GENEVA LAKE, Wis. — Is it reasonable to go ice fishing while the sun is shining at 60 degrees over Southeast Wisconsin? An experienced fishing guide brought out his tools to answer that question.
Doug Ide of Guide Ide Fishing Service has conducted weekly tests of the ice levels on Geneva Lake for social media for several years.
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"We're getting the e-mails right now from the tourists who ask if it's safe," Ide said. "The residents here just say, 'Oh yeah, we're going.'"
Ide took a measurement with TMJ4 off of the Williams Bay boat launch Monday afternoon. Despite the warm temperature, he still measured the ice at 12 inches deep just fifteen feet off of the shore.
Watch: Walworth County man measures ice thickness of Geneva Lake for fishers' safety
Ide uses an ice bar to check the ice on the surface, an auger to drill a hole, and a ruler to measure the level of the hole he is able to drill. He does not go near ice heaves, which he says are dangerous under any condition.
"Usually, when the ice bar goes in the ice too far, you know you have to stop," Ide said.
Dozens of anglers felt confident enough to fish on Geneva Lake throughout the day on Monday. The sight confused the tourists who walked along the shore on Lake Geneva for a President's Day getaway.
"We think it's crazy the people are out there because you can clearly see the water streaming across the top," said Karen Tarantino, who visited Lake Geneva from Mukwonago. "My friend keeps asking me how they're going to get off."
While the lake is intact for now, Ide said any water from up above would mean the instant end of ice fishing season.
"I don't believe we're going to be able to get on the lakes after the rain we're supposed to get Wednesday," Ide said.
He hopes ice fishers take caution this week before they choose to pursue one last catch.
"There's no fish or no memory you're going to have that would justify doing something unsafe for a fish," Ide said.
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