Over the years, I have encountered several anglers who have as much fun jigging through a hole in the ice as they do casting from a boat. A few of these anglers include Mitch Johnson from Montague, Jesse Singleton from North Muskegon and Mark Martin from Twin Lake. Johnson owns and operates Johnson's Great Outdoors, a sporting goods store in Montague. Johnson also fishes the FLW Walleye Circuit and knows a few things about putting walleyes in the boat and on the ice.

Slab crappies like this one are plentiful in Big Blue Lake. Photo by Tracy Breen.

Johnson grew up in Michigan and helped operate a sporting goods store from the time he was a young teenager. Growing up in the sporting goods industry, he quickly caught on to the type of ice-fishing tactics that work best and which lakes consistently produced fish.

LAKE CADILLAC
Johnson has fished all over the state of Michigan and enjoys fishing Lake Cadillac when the lake first freezes over.

"Cadillac is usually cold enough that ice typically forms on the lake sometimes several weeks before I can fish the lake here around my home," he explained.

Johnson largely targets panfish like bluegills but also enjoys catching crappies.

"We always fish close to town on the west end of the lake not far from shore, but there are a lot of good places to fish," he said. "We usually use 4-foot rods with K&E jigs.

"During the early season, shortly after the ice forms, we can get away using large jigs. As the season progresses and the ice thickens, we usually switch to smaller jigs because there are more anglers fishing and the fish start to get more finicky. I normally fish with wax worms, spikes or wigglers."

According to Johnson, early morning is when most anglers hit the ice on Lake Cadillac, but he said anglers who stick with it for most of the day are rewarded with more action.

"Early in the morning, anglers are usually out in force and typically jig very close to the bottom," he explained. "Once the fish stop biting, many anglers go home for the day. One of the reasons panfish stop biting is because as the day progresses, they move up and are often suspended several feet off the bottom. They have not left, they just moved up. To find the fish, anglers need to move up their presentation and try again. When I find them again, I usually start catching them right away."

Lake Cadillac can be accessed via the downtown dock and the city boat launch. Next to Lake Cadillac is Lake Mitchell, which is also a popular ice-fishing lake. While in the area, it may be worth your time to fish both lakes. Schafer's Bait and Sporting Goods is conveniently located between the two lakes. They can be reached at (231) 775-7085. Contact the Cadillac Visitors Bureau at (800) 225-2537 or online at www.cadillacmichigan.com for more information.

MUD LAKE
Another lake Johnson enjoys fishing is called Mud Lake. It is close to his home and located east of Rothbury in Oceana County. This lake is relatively small but offers consistent fishing action all winter.

"The lake is only 15 or 20 acres in size, but it is a great place for pan-fishing that is close to Muskegon, Whitehall and Montague," he said. "When we fish it when the ice first forms, we catch good-sized bluegills. During the late afternoon and early evening, we often find fish about 6 feet off the bottom. As the season progresses, the lake receives a lot of fishing pressure. We still catch fish, but we notice that during the middle of the season until we stop fishing the fish we catch are often smaller."