MOSES LAKE — For many, the long New Year's weekend provided a chance to stay out late and sleep it off the next day. For others, it was a chance to bundle up, pack some gear and an auger and head out to Moses Lake for some ice fishing.

Joe Tabor drove up from Pasco on Dec. 30 to spend the day fishing for perch. Tabor said the ice wasn't as thick as he'd prefer, but it'll do. There's "probably 5 inches of ice, but 6 is best," he said.

The one-inch shortage made drilling his fishing hole a bit easier, at least. "I have a good, sharp auger. I start each season with new blades."

He picked a good spot to drill. In that first day fishing, Tabor said he was getting bites all day, but kept "only 20."

"I only keep the ones over 10 inches; not much meat off the little ones."

Heading home with 20 fish would make likely make fisherman eager to get back at it the next day, and that's exactly what Tabor did.

Though he wasn't reeling in the keepers like he was yesterday, he enjoyed catching and releasing several small perch throughout the afternoon. Tabor said he planned to spend his New Year's Eve cleaning all the fish he caught.

For Paul Bean and Wade Fontenelle of Sammamish, the day off was an opportunity for them to gather their kids and traverse the pass for some winter fun in Moses Lake. Bean said his kids were sledding on the shore at Blue Heron Park, while Wade's son, Luke, joined his father and Bean for some ice fishing.

Wade, an avid ice fisherman who's fished at Potholes, Banks Lake, and throughout Washington, said Moses Lake is "one of our favorite spots for ice fishing" and that they "may be back Saturday and Sunday." Bean and the Fontenelles had several perch to show for their efforts and said the best way to eat them is to fillet and fry them. The catch of the day belonged to Luke, however, who reached into a plastic bag to show off the walleye he hauled in earlier.

With temperatures expected to hover at or below freezing for most of the week ahead, Moses Lake may continue to be the destination for Washington's ice fishermen.