I would be a lot more bummed, but this ice fishing season has been out of this world. Definitely one for the record books. My first trip out was just before thanksgiving, likely either November 19th or 20th. As of now we have a few lakes that I'm in danger of bottoming out my ice auger, 36" to 40" of ice. Shorelines are as good as they ever are. The 10 day forecast does not show a warm up at all in the future, only a few days with highs just over freezing. Lots of snow still on the ground, especially around Aberdeen and farther NE. We are for sure going to be ice fishing past Easter, and there is a chance of having a full 5 month ice season this year. That's practically unheard of in the lower USA. I remember years I've been ice fishing before Thanksgiving. I remember 1 year I've been ice fishing in April, but it was kind of sketchy. The bite from November through January was phenomenal. February was definitely slow. March started off hot and cold. It's definitely getting really good now. The craziest thing is fish are still in a mostly mid winter pattern still. On a normal year most creek mouths would have pike and other fish going up them, and I've not seen a single one. Perch can be found shallow, but most everything is still deep.
It's crazy to think our spring turkey season starts in about 10 days. I haven't even shot my muzzleloading shotgun in a few months. I'm not planning on going out until at least May 1st at this point. I think I'm going to try the black hills this year.