News & Stories
Late Winter Panfish!
Posted by admin on February 27, 2020
Late winter panfish fun!
By Mike Frisch
A favorite time of the entire ice fishing season for many anglers is the last few weeks of the season before safe ice eventually gives way to open water. The weather is often warm, the days are longer, and panfish really go on the bite during this time!
The first key to late ice panfish success, like in most fishing situations, is finding fish. Crappies and bluegills are numerous in many lakes, however, finding the bigger fish can be a challenge. I keep an open ear for lakes that have produced big fish recently and also spend time exploring new lakes and the waters within.
When exploring, I usually target the mouths of bays that look like they have potential to hold feeding and spawning bluegills and crappies later in spring. The fish often start to stage on the drop-off edges leading into these bays during late ice, anticipating spring and open water.
Once potential fish-holding areas are found, I drill holes looking for fish and the presence of weeds, especially green weeds showing life. Green weeds along an edge leading into a bay can be the proverbial “spot on the spot” for ‘gills and crappies.
Catching panfish in these areas can be pretty simple with the right set-up. I use a tungsten jig on light line, tipping the jig with waxworms or a small plastic offering.
Tungsten jigs work well because they are denser than lead meaning they fish “heavier” than lead. A heavy jig in a small profile “crashes” through slush in the hole and any weeds encountered on the way to the fish without hanging up.
And, because panfish often come through in schools, a key to maximizing the catch is quickly getting back down to the fish after catching one. Again, this is where a small, but “heavy” tungsten jig shines.
Recently, I started using the Drop Jig and Drop Jig XL with great success. The Drop comes in 5 sizes, lots of “fishy” colors, and is designed to facilitate positive hookset. Tipped with a couple waxworms this jig has been deadly. When fishing plastic baits or when I really want to bulk up a jig with waxies or other live bait, the XL and it’s bigger hook gets the call.
My rod and reel set-up consists of a spring bobber rod and reel loaded with 3-pound line. The Matt Johnson Pro Series panfish rod I started using this winter has a very sensitive spring bobber tip and the backbone needed to fight and land big panfish. Loaded with 3-pound Floroice line, which handles great in cold water and is nearly invisible to the fish, this set-up is great for late ice panfish.
The right jig and rod/reel set-up is important to catching panfish from weeds, but another essential gear item is a good winter sonar unit. A good flasher with very small target separation helps separate, and target, individual fish in a school from other fish and the weeds. The FLX-20 flasher I use lets me easily distinguish weeds from my bait and fish allowing me to put my bait just above an individual fish, which can be a key to getting that fish to bite.
Getting a bunch of fish to bite yet this ice season can still happen. Heading to a good panfish lake and using some of the tips provided here just might, in fact, help you get in on some of the year’s fastest ice fishing action yet this season!
And, as always, remember to include a youngster in your next outdoors adventure.
Mike Frisch hosts the popular Fishing the Midwest TV series and is a co-founder of the Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s School of Fish. Visit www.fishingthemidwest.com to see all things Fishing the Midwest.
PHOTO - John Crane with a big late February crappie. Big panfish can provide great late winter ice fishing action!
Late Ice Fishing Action
Posted by director on February 4, 2020
LATE ICE-FISHING ACTION
by Bob Jensen
The groundhog in Pennsylvania that predicts an early spring or extended winter recently emerged and didn’t see his shadow. That would suggest that spring will arrive early this year. Statistics indicate that Phil the Groundhog is right about 40 percent of the time. If recent weather is any indicator, it would appear that the groundhog is going to be right this year. Some of us look forward to late ice-fishing because it can be so good. I think that March in the upper Midwest is my favorite month for ice-fishing. The days are longer, the weather isn’t as cold, and the fish become willing biters. Following are some things to keep in mind to catch more fish through the ice until the end of the ice season.
First, be safe. Ice conditions can change quickly. Ice that was safe on Monday might not be safe on Friday. It might not even be safe later that day. I remember a day a few years ago on a large Minnesota lake when we had to improvise on our exit strategy. The ice at the landing where we drove on in the morning was no longer safe late in the day and we had to use another landing several miles away. Pay attention to ice conditions.
Also keep close tabs on the regulations. Some states close walleye season in February, some states let you fish walleyes year ‘round. Some areas of some states allow walleye fishing all year while other areas of the state close the season for a while. Know where you are and what is allowed.
Early and late in the day will be when the bite is often best, but plenty of fish can be taken at mid-day. Often though, presentations will need to be altered.
If perch, walleyes, or crappies are the goal, start off with larger baits, something like a Pinhead Mino or Leech Flutter Spoon in an appropriate size: Eighth ounce and bigger for walleyes, and smaller for perch and crappies: Start with the eighth ounce size, but expect sixteenth to be most productive much of the time.
