruise around in the mudflats this time of the year. It is usually pretty easy to tell where the schools of fish are or have been just by looking for the huge groups of trucks out on the ice. So if you are unfamiliar or unsure of where to fish, look for the groups of trucks.
In my experience, I feel like the west side of the lake holds more fish because of the mouths of the rivers are on this side. Fishing has been great off of Merrit Avenue in Oshkosh and it is not uncommon to come home with a few buckets of whitebass and crappie as well as some walleye and perch mixed in. If you are wishing to target walleye, they have been catching them near the mouth of the river south of Merrit, but I must advise you if you are unfamiliar with the area I would steer clear because the ice is not as safe by the mouth. There are also a lot of reefs on the west side that can produce some good fish if you can get on them. I would suggest getting a topo map of the lake if you are wishing to find these reefs.
Now that I have given you some information on where to go on the lake I have one more piece of advice. It might be one of the most important things that will determine whether or not you catch fish. Drill holes, drill holes, and drill more holes. If you are not catching fish in an area you need to keep moving until you land on a school of fish. In my experience, if I do not catch fish within the first 15 minutes of drilling my hole, I move. My moves can be anywhere from a hundred yards all the way to a quarter mile. I move until I land on an active school of fish.
I hope this information will help point you in the right direction, so your next fishing trip is a success. Just remember, no matter how thick the ice is, no ice is safe ice. So always you caution when traveling on the ice. Try to stay on paths others have taken. Next week I will be going over some of the important kinds of gear that you will need, to help make your trip successful and enjoyable.
Tight Lines
Alex O.
