Please consult a Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife ice fishing regulations booklet for opening dates and other special regulations. On most lakes, anglers have to wait until Jan. 1 before keeping any game fish, including brook trout, brown trout, togue, splake, landlocked salmon, smallmouth bass and largemouth bass. All fish must be released immediately without removing them from water. That leaves the whole month of December to focus on catching some tasty white perch. In Smithfield, most avid ice fishermen know North Pond is a great place for icing a good mess of humpback-size white perch.
Humpbacks are older, bigger perch which produce meaty fillets.
For those who haven't tried eating white perch, it's a chance to feast on some of the finest freshwater fish ever to grace a dinner plate. Always use caution when venturing out onto any lake this month. Remember, thin ice conditions do exist. Check ice thickness with a chisel by poking a hole every few feet as you venture along. Also carry an ice-escape life preserver.