Marie Lake First Ice Bonanza!

[Alberta's Lakeland]

First ice is the best time to catch some of the biggest fish of the year and one of the best first ice lakes is Marie Lake, nestled in the heart of Alberta's beautiful Lakeland region. Marie offers anglers a mixed bag of fish that few other lakes can rival; walleye, pike and burbot along with whitefish and cisco can all be caught in the same day in the same area of the lake. The whitefish in Marie are so thick that seeing several at a time in your ice hole is the norm and the fact that these fish are in shallow water, 4-6ft. deep, makes for excellent sport in the crystal clear water. Small wire worms are the go to bait tied on 4-6lb. test. Tipped with maggots or your favorite power bait and they will keep biting all day. If there is one problem on Marie, it's the fact the lake is full of ciscoes that can be a nuisance as they are so plentiful that anglers often have to pull their jig out of the hole to avoid hooking one. Some anglers target these eager biters to make homemade pickled fish that tastes quite similar to pickled herring. During the course of a day of fishing it is very common to see huge pike cruising in the shallows looking for a easy meal of ciscoes. An excellent tactic for these big fish is the bait and switch by pulling out your whitefish rig and dropping a large spoon tipped with a smelt to entice these hungry predators. As evening approaches moving your lines to deeper water 12-16ft. will target the walleye and huge burbot that swim in the lake. Jigging spoons and plain jig heads tipped with a spot tail shiner produce the best. The lake produces huge pike and burbot with a 33lb. pike being caught last winter and the provincial record burbot also being caught some years ago. Always follow the Alberta fishing regulations and please limit your catch. Come out to Alberta's Lakeland for the day and stay for a lifetime.