As the day progresses, the bite can get tougher. The additional light can shut fishing off a bit, but some very successful ice-anglers believe that the noise as more anglers get on the ice pushes the fish away from structure or just shuts them off. If you’re seeing fish on the sonar, try down-sizing. For perch or crappies, tie on a little Drop-Kick Jig tipped with a waxworm or spike. I like to have a rod spooled up with two or three pound test Floroice line for these finesse presentations. If walleyes are acting uninterested in the spoons, try a hook/splitshot/minnow under a slip-bobber on one rod and an eighth ounce jig with a minnow on another rod. Six pound test line will often get more bites than eight pound test for walleyes.
One of my very successful ice-fishing friends says that in March there are lots of bugs and worms hatching on the bottom of the lake, and that we should use baits that mimic those food sources.
Another very successful ice-fishing friend confirms that bug- life is hatching on the lake bottom, and the fish see so much of that bug-life that they like something that looks different.
The month of March signals to most of us that the end of another ice-fishing season is in sight. It also signals some of the best ice-action of the year for many of us. Find out for yourself how good ice-fishing can be in March.
PHOTO CAPTION—--Chris Scholl caught this channel catfish through the ice on Clear Lake in north central Iowa in March a couple of years.
To see recent and older episodes of Fishing the Midwest television, fishing video tips, and fishing articles from the past, visit fishingthemidwest.com
On the Move for a Better Winter Bite!
Posted by admin on January 29, 2020
On the move for a better winter bite!
By Mike Frisch
Recently I traveled to Big Stone Lake to fish with winter fishing guide Tanner Arndt. Tanner and his dad, Artie, also own and run Artie’s Fish House Rentals on Big Stone. The Arndt’s specialize in, and pride themselves on, putting their customers on lots of Big Stone’s numerous and delicious perch. Suffice to say, Tanner spends lots of time on the ice.
Whenever I’m considering a trip to Big Stone, I call Tanner for the latest fishing report and sometime during that conversation I usually here something like, “if you stay after ‘em, you’ll find some.” In other words, I need to be prepared to drill holes and stay on the move looking for feeding fish. Big Stone is 26-miles long and lots of the lake is a featureless basin that the perch roam during winter searching for food. This is classic “here today, gone tomorrow” fishing.
Run and gun fishing is usually productive on Big Stone, but certainly not unique to ice fishing or to this particular lake. In fact, regardless the lake, often the most successful ice anglers are those who are willing to stay on the move. This seems to become especially important during mid-winter when the activity levels of fish often diminish and, the best spots often become much less productive as the result of intense fishing pressure.
Staying active searching for fish requires effort, but it’s effort that can also yield great reward. A few winters back a couple partners and I spent the better part of a day drilling holes and moving spot to spot searching for big bluegills. Finally, we found a remnant weedline with some still green weeds that was loaded with 9-inch plus bluegills. This spot was productive that day and on several subsequent trips until word got out and fishing pressure increased. Then it was time to get back to search mode!
A couple things are important to being an efficient and effective winter fish searcher. First, good sonar like a Vexilar flasher is always important. Sonar allows an angler to see bottom, the bait being fished, and any fish around it. Sonar is also helpful in identifying weeds and other types of potential fish-holding cover. I only fish a hole for a few minutes when searching before moving on to the next if fish or good cover aren’t “seen” on my sonar.
In addition to sonar, a reliable, fast-cutting ice auger is also paramount to this approach. The K-Drill auger I use runs off a cordless electric drill so it’s a reliable starter and it’s super lightweight when drilling lots of holes and moving spot to spot.
Sonar and a good auger are important when I’m in search mode, but what about shelter from the elements? Some anglers prefer fishing outside or from portable shelters, but I’ve found recent success, and more comfort, using a CORE ICE hard-sided shelter featuring the innovative hybrid wheel/skid system.
This house can be towed to the lake behind a truck with the “on ice” tow vehicle (like an ATV) stored in the shelter and then unloaded at the lake and hooked to the shelter. Employing the skid system, the house can then be towed from spot to spot with no more set up other than drilling holes at new fishing spots. This system allows for great portability, yet heated comfort as well. And, it has proven especially effective with some of the treacherous ice conditions seen on lots of lakes in recent winters.
If finding more active fish this winter is your goal, then consider staying active and searching new spots for “fresh” fish and the best bite. Utilizing some of the tips just presented can help in that process and hopefully put more fish in your pail this winter!
Mike Frisch is co-host of Fishing of the Midwest TV. View the website: www.fishingthemidwest.com to see more from Fishing the Midwest, including how to enter to win a Vexilar winter sonar unit!
Photo – Mike Frisch with a Big Stone perch caught on a recent trip there.