Higgins lake report

[Marq]

Just got back from higgins.We
got 300-400 smelt last night.Glow tear drops 30-40ft down.DO NOT DRIVE OFF OF THE NORTH END BOAT LAUNCH trucks were getting stuck last night,ice conditions at shore are vary bad. Hay slammer, yes, on for next weekend when are you leaving from down there. Will meet you at bridgeport and follow you up there. there was a girl struck by a truck last night.If any one knows her condition let me please. We hope she will be o.k. MARQ. (P.S) thanks too the gentelman that let us use his auger, when the pull cord let go on mine. Hope shes O.K. OUT

[beer and nuts]

Report and clarification on the girl NOT being hit by a truck

Was out Sat. night and let me tell you I have never seen sooooooo many people at smeltville. I've seen the busiest 4rth of July days and that was nowhere near half the voulume of people and cars and trucks. WOW, it was pretty amazing. We did OK on the smelt catching but I did mostly to get bait for Sunday. I and a friend were the ones to call 911 on the girl that got run over by an ATV than was on a trailer already without the pin in the trailer and she stepped on the back causing the ATV to run over her and knock her to the ground. At the time it looked serious with a possible broken leg and a head wound but I think it might not have been that bad, but I know nothing on what her injuries really were. We actually told dispatch what really happened and by the time the sherriff dep. ran out, the story was an ATV struck her and the deputy was looking for a hit and run!?!? Than on Sunday afternoon as we were done fishing, we were talking to a guy and he mentioned the girl that got hit by the truck, funny what the story turned into less than 24 hours!

Sunday morning, two nice lakers 21 and 19 inches on tipups lost another nice one jigging with numerous hits and caught a 12 inch cisco as well. I know why people hide their caught fish and fib to others, we had one guy come up to us and ask how we are doing as our two lakers were on the ice, 1/2 hour later he came back with three other parties and setup about 50 yards from us and a spread of rods :mad:

How nice was it on Sunday out there in 53 degree sunshine and no wind, can't get any better than that!!!

[salmonslammer]

Sounds like you guys smoked em pretty good:cool:

Were you on the N or W side of the lake??

I read that there was some sort of accident up there last night..Hope she will be OK.. Someone will have some details soon, I'm sure.

I'll shoot you a PM later in the week....I may be in either cadillac or Mt. P on friday night and leaving from there...Kinda up in the air yet..


Have fun cleaning the little buggers....Snip 1, slice 2...

[sideshow]

Where about were you jigging for the lakers at.. or what water depth? I couldnt seem to get a thing on tip ups last time I was there but got a few jigging tubes in 100 fow. But will be heading up tuesday possibly for the last time this year.. any help would be appreciated!

Sideshow

[Marq]

Sorry I was tired,We were on the west shore Slammer.Cool on the timing.Have to get the auger fixed tomarrow the starting cord came out. Talk too you later M.

[Rat-Man]

Was talking to the DNR out on the North end of Higgins lake on Saturday afternoon. He said there were a lot of people out at smeltville, and they were geting a lot of smelt, he also said that the numbers of smelt are being deminished and that it looks like a limit should be put on smelt. DO YOU AGREE!

Remember the Golden Rule: ( Limit your kill - Dont kill your limit )

Pratice catch and release

[Marq]

Isnt that interisting! They rose a fuss when the smelt were introduced. Now they want too put a limit on them.(has me wondering) out. Marq.

[arcotraz]

went up to smeltville feb27 thru mar 1 with duckslayer and others had a ball but the fishing was bad will not put up #s thats how bad it was by the way marq was that 300 smelt you caught or 300 people you meet lol was not my weekend for smelt

[beer and nuts]

Was it a CO or a DNR fisheries person? First time hearing this thought. Considering smeltville is one of a million places you can catch smelt on Higgins(only reason is the access there and short distance to walk). Now granted there is a huge collection of smelt at the west access but that lake is filled with smelt and I see no way is Higgins being overfished of smelt. Smelt are cycle fish meaning they will see a crash in the population sometime soon, maybe not a drastic crash but numbers will go down, all part of nature. About 15 years ago(plus minus some years) rarely were people in this great of numbers fishing for smelt they were few and far between, I remember Redman(guys that owned a bait store on the north end) would sell the smelt and would have to go over to Green or Crystal Lake to fish for them and bring them back cause Higgins had populations unfishable. Fishing for smelt on Higgins back then a great night was 20 and most guys hoped for 5 or 6 just enough for laker bait, most guys caught zip. These are good times for smelt right now, maybe its peak, it won't last.

