Sorry about the delay in getting this report up, weather has kept me busy.
Sat. AM found me at Lake Belva Deer in south central IA. I was in the company of BFD,his son Owen and my son Sean. Little B had done well the previous week on gills like the one pictured.
The weather Saturday was fantastic, the fishing was not. We searched the brushtops in 20-25ft. for fish willing to come out for a snack, but they were few in number. The fish we did manage were quality gills like this one that I was able to lure out of the trees.
I would put the ice at 6-8 inches on Sat…..before the rain on Sun. So I would be very cautious now. Shortly after BFD got a couple like this, we loaded up and headed for Hawthorn to see if the fish were on a bite there. They were a bit better, but still not fast by any means.
An hour or so at Hawthorn gave us four or five more fish, and Owen spent some quality time on the four wheeler so we called it a day. The fish seemed to be in a midwinter funk, the weather and company made for a great day..Thanks Guys!!
Dandy Gills !! How long were they ?
When you say your fishing in 25′ of water in the tree tops,,,,is this a flooded area ?
and who is the frenchman in the red hat with the french cut facial hair ?
wee wee misueu 
Get report Brian, looks like some nice meals for you guys.
It sure was great hanging out with you guys at the GTG. Thanks bunch for a great time. 
I know what you mean by not a good bite on Sat. I went to Cold Springs. Was there from 9:00 till 4:30 only thing I could get was an occasional little mite gill. Everone else that was there had same problem. Only 4 in” of clear ice and 2 ” of snow ice under me. My last trip there for this season.
Two to four inches, measured between the eyes.
Yes Dave, it is a flooded area. That is how the water got up to the top of the trees in the background
The red hat is not a hat at all…It is a hood. Sheesh…why can’t you be more like Jeff Patrick,now there is a nice guy
like this ?
That’s really frightening. I had to shave today, and it’s all your fault Koonce! Self esteem reaches an all time low, Ecnook reaches an all time high on list of people to maim or disfigure!
Work it baby Work it !!!
didn’t know you had it in you Dave.
We would’nt have ya any other way Dave
Actually it is a pretty neat little lake. The brush in the flooded timber comes up from the bottom five to ten feet. I could get bit consistently in one hole by lowering all the way down into the brush, about 1.5 ft off the bottom. I could not, however, get a fish out of that brush without wrapping around the lumber. So we watch the bait on the vex, keep it just above the puckerbrush, and try to tempt a fish to come up for a look.
Big B, cant seem to find this lake on my map
where is it located in the state? Are there any good crappies in there with all the wood 
Hey Eyetracker, The lake is located just north and east of Sigourney. We come in from the north on a series of blacktop and gravel roads. It is easy to reach by heading east out of Sigourney on 92 and tuning north at the sign.
I forgot the second part of your question…..yes there are nice crappies,however they may be elusive at times