Huron resident Robert Simpson caught this 3-pound chunk below Big Bend Dam on the Missouri River in South Dakota. Photo by R.A. Simpson.

Hunting seasons are winding up for the most part, the Christmas holidays and the New Year have come and gone, and football season is on its last legs.

What's a Dakota outdoorsman to do during the doldrums of winter, when cabin fever deepens with every log put on the woodstove?

Simple: Drag out the Thinsulate insulated parkas and boots, the heavy mittens, and a thermos or two of hot coffee and go ice-fishing on one of the many famous water bodies scattered across the Dakotas -- fisheries known far and wide for the always tasty and frequently trophy-sized walleyes that they deliver up.

North Dakota and South Dakota have no shortage of places great for catching walleyes through the ice this month.

In South Dakota, water levels are up at the undisputed king of South Dakota's walleye fishing, Lake Oahe. As a result, fishing should be on the upswing over the next few years at this Rushmore State water body with some 2,250 miles of shoreline.

Not as big but equally impressive when it comes to walleye fishing are two other Missouri River impoundments in South Dakota, Lake Sharpe and Lake Francis Case. Thanks to better water levels, these massive reservoirs should see improving walleye fishing over the next few years as well.

And of course, plenty of smaller lakes across South Dakota offer good fishing, including Bitter Lake, Lynn Lake, and Waubay Lake among others. As most South Dakota anglers know, there are countless small "natural" water bodies scattered across the state that locals hang their walleye fishing hats on.

The bottom line in South Dakota is this: Few places on the North American continent feature better walleye fishing than this state's.

"There are states out there that would dearly love to trade catch rates with us since we have catch rates that are three and four times what some other places have," said the recently retired Dennis Unkenholz, the longtime fisheries program administrator for the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish and Parks.

Just to the north, in the Peace Garden State of North Dakota, the two big fisheries that jump out at walleye anglers in the western half of the state are the Missouri River above Lake Oahe and Lake Sakakawea. Oahe has roughly 70,000 acres that back up into the state when the lake is full, while Sakakawea is a massive reservoir sporting nearly 365,000 surface-acres when full.

Both lakes have struggled with drought conditions in recent years, but walleye fishing can still be good on these two giants as water levels improve.

Farther to the east in North Dakota, a host of lakes like Audubon, Silver Lake, and Sweetwater usually support good walleye fishing. And of course, there's perhaps the best Dakota walleye fishery of all, the massive (and still growing) Devils Lake.

Having enjoyed some good fishing over the last few years -- thanks in part to the walleyes' forage base of perch, fathead minnows, and freshwater shrimp -- there's every reason to believe that Devils Lake will remain a top-end walleye fishery for years to come.