“Ice-out,” Words Guaranteed to make Anglers Salivate
Anticipating Ice-out for Fly Anglers
This year, most lakes east of the Cascades have acquired a thick, stubborn ice layer that is only now just starting to thin. Late March is here and finally, the sun is out. In the Omak shop, we’ve noticed that cabin-fever is luring winter-weary anglers out from behind the vise. Many anglers are starting to get that itch and ice-out can’t come soon enough. But when? We can only clean our fly lines so many times, right?
Ready for much-needed river time? Read about the first fishable hatches here.
Ice-out is not only the termination of a long fish-less slumber but also some of the best fishing you’ll ever witness. So, after you’re convinced that your fly lines are clean enough for surgical sutures, saunter over to your handy internet device and check the weather. As you can guess, certain weather patterns will hasten ice-out on your target lakes. We’ve got to hope for a warming trend. “Bah!” you say. “Six more weeks of winter.” Well, believe it or not, it WILL come. And when it does, pay special attention to the night time lows—are they above freezing? If so, it’s going to be “game-on” so start spinning those dubbing loops a little faster.
Now, a fly fishing paradise at 4,000 feet like Walker Lake, is obviously going to experience nighttime lows below freezing long into the start of spring. But, lowland stillwaters like Dry Falls or Quail Lake can be targeted sooner. If you’re raring to go, then you’re going to need an Othello weather forecast. Or, you may want to know Coulee City’s nighttime temperatures. As they say, “there’s an app for that.” Honing in on the lowest elevation lakes should get you on the water faster. Typically, Columbia Basin lakes like Coffeepot, Dusty, Lenore, and Lenice should be the first to crack. Right? We are hoping so!
Fly Anglers: the "Wind is your Friend"
Yes, you have to watch localized warming trends and nighttime lows. However, you also need to know if it’s been windy or is forecast to be so. By now, you’ve probably lost your “smart” phone down an ice-fishing hole. No problem. A funny old gadget called a “land line” will work wonders (and may even save you a wasted trip). Pick up the phone, wait for the dial tone, and get the scoop by calling the National Weather Service or a nearby Visitor Center. Hint: there’s one overlooking Dry Falls Lake and another one at the Seeps Lakes/Columbia National Wildlife Refuge. As it turns out, these folks would like to help you out. Some of them may even be anglers. Also, be sure to ask them what the winds are like because believe it or not, the wind is your friend…
“Humbug! I hate the wind,” you say. Well yes, fly fishing and wind NORMALLY do not mix. But knowing the wind trend is absolutely crucial to finding open water and wetting a line. In fact, the local wind is probably more responsible for clearing a fishable section of lake ice than the nighttime temperatures. At the beginning of ice-out, the “fetch” on your lake is small—perhaps only a few yards across. But those little wind ripples will soon turn that fetch (the distance that wind acts upon the water surface) into a white-capping maelstrom as long as your kid’s soccer field. Before you know it, the lake is wide open, fish are being caught, and you’ve barely had time to string up a rod. You say, “well who cares about the wind, I’ll get there eventually and I’m sure fishing will be hot when I do.”
Yes, all your favorite lakes will eventually ice-out and be plumb-dandy fishing holes. But, if you don’t buy that, you’ll need to watch the conditions. You may find yourself hearing that old refrain—“you should have been here yesterday.” In fact, the wind IS your friend… sort of. While a stiff breeze can help your ideal stillwater ice-out more rapidly, it can also hasten the dreaded “turn-over” phenomenon--the very one that I kicked my pontoon boat into Coffee Pot Lake last March. (And yes, I got skunked.)
What Does it Mean When a Lake is “Turning Over”?
So, what happens when a lake turns over? I’ve always wondered that myself. After that episode at far-flung Coffee Pot Lake, I resolved to find out….
“Turn-over” depends on lake surface temperatures reaching a magic number of 38-39 degrees Fahrenheit. At this threshold, the surface layer suddenly sinks, equalizing with the lower layers due to an approximation in relative density. Thus, begins a churn of anaerobic layers, sediment, and winter-killed vegetation that mucks up the whole situation—turning great “ice-out” fishing into a cold and sullen skunk-o-rama.
The best time for truly large trout? Learn about ice-out fishing on Montana's Lakes.
Turn-over happens soon after ice-out obviously. But, the question is, “how soon”? The combination of warming temperatures and incessant wind chop raises the surface layer to turn-over threshold quickly. However, a cooling trend accompanied by doldrums after ice out could prolong good fishing quite a while—perhaps even a few weeks. Time to fire up that “app…” or spin the rotary phone, right?
So, How Good IS Fly Fishing During Ice-out?
Stillwater guru, Brian Chan, characterizes ice-out fishing as “some impressive action,” when the ice is just receding or has recently cleared out. Steve Pomeroy, caretaker at Diamond Belle Ranch on Walker Lake says modestly, “it can be good.” If you haven’t tried it, let’s just say it can be like shooting fish in a barrel. That barrel is the ice-free shallows on the periphery in ten feet of water or less. Trout, that having been trapped under ice for months, are now free to prowl in open water and can sense the warming temperatures along the edges of the lake. Pomeroy concurs. He hints that the shrimp-eating tankers at Walker often move in to shred scuds and that its chironomids are “always there” at ice-out.
