Ice Fishing Preparation
by Bob Jensen
There was a cover of white on the ground this morning. Having seen several decades of first snows, I didn’t need to be reminded that winter is getting closer by the day. The snow was gone by noon, but it was a wake-up call to get my stuff ready to go ice fishing. Here’s what I do to prepare for ice fishing.
First, and most important, do all you can to verify that the ice is safe. If there’s already someone out there, that doesn’t mean that the ice is safe. If there are a bunch of people out there and some four-wheelers, you’re probably ok. If someone drove their pickup on the ice, go for it. However, if you’re not sure, you shouldn’t go out. But I you do decide to give it a shot, drill holes as you go to measure ice depth. Some folks take a rope with them in case their partner goes through. Others prefer to wear a coat that enables them to float if they go through. The Rise and Ascent coats are comfortable and allow easy arm movement for fishing, but also provide flotation. Just remember, if you’re not sure of the quality of the ice, stay on shore.
Check the blades on your auger for sharpness. Sharp blades go through the ice faster and make less noise. Noise should be avoided as much as possible on early ice, especially clear early ice. Noise spooks fish.
Make sure your depth-finder has a fully charged battery. It’s disappointing to get on the ice and learn that your sonar won’t work. A sonar that doesn’t work means you won’t catch as many fish. Just as in open water, sonar will be the difference between no fish and a few fish, or a few fish and a bunch of fish.
Start the season with fresh line and make sure it’s reliable throughout the ice season. When ice fishing, we often use line that’s lighter than we use in open water. When the panfish get finicky, two and three pound test line is the go-to for many experienced ice anglers. That’s thin stuff, and there’s no room for a weak spot in the line. If you’re using light line and it’s not in the best of shape, you’re going to have problems at some point. Fresh, high quality line is what you want to use.
Make this the year that you try tungsten jigs if you haven’t already done so. It might be hard to believe that the material your jig is made from matters, but it does. Tungsten is more dense than lead, so a sixteenth ounce tungsten jig is smaller in appearance than a sixteenth ounce lead jig. Much of the time fish prefer a smaller jig, especially when they’re not sure they want to bite. Tungsten fishes heavy, so you can use a heavier jig that looks smaller. That will put fish on the ice. The Genz line-up of Drop Jigs have caught on big-time in the past couple of ice-seasons. Each of the jigs in the Drop Series performs a different function and will be productive in different situations. Start with the basic Drop Jig: It performs well in most ice-fishing conditions.
Last thing: Plastic as a tip for jigs is gaining popularity quickly. When the action is good, you’ll catch more fish with plastic instead of live bait because plastic is more durable: You’re not re-baiting after every fish or two. Match the plastic to the aggressiveness of the fish. When they’re biters, go with plastic that has more action and bulk. When the fish are finicky, less action and less size will be better.
The meteorologist on television says to expect the weather to get colder soon. If the weather gets cold enough to make ice, I’ll be ready. If it makes enough ice, I’ll be on it. If you consider what we just talked about, you’ll be ready to go ice fishing also.
PHOTO CAPTION—--Lead on the left, tungsten on the right. All three jigs are the same weight, but the tungsten jigs are much smaller physically, and much of the time panfish prefer smaller offerings.