Hey everyone, I will be going to try my luck for some rainbow trout for this upcoming wisconsin opener on ice house lake in clear lake. Does anyone know if it has been stocked recently? if not does anyone know any hot lures to catch some. Fished it once or twice before and got a couple on kastmasters and little cleos. Also if it has not been stocked this year, what do people think about the population of trout; was there a winter kill? Just a few things I have been wondering.

Thanks

i've never fished ice house, but i have fished another small rainbow lake around somerset (perch lake). we always catch them with a hook and crawler below a split shot. casting spoons would obviously be more fun, but we havent caught many fish that way on perch. fishing early morning or late evening is even more important than usual on these small rainbow lakes based on my experience. sorry im not more help...

Email the DNR in Baldwin. I did last year asking for trout stocking in general....was wondering if they still stocked the Willow River. The guy sent me back an extremly detailed stocking
report. Included the exact location of the drop (Cty/Hwy road intersection with the rivers), how many, how long (8", 12", etc), what species (brown/rainbow,brookie).

When we used to fish Ice House, corn and marshmallows was the way to go....get a long shank hook, thread on 3 or 4 pieces of whole kernel corn, and top it off with a mini marshmallow (used the colored ones). Used that on a slip sinker rig. Cast it out and be patient. Most waters in WI now allow 3 lines. Not really what a person would consider trout fishing, but very effective. Some of the guys are now using some form of powerbait...think they call it gumball or something like that.

http://infotrek.er.usgs.gov/traverse/f?p=220:1:0::NO::P1_COUNTY_NAME:POLK

The DNR does a pretty good job updating it's site with fish stocking info.

Thanks guys, I guess they stocked 900 9.6 inch trout last year as well as 15 19 inchers all rainbows. I will have to try all of your techniques

Don't forget flyfishing streamers during the day and topwater in the evening. If done the right way, it can be by far the most effective way to catch trout in stocked lakes.