[garyrodbender]

If the smelt go in a cycling- down mode (low #`s), I would think we could get into some SWEET trout fishing do to the lack of food... And that would not hurt my feelings one bit.

[beer and nuts]

Garyrodbender, that is the upside to the smelt population going down. Plus I think the perch population would fair better as well.

[Rat-Man]

It was a CO, and the people that own homes around the lake are really talking up a storm to the people in Lansing about the number of people that park on the roads, and the amount of trash that is left behind by people, plus the fact that they fish all night and the profane language that is used. I guess they have found the goby and zebra mussel in the lake and they beleive that its just a matter of time before there insn't enough food for the smelt and then goes the trickle down effect, or should I say the trickle up effect. I guess it is starting to get just like it used to be on the AuSable back in the days of legal salmon snagging.

[beer and nuts]

All things considering, I'm not sure if this is not being blown up a tad for some sort of agenda by somebody. Reason being "people that own homes around the lake" besides the maybe 3-4 next to the smeltville are uneffective by noise and swearing, let alone a good portion of houses/cabins are seasonal. Trash on the lake is in its first year of trying to curb that, and people have to understand that with that many people in one location, there is bound to be trash left, blown away, dropped by accident, and of course some left on purpose. No different than summer when trash flies out of speeding boats, kids drop trash over the side, etc...etc...maybe we should look at outlawing boats that go faster than 15 mph and no kids on the lake!;)

The media jumped on the story about Lyon twp fire dept picking up a truck load of trash last year and they have not let it go. The trash problem is being dealt with, and its up to the people that use the lake from here. The parking problem is an issue but at smeltville it has min. effect on residences, as most parking is in the two lots and then on Old 27 or the lake. There is only one road end there and it might effect one resident. The road end issue around the lake is a bigger problem for summer and will be a issue for many years, its just now caring over to winter.

Warning for all shanties at smeltville, word is the CO's will be issueing alot of tickets in the next week or so and targeting shanties that do not have the proper name address labeling on them.

[Marq]

We ended up with 329 smelt.The only problem with putting a limit on smelt is that it will have too cover the whole state ,not just one lake. Then everyone suffers!! Besides smelt are not native too the great lakes. I though the DNR wanted too get rid of forin invadaers.oh well there are other lakes that have smelt in them. time too find them and go fishing. Later. Marq. (a.k.a Flatrock).

[beer and nuts]

Just an update on that girl, she did break her leg.

[Stormrider]

I was out to smelt town last night did ok but the ice is getting thinner and thinner I drove my quad out 20 feet of shore and it kept going through. Looked like about 8 to 10 inches in smelt town. Came in a different direction with the quad the boat launch was fine. Saw one truck come out thought he should have been a little more cautious. It's just a matter of time before someone will lose a truck or a life. BE CAREFUL!:eek:

Thanks for the update on the girl Beer & Nuts

[krt]

I hope the ice doesn't get too bad. I was planning on taking my atv out to the sunken island from the west launch this weekend.
Any opinions on the conditions by the weekend?

[Stormrider]

I am going to go every other day I will keep posting about the ice but I think with the cold nights comming that it will be ok;)

[krt]

Fantastic. By the way Stormrider, your PM box is full.:D

[skulldugary]

Rat-Man,goby's?in Higgins?Man that IS bad news.Down below Brest Bay is full of those stinking, bugeyed,bait robbing little turds.We have caught as many as 2 dozen of them in a day,we throw them in a bucket and use them as fertilizer.....Those little pieces of crap can strip a crawler harness clean in no time....

[Houghton laker]

krt, I will be heading up there for 10 days of fishing.....any perch hotspots you could guide us to??? I have never really fished higgins lake much...usually stay on Houghton but would love to try for some perch!!

[mickdrosco]

Not good news guys....

Beer and Nuts from this site just stopped at my office to tell me it took several hours to get his shanty off the North end this morning. Deep water and slush. With the weather forecast for the next few days, it could be over...

If you are driving up, give Barnacle Bill a call at the Higgins Lake Sport shop or PM him, as I suspect he will have the most recent ice conditions at the smelt grounds. I haven't been over there myself, but can't imagine it's good. I live on the East side, and walked down to the lake this morning and there was a good six foot gap of open water near shore, then the ice beyond that didn't look good. That was before dawn, so I can't provide a positive report.

