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s winter ice fishing progresses some tactics must be changed. Early in the season the action is fast and as the ice gets thicker and the days colder the fish tend to slow down and move. In fact, in most bodies of water mobility is crucial if you want to stay on fish. Never spend too much time in one place. When it requires some effort to make a move sometimes it’s just easier to sit and wait for the fish to come to you. With all the innovations in ice-fishing gear, making anglers more versatile and more mobile, it makes sense to have an attitude that will have you moving, searching for active fish. From first ice to last ice, you won’t see me in one spot for very long. One thing I focus on is packing as light as possible. The lighter you pack the easier it is to move, and you will move more often when lees work is involved. If I am not pulling my Fish Trap by hand covering the ice you will find me on my Ski Doo Expedition. In fact, my Snowmobile has a mounted Clam Drill 7” auger on the front, Fish Trap on the back loaded up with my rods, Mr. Heater, tackle and Vexilar. On the dash I have my Lowrance with a Navionics chip loaded in it. The key to ice fishing as it is in any fishing is location. This is where my Lowrance and my Navionics really help me find specific structure. For perch and other game fish, try long tapering points; inside channel turns; rock humps, neck downs, and structure near spring spawning areas. Use the sonar to spot fish. Try submerged brush piles and blow downs for crappie and bluegill. Watch the screen or flasher. You can actually see fish appear on a graph. Sensitive sonars track your lure so you can put it right in the fish’s face. I have seen a mark appear on the sonar screen while reeling in a lure. A pause and the mark moved closer to the bait. A twitch of the wrist brought a powerful strike. A heart-racing fight put a nice jumbo perch on the ice. Effective scouting may require drilling a lot of holes. If you fish a weedline early in the year it might take several holes to find the right area the fish are in, and of course they move along the weedline so it is important to stay with the fish as they cruise the shallows in search of food. What I try to do is to drill a series of holes along a particular structure. I will start shallow and drill a couple of holes about 20 >> iceteam.com >> Ice Digital January Issue
