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NISSWA — 15 inches of ice.
"We made our mark. We are good to go to have our contest," Crow Wing County Sheriff's Recreation Sgt. Brad Thesing said Saturday, Jan. 21, to a group of Brainerd Jaycees gathered on the Gull Lake ice on Hole-in-the-Day Bay.
Extravaganza Chair Tad Johnson drilled a hole in the ice Saturday morning, Jan. 21, and Thesing measured it at the 15 inches. The Jaycees on the ice cheered the news.
The 33rd annual Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza will take place from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 28, on Hole-in-the-Day Bay, where thousands of anglers will gather in hopes of winning prizes and supporting area charities.
The official ice check originally was scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 18, but it was decided to wait a few more days for cold temperatures to make more ice.
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"We were hoping for more ice by this time. With the warm weather, things kind of came to a standstill as far as making ice," Thesing said in an email Thursday. "Now with the temps tapering off it should be making ice again."
Indeed, high temperatures in the days leading up to the contest are forecast in the mid-20s, dropping to 16 by Friday and 9 on contest day Saturday.
Overnight lows are predicted to drop to 10-11 degrees, and to 4 Thursday night and zero Friday night.
Contest tickets, along with raffle tickets and Catch of the Day tickets, can be purchased at Fleet Farm and local Brainerd area outlets as well as the Extravaganza website: icefishing.org .
Nancy Vogt, editor, may be reached at 218-855-5877 or nancy.vogt@pineandlakes.com. Follow her on Facebook and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/@PEJ_Nancy.
