Ice conditions in the Ely Area

[greatoutdoors]

The ice conditions in the Ely area haven't gotten much better with many pockets of slush and double layers of ice still hampering travel, thanks to the 10-12 inches of snow we received in a week.
There are no roads to speak of plowed on Burntside Lake, and many smaller snow machines have been having trouble traveling through the slush.  It's best to stay on any packed trails you can find if you plan on trout fishing this weekend.
Snowbank is the best bet, with Smitty's having a road plowed out to their rental houses.  You can try traveling to other parts of Snowbank Lake, but do so at your own risk as there are many areas of slush out there.
A few trout are being taken on both lakes, but the action has been slow.
We hope this cold snap will help set up the ice, but the deep snow may not allow the cold to penetrate down to freeze the slush.  I'll check later next week and give a report for those planning on coming up then.
I'd rather sacrifice some business for a week or two, than to have people travel several hundred miles for rotten lake conditions with false ice and fishing reports.
You can call my shop in the mornings for lake updates.