About to Bust Open

This good size mirror is one of
several that I landed this week.
There is still snow and ice in places,
but it is disappearing quickly.

Get ready because carp fishing is about to bust open this coming week. It will be an earlier than usual start.  I went around scouting the last couple of days and can tell you that most of the ice is at least partially off most of the ponds.  Some places were half iced in, others had sparse icing along the shorelines.  Ponds and lakes south of Providence had little ice while places to the north had more.  However, I suspect the all the ice will be gone by the weekend. The rivers are ice free but the water is high and really moving in most places.
I did also fish a couple of times this week in moving, ice free water and landed a few mirrors.  The water is still super cold with the ice and snow melting and the fish are sluggish, but that will change rapidly in the next week. Sweet corn was the bait of choice this week.
Realize that early season fishing is complicated because of RI DEM rules.  Here are some things to keep in mind:
* You will need a new 2017 license to fish after March 1 in RI. Your old (2016 ) license is good until the end of Feb.
* All trout stocked waters are closed and off limits until Opening Day (second Sat. in April).  All other waters are open to carp fishing.
*The Blackstone River is mostly closed to carp fishing  after March 1 due to limited trout stocking.
*Once Opening Day comes along, the use of corn is prohibited in trout stocked waters.  You can use corn everywhere else.