Friday, November 28, 2014

Lake Waconia Ice Update 11/28/14

We took another ice walk today, and thanks to the extreme cold over Thanksgiving, we were pleasantly surprised with the growth of the ice over the past few days.  We found between 4.5 to 6 inches around the “Walleye Hole” between the marinas.  We headed out to Cemetery, where there is a crack/ridge that goes over the center of the reef and heads toward the east point of the island.  West of the crack (on the west edge of Cemetery) you can expect to find 4 to 5 inches of ice.  East of the crack (which includes the east side AND south point of Cemetery) will be newer, thinner ice in the 2.5 to 3 inch range. That newer, lesser ice extends east toward Anderson’s and north toward Reds, so we advise using extreme caution if you plan on trying those areas.

We continued our walk along the south side of the island where we found 5 to 8 inches of ice.  As we got to “Under the Wires” which is between the island and Lakeview Terrace, we found bumpy ice that was between 4.5 to 6 inches.  We advise using extreme caution if you head north past “Under the Wires”, because that is also where the freshest, thinnest ice continues.  We found 2.5 to 3 inches in that area, which extends toward North Center to the north, and northeast toward Kegs Reef.
As far as Waconia Bay is concerned, we are very happy with the ice, with the exception of the goose hole (which froze last).  Most of Waconia Bay is between 5 to 8 inches.  The goose hole (which is marked with lath board and caution tape) was as little as 2.5 inches.

All in all, the lake ice is improving.  We are seeing anglers get their first taste of Lake Waconia fishing action. We’re excited to hear all your fishing stories!


Don’t forget, we will have temporary hours of 9 am to 5 pm for the time being.  We’ll be extending our hours in the future as the ice thickens.  We are selling Season Passes for lake access again for $25 for the season.   Daily access is $1 for walking out ($2 for driving when we open it up for vehicle traffic in the future).

Stop in and say hi!  We'd love to see you!