By the way, I noticed when I first posted this that the auto date feature on the site says I am posting this on the 4th, but it is Thursday, the 5th today...

[Moron]

mickdrosco

It is thursday, and it is the 4th. Are you looking at February instead of March?;)

[beer and nuts]

Miserable. I hit a slush hole that took me over a good hour to move my very light shanty 30- 40 yards. Snowmobile(I have a longer track one-up) goes through it and larger ATV could get out but any smaller style might be in for a long couple hours. As of today out to the drop was OK BUT with this weather on Friday 50 degrees and hard rain the packed snow out to the drop might not be pretty plus ice will go fast especially around the shoreline. Colder weather for Sunday and Monday might lock it up for the diehards. The ice and conditions look deceiving and the ice/slush give out at no warning, the ice below the slush still seems to be about 10-12 inches. This was all off the North State Park area. Conditions will change on Friday and more than likely for the real bad. My shanty is off and I'm glad! You have been warned :eek

Yup its the fourth all day today, its an age factor thing for dmick:p

[mickdrosco]

Duh, My watch doesnt recognize leap year!!

[Rat-Man]

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING!!!! Myself and two other people were out on Higgins lake today from 8:30 till after 1:00 pm we had our 4 wheelers. We were out aprox 2 miles off the North State Park, on the way out we hit patches where we broke through the top layer of snow there is about 10" of water and slush on top of the ice, we drilled holes on the way out to check the clear ice depth and we found it varried from 6 to 10", thats right we found a lot of areas that had only 6" of good clear ice with at least 4" of water and then 6" of slush on top of it. We fished out about 2 mi and then when it looked like the sun was going to come out we headed back toward the sunken Island but could not get their because we kept breaking through so we followed our tracks back that we made when we came out . We had to go around a lot of areas that you could see the water coming through the snow on top, and we went through alot. When we got back to the North launch we fished to the west for awhile but didn't mark or catch anything wortwhile so we came in and on the way while following the snowmobile tracks we were going through. Its a good thing we had a good set of grabber 2 link tire chains on! I would say that if it does not get cold before we get more snow you will only see me walking on Higgins and maybe not then I may just spend the rest of the season on the lakes around where I live. TAKE CARE AND WATCH THE ICE CONDITIONS CAREFULLY!!!

[garyrodbender]

Met Barnacle Bill today and went out of the west end, my sportsman went threw once on the way out to 100fow. Thank GOD it was only the front tires. Made it to the spot we wanted to fish. Stayed `til about 3pm. Was lucky to have made it off the lake. Saw three other quads tyiing to get around,2 of which got stuck for what seemed to have been an hour before they got up on solid enough ice to continue...As for the fisn`n it stunk, I hooked one on the bottom jigging a sand kicker and smelt. It came off soon there after. My bet it was a big white-fish. Get your shanties off that lake as soon as possible! Even walking out there is getting tougher.Spring like weather isnt going to help the ice conditions any.If you go, travel light, be safe. Bring those extra boots, for when you fall through the crust...Having wet feet will cut your day short .

[Can't Touch This]

Originally posted by skulldugary
Rat-Man,goby's?in Higgins?Man that IS bad news.Down below Brest Bay is full of those stinking, bugeyed,bait robbing little turds.We have caught as many as 2 dozen of them in a day,we throw them in a bucket and use them as fertilizer.....Those little pieces of crap can strip a crawler harness clean in no time....

I am almost 100% sure that those gobies are actually scalptin(??) Which are natral to the lake. I caught one that looked like a gobie, but, it had the fins of a scalptin. Hope there really aren't zebra muscles, if there are, they won't last long, the water in that lake is so clean, they will run out of the microorganisms real quick.

[gomer]

it is spelled "Sculpin"

[Backlash]

What is the phone # for Barnacle Bill @ the store ? Please !

[wild bill]

989-821-9517

[Rat-Man]

Can't Touch This: I hope your right about the goby's but the grass I pull up from the bottom has a lot of small clams on it.(Zebbra's ?)

[mickdrosco]

Those "small clams" are indeed zebras. The lake is loaded. When we scuba dive, everything is covered. I am not, however, familiar with any gobies having made it into the lake. There are some sculpin, which, as noted in one of the earlier posts, look something like the gobie, but are a native fish.

[Kramer]

Mick, I got certified this winter and bought some equipment. Do you use a wet or dry suit? Have you been out this year?

Thanks,