According to trout biologists like Chan, aquatic insect activity in a lake’s warming shallows is still modest until after turn-over. By then, the lake’s depths have become warmer, perhaps into the lower 40s and far more oxygenated, spurring invertebrate hatches into full swing. But even though bugs aren’t flitting about yet, trout are still feeding opportunistically on over-wintering forage and can be had with a number of fly fishing techniques.
What Fly Rods are Best for Ice-out?
As with many stillwater situations, whether wading along the shore or casting from watercraft, a little extra length in a fly rod is not a bad idea. Rather than the 8’ to 9’ class, I’d prefer to throw a 9’ to 10’ fast action rod—maybe even up to a 10’-6”. The Echo 3 6100-4 is a solid choice as well as the speedy Loop Cross S1. Either of these excellent rods should be balanced with a quality reel such as the Lamson Remix 2.0 (the new “sublime” color looks sharp).
Looking for the best rod before you go? Order online here.
At ice-off, we’re not looking for precision sight casting of tiny dries to swirling feeders. But rather, we are trying to cover water and fling not so subtle subsurface patterns, followed by quick hooksets. Picture yourself wading into an ice-cold lake, your leader and fly hanging from your hand. How far do you want to wade out? With that longer rod, you won’t need that extra few feet of backcast room—your fly will be that much higher above the reeds or the water’s surface (if you’re in a pontoon, etc.).
What Rigging to Use for Ice-Off?
Fly Lines on your first outing to your favorite ice-off stillwater can run the gamut. As fish will be found in the shallows, a floating line will be one of your go-to setups for fly delivery. Coupled with a longish tapered leader at least the length of your rod (and up to a few feet longer), you’ll be ready to dunk weighted wet flies near the mostly weedless bottom. Also, when fishing weighted nymphs on a slow retrieve, be sure to throw a few strike indicators into your pack too. Rig those to keep your offering just off of the bottom. We recommend the slip indicators by Rogue River (among others) and we carry them in a number of sizes and colors in the Omak North 40 Flyshop.
Slow-sinking “hover” and/or intermediate full-sink lines are a great choice for stripping flies along the flats, reeds, and drop-offs found throughout the shallows of ice-off lakes. I’m using the Scientific Anglers “Sonar” clear camo line which helps me get down a few feet but doesn’t hang up in the skinny water where these trout are cruising. Sinking line leaders do not need to be as long (especially with clear camo lines) and can be tapered or not. If you’re a little nervous that you’re going to line these fish, I’d say a 7.5’ leader length would be the max, but most often 4’ or 5’, bearing in mind that during ice-off, you’re fishing clear water.
What are the Best Flies for Ice-Off?
If I had to pick a number one fly to tie on my first cast during ice-off, it would be a leech—preferably a balanced leech. I like the TFP balanced squirrel leech in sizes 6-10 because you can fish them slowly, under an indicator. Or, you can strip them like most other leech patterns off sinking lines/tips and REALLY get their attention. My favorites are blood, bruised, and Canadian olive. Believe it or not, buggers and leeches in whacky colors like chartreuse and purple are also hot flies this time of year.
A close second, to the balanced leech, would be a boobie fly hovered off a heavy (type 3 or better) full-sinking line. These can be rigged with a boobie tip such as the one we offer by Scientific Anglers as part of their “sonar” line. Boobies flies are typically tied on a size ten hook in any color you might like. And fluorescent /glow tones seem to work well during ice-off—as I said, “trout aren’t as picky prior to turn-over.” As you may already know, boobies, blobs, and mop flies are buoyant little attractors and can be tantalizingly twitched above the bottom, subject to the length of your leader. As you strip your full sinking line, the booby dips downward toward your sunken line. During the pause, it slowly floats back up, extending the leader again. Just deadly. In fact, so deadly at times that you must remember to keep these attractors consistently moving to avoid trout taking them too deeply.
Lakes Open for Ice-Off Business
By the time the general opener rolls around in late April, most lakes will have already iced-off. If hibernation ends late for you, never fear. There are plenty of quality, high-elevation lakes like Leech over White Pass, Summit over Disautel Pass, or Walker (4,200 ft.) that may be “yet to crack.”
In most (cabin-fever) cases however, you’re going to target the year-round, special season, or Colville lakes that are open early for business. Don’t forget Lenore, Lenice, Merry, and Nunally down south too. Quail and the Seeps Lakes are worth a look soon as are the Colville Reservation lakes like Duley and McGinnis. My two “picks to click” are special-season waters that can be accessed as soon as your oars can push water, Green and Rat. In the case of Green Lakes, Little Green warms up a little faster and has excellent access. Rat Lake is somewhat of an enigma but, if you can catch one of its’ brown trout, be sure to send me the photo: omkflyshop@north40.com
If you do get out this year during ice-off, please feel free to share at our Instagram (@North40flyshop) or via our numerous social media outlets. Now, let’s bundle up and get out there!