At least in my neck of the woods, we are in that period of transition when open water turns to ice. The lakes are not yet frozen over, however the crust now present is too thick for a boat to blow through and too thin to support foot traffic or more. That means the boat now stays in storage while the ice fishing gear sits and waits.
It was 10 degrees on my truck thermometer when I left home this morning. It was too dark to see much of the lake as I left, but the sheen of new ice was visible as I passed a shallow bay near the road I take each day.
I've fished from a boat in temps a cold as 9 degrees before, once while fishing blue catfish midwinter in Tennessee and another time targeting sauger in Minnesota in either March or July (or both). In both cases we caught fish, but the action wasn't spectacular.
Last winter, daughter Maddie and I brave temps of 34 below over New Year's weekend to chase mid-lake walleyes over a 22 -foot hump. Without wind and covered by a canvas fish house that featured a propane heater, we were toasty enough to fish without jacket or gloves, which made it easy to unhook the walleyes we caught...mostly eaters in the 15- to 17-inch range.
We kept them in a bucket filled with icy slush so they wouldn't freeze.
Fishing when the thermometer drops out can be a lot of fun, especially if you enjoy solitary pursuits. The next few weeks are going to be fun!
Steve