According to Rod Edgell, the DNR's District 4 assistant fisheries biologist, Pike Lake will be a good bet for ice-fishermen this winter.

"You can catch quite a few different species by jigging right out in front of the beach," he said. "Channel catfish, white bass and walleyes are pretty common catches through the ice. Anglers can also find numbers of bluegills and crappies."

Edgell and other biologists from the district performed a creel survey on Pike last year, along with some targeted fish sampling. Although the final report has not yet been finalized, the data showed that both the panfish and predator fish populations are doing well.

"Bluegills were caught up to 9 inches, while crappies run 8 to 10 inches," reported Edgell. "White bass range from 12 to 15 inches, and channel cats get up to 30 inches." That's not bad, especially when you consider that there is also a good walleye fishery here. "We have been stocking the lake with walleyes, and they are plentiful," agreed Edgell. "They can stretch over 25 inches."

The ice-fishing begins to heat up as soon as the ice is safe, and that's when anglers begin to search out productive areas. Edgell advises that as far as aquatic vegetation is concerned, there is not much beyond about 4 or 5 feet deep. In the shallows, though, anglers will find a lot of naiads and some milfoil. Look along the deeper edges of those weeds for good panfish action.

There is good public access here and anglers will find plenty of parking at the city park.

GOOSE LAKE
Whitley County's Goose Lake can be found a few miles to the northwest of Columbia City, and it is somewhat of a sleeper lake. It doesn't seem to get the fishing pressure of other larger, better-known waters, and no one is complaining. Although it covers only 84 surface acres, there always seems to be plenty of room for the anglers who fish it.

The lake itself is somewhat oblong and shaped like a bean, and it has an extremely deep hole out in the center. The maximum depth there is 69 feet. There is another deep hole to the northwest where the depth reaches 65 feet, and there are some good break­lines to fish around both of these spots.

Biologist Rod Edgell is also responsible for the management of this lake, and he says that this is one lake that anglers should visit soon. "The fishery is fantastic," he beamed. "The yellow perch, bluegills and redear sunfish are plentiful, and they are big."

He should know, because he helped perform a lake survey here in 2009. The report had not been finalized by press time, but Edgell was able to summarize much of the data from the survey.

"We saw bluegills up to 10 inches," he said, "and redears up to 11 inches." Those are some hefty panfish indeed! He also reported that yellow perch up to 13 inches were recorded during the survey. Largemouth bass are present in the lake, too.

There is a fair amount of vegetation in Goose Lake, and the weedlines often hold numbers of fish. One spot in particular that attracts anglers is the deeper water at the south end of the lake. The depth varies anywhere from 20 to 30 feet (maybe even a little deeper), and this can be a good place to find schools of dandy-sized yellow perch and bull bluegills. Live baits like wigglers and bee moths are dynamite for both species.

These lakes are certainly not your only ice-fishing choices this winter, but they might help get you started. Just be sure that the ice is safe before you venture out on any lake for a day of hardwater angling. Have fun and be safe!