Has spring finally arrived? Or is this warmer weather just a tease and March will be a lion? This next week is going to be in the 60s most days with a chance of snow midweek. Those highs are going to help warm the ponds that are open. I’m going to sound like a broken record but the best fishing is happening in the ponds. I’m targeting the sunny afternoons, especially that time from 4 pm until dark for the best panfish and trout bite. The trout are starting to get more active and fishing hitting some larger baits like spinners, streamers, jerkbaits, and hair jigs. During this end of the day period don’t neglect making casts close to the shoreline. I know at St. Vrain I’ve had most of my bites within 25 feet of shore during the late afternoon period.
Some walleyes are starting to move up to shore during the evening. Most of these will be males and using a jig and twister or jerkbait are good options. When I’m looking for first ice off walleyes I’m look for spawning areas so rocky shorelines or areas with current coming entering the body of water.
I expect more lakes to start opening up this week. Looking forward to exploring some additional areas. If your favorite place still has ice right now I’d be checking it every couple days because the ice can leave really quick with these temps and the wind they are forecasting.
CURRENT CONDITIONS
I spent some time that past few days checking ice conditions on many of the NoCo lakes this is what I found:
Carter - ice-free
Horsetooth - 1/2 open
Douglas - Breaking up
Boyd - Mostly capped with a few areas starting to open up
Lon Hagler - capped
Boedecker - starting to open
Barr - open
St. Vrain - open
Chatfield - over 90% capped
Cherry Creek - over 90% capped
Quincy - 25% open
Aurora - 80% capped
Jackson - 80% open
Prewitt - almost ice-free
North Sterling - 90% capped
Jumbo - 50% capped
Union - over 50% open
I’ll be making phone calls this coming week to get any updates on the schedule for opening boat ramps. Right now I would say most will be after March 1st based on current conditions, but the wind the next few days could help some of the lakes lose their remaining ice.
Snowpack in the South Platte River basin is currently at 93%.
KIDS FISHING EVENT
Little Wilderness is putting on Youth Fish Fest, with the help of Scheels and Matt Carlson, on Sunday, April 14 at the Colorado Youth Outdoors facility just south of Fort Collins. Space is limited. Registration opened today. For additional information and to sign up click this link Youth Fish Fest. I’m planning to be there to help with the event. If you’re interested in helping out with a group that gets kids into the outdoors - reach out to them and see what opportunities are available.
If you or a group you are a part of has a fishing event coming up, please leave a comment with the details and I’ll try to get it into an upcoming newsletter.
TERRY WICKSTROM OUTDOORS
I’ll be on Terry’s radio show at 9:15 am this Saturday on 104.3 FM talking about fishing in NoCo. The show runs from 9-11 am on Saturdays. This week’s show will be leading off with Steve Pennaz. Steve is always full of good fishing information every time he speaks.
LAKE BREAKDOWN - St. Vrain State Park Ponds
St. Vrain is a state park located just off I-25 and Hwy 119 on the east edge of Longmont. This park has a variety of pond with good warm water fishing and several ponds stocked with trout. Be aware there are different regulations on several of the ponds, make sure to take look at the regulations.
Here is a map, list of fish species stocked in 22/23, and the fish species found in the park along with which lake has them.
2024 Outlook for each pond
Mallard - Good numbers of bluegill and crappies, both are smaller sized. Decent catfish with some in the 16-24 inch range. Trout stocked in this pond.
Coot - Bluegill and crappie numbers are trending up. Some bluegill in the 6-8 inch range and some crappies in the 8-12 inch range. Walleye numbers are down and mainly small. Trout stocked in this pond.
Sandpiper - Lots of trout stocked. Still some of the larger cutthroats that were stocked this winter remain. Crappies in the 5-8 inch range.
Blue Heron - Good bluegill numbers with the majority in 6-10 inch range. Some larger crappies in the 10-15 inch range. Catfish are not in huge numbers, the size is pretty good with fish up to 28 inches. Good numbers of smaller walleyes, these should be 12-16 inches this spring.
Pelican - One of the better crappie ponds with numbers and size. Good bluegill in the 6-8 inch range. Best pond for larger walleyes with some up to 25” not huge numbers overall. Northern pike in the 21-36 inch range. Larger catfish in the 24-30 inch range.
Bald Eagle - Good numbers of smaller crappies. There are some good sized largemouth in this pond. This pond is artificial lures only.
Red Tail - Small green sunfish and stocked with trout. There are a few larger bass in this pond.
Pintail - Best pond for bluegill numbers with some in the 6-8 inch range. Decent for crappies with some 8-12 inches. Smaller northern pike are present.
FISHING FUNNIES