We can finally call it winter, rather than “winter-like” weather or something similar. If you’re like me, winter starts in mid-to-late November when the days are short and cold, and the mountains coated with snow.

But winter officially starts today, so let’s keep talking about ice fishing. Like our tardy snowstorms that have delayed the ski and snowmobile season, ice fishing has been a mixed bag.

Cascade is leading the charge with thick ice and signs of fishing life at Lake Cascade and Horsethief Reservoir. I wrote about this last week, but in case you missed it, Horsethief has some good trout fishing, the ice is thick (about a foot), and the reservoir is easily accessible if you have a four-wheel drive vehicle or traction tires. You can catch rainbows and possibly browns. Expect trout in the 10-to-15-inch range, and probably most on the lower side of that scale.

While Horsethief is a safe bet, Lake Cascade is a little more high risk, high reward. You may have to put more effort into it, but anglers are catching some huge perch and occasional trout on the north end of the lake around Poison Creek.

You may not fill buckets with willing perch, but anglers are taking perch up to 15 inches, which is monstrous. It doesn’t take many of those to make a good meal. Cascade also has some big trout cruising around. Schools of fish in the 15-to-20-inch range are common, but they’re notorious for disappearing for days or even weeks and then mysteriously reappearing. That phenomena leaves even the experts scratching their heads.

Speaking of weird phenomena, Magic Reservoir still hasn’t frozen, despite temperatures rarely peaking above freezing. Cold temperatures and no ice. Don’t ask me to explain it.

Ice is forming nicely at Mountain View Reservoir on the Duck Valley Indian Reservation, and the reservoir was restocked with trout in fall. It could be a sleeper this winter. It’s a long drive for trout fishing, but definitely someplace to keep in mind.