GRAND TRAVERSE -- Temperatures may have been climbing all week but many of our area lakes still have a good base of ice covering them, keeping ice fisherman very happy.
The season of ice fishing is officially underway for the folks on Long Lake in Grand Traverse County and Lake Cadillac in Wexford County.
Fisherman on Long Lake have been out on the ice since New Years, drilling their holes and dropping their lines, hoping to catch a bite.
Long Lake grocery store sits just across the street from where the fisherman park their cars. The owner, Nick Farrugia, says that business has been great for them since ice fishing season started.
"The parking lot across the street and up the street, the other launch there were full of cars," said Farrugia. "And we haven't seen that kind of turn out in consecutive days in a row at one time."
Long Lake fisherman tell 7 & 4 News that the ice is nearly 5 inches thick, and that it's good for this time of the year.
Cadillac fisherman say the ice has been great on Lake Cadillac and Lake Mitchell.
The fisherman don't seem to mind the threat of rain and warmer temperatures rolling in, but they are still taking extra precautions when venturing onto the ice.
"You might have to be careful when you come out," said fisherman, Mark Green. "Judge the conditions you know. Take your spud with you. That's the best thing to do. Take your spud and a friend with you when you go out."
For information on Ice activity safety, you can visit the Michigan Department of Natural Resources website.
