Christmas arrives amidst a sea of lights and a flurry of shopping, family traditions, and an avalanche of Hallmark movies. Most everyone loves the holidays, except the Grinch. And even he had a change of heart.

December itself is a season of change. Fall’s last gasp slips way as winter settles in. There’s snow in the air and a frosty covering on the ground. And for anglers, the appearance of first solid ice on far-northern lakes.

First-ice is a blessed time of mild temperatures, walkable ice, and excellent fishing in obvious spots, using simple, traditional tactics. It just doesn’t get any better than that.

After that…it gets cold. And in some places, really cold—for a long, long time—leading to a separation of the angling ways into three basic groups.

1: Hardcore ice anglers embrace the depths of winter with excitement and enthusiasm. They gear up with everything it takes to tackle the polar environment: boots and clothing, augers and ice electronics, rods and reels and tip-ups, tiny jigs and jigging lures, ice scoops, snow machines for getting around on the ice, and a wealth of specialized items for braving and beating the cold. Some more casual folks elect to test the icy waters while the mild weather lasts, then give things up when the real cold settles in.

2: A large cadre of northern anglers simply give up fishing for the winter, preferring to remain inside in front of a roaring TV and toasty fire. They just don’t have the ice gene, and there’s no shame in that. Saturday morning TV fishing shows provide weekly stimulation and ideas for the upcoming spring season.

3: A third group of anglers with the opportunity and means to head farther south, below the Ice and Snow Belts, blend a winter escape to milder temperatures with a bit of fishing on the side. For some, it’s casual. For others, it’s every bit as hardcore as fishing open water back home. Or somewhere in between.

Anyone who fishes the northern states should have no trouble catching Midsouth and southern bass and crappies during winter. It’s the same tackle and gear…at the same air and water temperatures as fall up North. And you can do it on a budget with no extra equipment required. The fish may be a bit deeper due to the winter conditions, because after all, it’s as winter-like as it ever gets there. Plus, there’s some mighty fine trout fishing in select Midsouth waters, including for some giants.

Unless you work your way all the way down to Florida, where the bass are always pretty shallow, and pre-spawn fishing for hawgs gets underway in earnest in January. If you don’t haul a boat down with you, you can always hire a local guide to put you on the bite for a day or two. 

And if you have a notion to try saltwater, guides can put you on the bite, be it offshore fishing wrecks and reefs for all sorts of big, mean, fast and powerful toothy critters, to casting inshore for species like sea trout and redfish, which bite a variety of bass- and walleye-like lures. In fact, it’s not much culture shock at all, assuming that you have a seasoned pro guide at the helm who understands the interactions of tides and currents. You can fish some mighty nice conditions in February before heading back north to start getting ready for the real fishing season.

The nice thing about fishing is that you can make it whatever you want, from serious to casual, for whatever species you choose to prefer. There’s no right or wrong way to do it. Only the way you choose to scratch your particular itch.

If nothing else, a southern-ish winter trip with a bit of fishing involved is a great way for anglers and their families to escape the frigid environs back home for a vacation and for everyone to enjoy their time in the sun. It doesn’t have to cost and arm and a leg, because options are available to suit all budgets. And the time to start planning is now.

And let’s face it: Even the most hardcore ice enthusiast could benefit from a short venture down to warmer climes during the absolute depths of winter. If nothing else, it’s a good mental break from cabin fever to recharge your enthusiasm and spur preseason preparations once you get back home. Even if you can hardly wait to get back on the late-ice bite for your favorite angling species upon your return.