NH Ice Fishing Derby - Lake Winnipesaukee 2013

We had our NH Ice Fishing tournament on Lake Winnipesaukee this weekend.  Mike, Rick, Steven, Kevin and I were heading to David’s on the lake.

We were all going to head to the lake on Friday.  Rick and Steve were going to fish Saturday and Sunday.  Mike was going to stay Saturday and head home.  Kevin and I were going to fish until Saturday afternoon. 

Why weren’t we staying until Sunday you ask?  I had a date with my wife to go “Dancing With Your Star”.  YES … I was throwing my man card down so I could learn how to “Ball Room Dance” by Professional Instructors.  My plan was to let my close friends know but not make it public when on the ice for fear of a cold swim by yours truly. 

In any case we had “The Blizzard of 2013”.  It started on Friday and by Saturday morning we had 26 inches of snow.  High winds caused large drifts also.  Rick and Steve had almost 28 inches in their town.  Mike had 8 inches in Vermont. 

This moved our timeline back.  The snow stopped by mid morning.  It took several hours to clear the snow.  Mike headed for the lake Saturday morning.  MA had a driving ban so Rick and Steven heading out late afternoon.  “Dancing With Your Star” was cancelled by the instructors because of the weather.  I picked up my man card and started packing.  Kevin didn’t feel well so I headed up by myself mid afternoon.  Mike arrived first … I followed … Rick and Steven showed up around 6:30PM. 

I noticed on the drive in there weren’t many on the ice so the snow messed things up.

Steven had the food so we had a late dinner (Chicken Pot pies, venison steaks, mashed potatoes, etc.)  Fire in the fire place … had a fun night relaxing, playing cards, and laughing.

We got up Saturday morning … the temp was 1 below zero … Rick, Steven and Mike headed for the ice while I headed to Dunkin Donuts for the coffees.  Doug was on his way up so I met him at DD.  He followed me to our fishing spot on Moultonborough Neck. 

When Doug and I arrived the guys were working on the ice auger.  They finally got it started and put some holes in the ice.

Steve started cooking and Rick got the tip-ups in the holes.  In keeping with tradition Steve made the “Heart Attack” sandwiches. (2 eggs, cheese, sweet sausage, bulky roll)  Mighty Fine … We had Rick’s venison stew for lunch. I think it was from one of Ryan’s deer this year.  (Was it the “Taco Bell Buck?”) 

Mike headed out early afternoon.  All day the guys wanted me to drive my truck on the ice.  The ice (black ice) in our area was 10 inches thick with 18 inches of fresh snow on top.  Before Doug and I headed out mid afternoon I did just that.  No problems with the ice and snow.  With new tires I had some good rooster tails going.  I loaded up my gear and headed back to shore with Doug.  Rick and Steve remained to keep fishing until dark.

When I got off the ice a guy in a Ford F150 had a dead battery and needed jumper cables.  He was off the road and I couldn’t get my truck in close enough to give him a jump.  With no power he couldn’t get his truck out of park.  I figured he was in the snow so he would slide so I hooked him up with my tow strap and dragged him 15 feet to get him to an accessible spot to give him a jump.  I showed those RAM, Toyota, and Ford boys that a Chevy is really the way to go.  hehe …

I stopped in Meredith to check out the ice shanties and see the action on the board.  The storm kept people away on Saturday but looked like things really picked up on Sunday.  There were lots of people and some nice fish on the board. Nothing like a good ice shanty either! 

We didn’t have a lot of action from the fish but always have a great time.  Someday we may catch something big enough to make the board and win a prize …

Search Blog Archive: February 2012, February 2011, January 2010 & February 2009 - for more Winnipesaukee Ice Fishing.

Winnipesaukee Collage ...

NH Ice Fishing Derby - Lake Winnipesaukee 2012

It has been a warm winter so the reports say the ice is thin on Lake Winnipesaukee.  We decided to fish the first day of  the derby.



Kevin and I planned to meet Rick and Steve near the same spot we fished last year from Cow Island.  I was up at 4:19AM.  I woke Kevin at 4:45PM.  We loaded up and were off to Dunkin Donuts.  Rick and Steven were stopping for bait on the way up. 

I brought extra socks, gloves, hats, hand and foot warmers, ice cleats, ice picks, etc. in case we got wet.  I also brought a long tow rope from my truck thinking if anyone went through the ice it may be useful.  If you aren't prepared you shouldn't be playing on the ice.  Grill, food, table, food, traps, food, bait, food, chairs, and ... oh yes, food. 

We arrived about 5 minutes before Rick and Steve.  There weren't many ice houses on the lake due to the thin ice.  We had 8 inches of ice in our area but we could see open water in several places.  We did have snow showers throughout the day.

Steven was the grill master and made his heart attack breakfast sandwiches, hot dogs, chili, venison (backstrap), and hamburgers throughout the day.  We never got to the kielbasa or the chicken ...  I often thought someone could get rich with a mobile Dunkin Donuts sled being pulled around the lake by a snowmobile.

We drilled many holes in the ice and set our traps.  Most of the time we had 7 traps (allowed 2 each) set up and used one Jig pole.  We caught quite a few Perch.  At one point Rick thought we may run out of bait so we moved most of our traps to deeper water. 

Fish & Game came around on ATV's counting traps and checking licenses. 



Kevin and I headed out mid afternoon and stopped in Center Harbor.  Looks like they had more like 4 inches of ice.


We also stopped in Meredeth to look at the board. We walked around on the ice also.  Looked to be 2 - 3 inches of ice when we checked. 

At one point we walked by a trap that was 15 feet from open water.  As we walked the ice was bouncing as water was squirting up through the trap hole with each step so we moved carefully to thicker ice away from the open water.  Kevin had the ice picks and I told him if I went in he could slide them to me and I would pull myself out.  I think I will buy a second pair next time.

The board had some nice fish.  A biggest fish on the board at that time was a 12 lb Lake Trout.  The categories were Lake Trout, Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, White Perch, Pickerel, Cusk, and Black Crappie.

Because of the thin ice there weren't as many ice shacks out this year.  There were quite a few portable ice shelters.  Some were large and looked pretty slick.  Ice shelters are light, easy to put up, mobile, and probably the way to go.  However, it is nice to see some of the creatively decorated ice houses ...

They said on the evening news that two snowmobiles did go thought the ice on the lake.  Both riders survived.

Search Blog Archive: February 2013, February 2011, January 2010 & February 2009 - for more Winnipesaukee Ice Fishing.