The Mayville Winter Festival with the Chautauqua Lake Ice Castle 2025 provided a spectacular view for visitors and ice anglers last weekend. Photo by Blanche’s Goodie Garden

Last weekend, the Mayville Winter Festival at Chautauqua Lake was the place to be for a look at the Chautauqua Lake Ice Castle 2025.

This spectacular hand-crafted icehouse castle was built with custom-cut pieces of ice taken from Chautauqua Lake where the ice thickness is now 12 to 15 inches. In one spot down the lake, a nitwit car owner drove out onto the ice to make a point with friends; that’s just nuts. Please don’t do that.

While ice anglers should never let their guard down when walking on water to fish in the winter, it seems at Chautauqua Lake, the ice thickness does allow for safe angler access on foot, with a 4-wheeler or a snow machine – just don’t do that near Mayville where the ice was custom-cut and removed for the ice castle. Use caution always. The ice castle is a work of art and reports are that this is the largest ever ice-art in the history of the festival. Before sunset when the sky is clear, and the sunbeams are just right, beautiful refracted light beams of several colors are visible shining through the 1,800 blocks of ice that weigh approximately 900,000 pounds. After dark, the castle was illuminated with light emitting diode lights and reminded viewers of Niagara Falls in a manner of thinking. Pretty cool views.

While the parking lot at Lakeside Park in Mayville was filled with non-fishing patrons who visited the ice castle last weekend, the fishing near the ice castle has been very good for anglers during the week. Up and down the lake, ice fishermen have been catching an increasing number of legal-sized crappie and larger perch, some up to 10 and 11 inches, and more, in 6 to 12 feet of water on jigs tipped with a half-minnow.

The weedbeds near Dewittville Bay have also been productive below Chautauqua Point. This is a great time for ice fishing in our local area. Some nice walleyes have been taken near Long Point in 35 to 40 feet on swim jigs tipped with half a minnow. Mike Sperry at Chautauqua Reel Outdoors Bait Shop at Asheville Bay Marina says, “Walleye fishing has been decent in the late evening and throughout the night. Jigging Rapalas have been the way to go in a variety of colors and have been the hot ticket item that we continue to restock every couple of weeks.” Sperry carries a variety of live baits for winter anglers, including fatheads, golden shiners, wax worms, spikes, and red worms for anglers. Call Sperry to verify bait stocks at 716-763-2947.

Gotta love the outdoors!

Outdoor Calendar:

Feb. 20: Southtowns Walleye Association of WNY, monthly meeting, 7PM, 5895 Southwestern Blvd., Hamburg.

Feb. 21: 3-Spot Archery, fun shoot, open to public, 7PM, West Falls Conservation, 55 Bridge St., West Falls.

Feb. 22: Orvis Fly Tying 101, 10AM-noon, at the store, 4545 Transit Rd., Amherst. Register at 716-276-7200.

Feb. 22: Fisherman’s Flea market, WNY Walleye, K of C, Hamburg, Chris Kempf, 716-400-9258.

Feb. 23: WNY 3D Archery, league shoot, open to the public, this week at Glen Coe Conservation Club, 9869 Foote Rd., Glenwood; $15, kids 12 and under are free. Info: 716-863-7342.

Feb. 27: Erie County Federation of Sportsmen, monthly meeting, 7PM, this month at George Washington Hiking and Camping Club, 2805 Niagara St., Buffalo. Info: call President Jack Coad, 716-481-7281.

NOTE: Send Calendar info or related outdoor news to forrestfisher35@yahoo.com.