Midwinter traffic is at an all-time high right now. Between the hockey tournament, ice skating and general tourism, there is a lot of traffic on the ice. With that said, fishing as far away as you can from the high-traffic areas will increase your odds for a great day on the ice.

Grand Lake

Ice thickness continues to get better, but there is still some slush present. The pump canal is pumping water, so the open water area on the west side of the lake in front of the bridge contains a large amount of unsafe ice due to the current.

The rainbow and brown trout fishing remains fair. Fishing as early in the day or late in the afternoon as possible will increase your odds of catching fish. 

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Small jigs tipped with a wax worm have been providing the best opportunities. These fish are being caught in 10-20 feet of water, and most are suspended in the water column. I like to use Clam drop-kick and Clam caviar jigs when targeting the rainbows.

The lake trout fishing on Grand Lake has remained steady over the past week. We are seeing most fish in the 40- to 80-foot range. Small tube jigs, grub-style jigs and twisters are getting the vast majority of the action. 

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We are tipping our jigs with a very small piece of sucker meat that is no bigger than a fingernail.  Using scent is also a very important part of the puzzle. We are loading our jigs up with shrimp-flavored scents.

Right now, the famous Grand Lake suspended bite has begun. We are finding the suspended fish 40-60 feet down over 80-120 feet of water. When fishing the suspended lake trout, position your jigs 1-3 feet above the fish, and you will almost be guaranteed a bite.

— Guide Jake Foos

Williams Fork Reservoir

The water level is at 74%. A lot of the snow on the lake has melted, creating some slushy and slick walking conditions.

The lake trout bite has been fair. Small tube jigs and grubs tipped with sucker meat have been producing fish. When the bite on the bottom slows down, try switching to small tungsten jig heads tipped with sucker meat a foot off the bottom.

Staying mobile and moving around to different pieces of structure has been key in producing more fish.

— Guide Sam Hochevar

Lake Granby

The water level is at 71% or about 23.5 feet low. Travel conditions on the lake are good after the cold night Sunday, and slush is minimal. But we do have snow in the forecast, so be prepared if snow starts to accumulate with the new storms.

Rainbow trout and brown trout action has been fair, with the best action being the 30 minutes before sunrise or after sunset. Target the rocky faces of the dikes and dam face with a white or pink colored Dynamic twitch tube or eighth-ounce clown colored Clam leach flutter spoon tipped with a waxie.

The lake trout action has been very good since the tournament. We are finding excellent numbers of fish in the 35- to 65-foot depths. A pumpkin green grub or 2 1/2 inch tube is getting the most bites, but staying mobile and keeping on top of active fish is key while ice fishing on Granby.

With the traffic on the lake in full swing, now is the time to start thinking outside the box and finding some of that out-of-the-way structure that holds fish.

— Guide Dan Shannon

The Fishing With Bernie team has been guiding in Grand County for over 25 years. Find more information at FishingWithBernie.com.