Well, we are right in the thick of it now. Ice-out is either here or close enough to taste on all of the lakes in the area. After a pretty nice week last week with warm temps and some rain – we dipped back into the 20’s and 30’s just in time for the weekend – and woke up to temps in the teens on Monday. That gave a few of the smaller, shallower lakes one last stubborn morning of ice along the shorelines – the forecast climbing into the mid-60s and even 70s by mid-week should put that to rest for good. That kind of warmth, a little wind (which there’s been no shortage of) and some of that spring sunshine in late April up here tends to do the job fast.

The Eagle River Chain is basically open, and all of the smaller lakes in the area are, too. The bigger lakes in the Northern part of the county always take a little longer, so places like North and South Twin, Kentuck and Lac Vieux Desert are still sporting some winter – although shorelines have pulled and full ice-out is well underway. It will happen fast, now.

The May 2nd game fishing opener is just two weeks out, and the buzz around the area is real. With this week’s warming trend pushing water temps in a positive direction, we could be looking at some very good conditions by the time the 2nd rolls around. A cold snap could still slow things down, but the trajectory looks encouraging. Walleye anglers should start thinking about their jig and crawler setups, and the crankbait crowd will want to have some shallower-diving options ready for the rocky points and gravel shorelines early in the season.

The musky situation remains what it was last week – the opener is May 2nd now, alongside the general inland opener. Most serious musky anglers up here are still planning to leave them alone until the water has had a chance to come up and the fish have had a chance to do what they need to do. May 2nd on the calendar doesn’t change biology and we’re hopeful they’ll still be left alone by anglers to get the spawn “downtime” they need.

In the meantime, get yourself ready. This warming stretch is the perfect window to get the boat out of storage, check over the engine, and make sure everything is in order before launch day. Fresh line on your walleye rods if it’s been a couple of years, new hooks on your favorite presentations, and a close look at any leaders or snaps that might have sat in a tackle box since last fall. A trip to the boat launch just to see the water open and a light chop rolling in is honestly its own reward this time of year – hard to explain if you haven’t been away from it all winter, easy to understand if you have.

Temperatures look to continue cooperating into next week. If this week’s weather holds, we’re in great shape for a strong opener. Two weeks and counting.

Good luck and good fishin’!