What about this snow?

Before I went up to Winnipeg last week for the Mid-Canada Boat Show, I got out fishing for an afternoon with some friends from Michigan that were passing through town.
Because of the cold weather and snow conditions I was not that excited about going fishing but I promised them a few weeks earlier that I would take them out.
We left from my house on snowmobiles and had a four or five kilometre ride out to where I wanted to fish at a main lake hump on Lake of the Woods.
Since I had not been out on the ice in a few weeks I chose a spot that has been consistent over the past several years for walleyes.
We got on Lake of the Woods and while the slush was not all that bad like I had heard reports of from some areas, the snow drifts were like nothing I have seen before. Easily the most snow that I have ever seen out on the ice.
Following the last round of snow we got and then a couple days of heavy wind, we got the perfect recipe for snow drifts on our lakes that were almost exactly like big waves in open water.
As I crossed the lake headed for my fishing spot, it felt like I was in a 14-foot boat with in four foot waves.
I was pulling a shelter with all of my gear loaded into it so I could only go about 20 kp/h, it was rough.
It was depressing really. By March we’re supposed to be losing the snow but there is a pile of it out there right now and it does not look like it is going to melt anytime soon.
After drilling eight or 10 holes on my spot, I was sweating. It was a workout to kick away enough snow to drill a hole and then lug the auger to the next hole location. I’m not in terrible shape but it felt like I was!
After all that, the fishing was good at least. In a couple of hours, we caught a bunch of nice walleyes, enough for a good dinner and released a nice lake trout that bit my small walleye spoon.
The end is in sight. The days are getting longer, the sun hotter but we need the temperatures to rise.
This is the second winter in a row of extended cold weather and significant snow fall. It’s tough on our area wildlife. We had a deer in our yard over the weekend that was up to its belly in snow and was struggling to get around.
I’m afraid the already decimated deer population across Sunset Country is going to be crippled even more after this winter is over.
If you do get out to go fishing, be on the lookout for slush, which can ruin a day faster than anything if you get stuck. The big slush holes usually have dark spots where the water is revealed through the snow so watch for those and avoid them.
Hopefully we’ll get a few days of warmer weather soon to help shrink up the snow.
The good news is, we are going to have good quality ice for the next few weeks if you like to ice fish.
I really enjoy March fishing because it seems like once the snow starts to melt and the runoff starts to enter our lakes, fishing really heats up.
My biggest walleye, pike, crappie and lake trout have all been caught through a hole in the ice in March.
Prime time ice fishing is coming folks.