Kyle and Jeff step onto a Michigan inland lake during late season ice, on one of those rare 40°F days when winter doesn’t quite know it’s over. The ice is still solid, but the air feels like spring. It’s a narrow window that doesn’t last long, and we’re determined to make the most of it.

As we set the shanty and drill through aging ice, we walk through the exact tip-up system that’s helped us reach a 90 percent hook-up rate. From bait placement and depth control to how we set the hook by hand, this is the method we’ve refined over years of trial and error. If you’ve ever watched flags pop all day while other anglers miss fish, this episode breaks down why that happens and how to fix it.

Then the flags start flying. We get multiple hits and Jeff even catches his first fish of a new species through the ice! Meanwhile, the jigging rods stay busy with keeper bluegill and a steady stream of perch. Some go back down the hole. Some slab bluegill make the cut. Every species tells a slightly different story about how fish behave as winter fades.

This one is about more than just numbers. It’s about understanding presentation, reading late season fish, and squeezing every last opportunity out of a Michigan winter before the ice gives way to open water. A warm-weather ice fishing day that proves the season isn’t over until it’s truly gone.