SOLUTIONS FOR FINICKY PANFISH

One challenge panfish anglers, and really any angler faces is what to do when fish are neutral or negative in behavior. This can be especially frustrating when opportunities to get out on the ice are limited.

Numerous variables affect fish behavior, including weather changes, angler traffic and time of day. One could make a very long list of reasons why fish don’t bite! Certain influential characteristics simply cannot be changed, like weather for instance. What anglers should rely upon instead is focusing on the items they CAN change!

Downsizing & Details

You hear this mentioned almost like a golden rule to embrace when encountering fish that are behaving negatively. Smaller presentations, lighter line, less aggressive movements all tend to help when the fish are upset. It’s these times that minor details like choosing the exact color the fish want, switching to live bait vs. plastics (or vice versa)

and finding that precision spot on the spot that are key elements. Paying close attention to how the fish are biting is equally important.

It’s frustrating to work so hard to finally get a bite and once you do, mess it up on the hookset. Sometimes a slight pause after the fish has hit to let it double-clutch the bait is all it takes, other times it’s adjusting the knot on the eye of your hook just right to ensure your jig is sitting at the ideal angle. And when it comes to live, bait, plastics or silkies, taking a few seconds to monitor the movement of your presentation as you jig while it’s a few inches beneath the surface will help you make minor adjustments before dropping it down to the fish. A jig that tends to rotate in one direction as you jig is going to quickly twist your line and unwind any time you stop, even if you’re using an in-line reel to help alleviate line twist.

Upsizing

Contrary to down-sizing, upsizing isn’t something most anglers consider when the bite is slow. However, this is a deadly tool for pulling in fish from a greater distance and sparking a reaction bite. Though ice anglers are more mobile today than ever and

finding the areas where panfish reside is essential to catch them, ice fishing ultimately requires the fish to come to you. You can land right on top of a giant school of crappie, but the fish still need to approach your bait and bite.

Often times, utilizing a two rod/ presentation approach is highly effective. For instance, one rod might have a jigging spoon tied on while your second rod has a small tungsten jig ready for action. There are two ways to present these in combination. The first is to use the jigging spoon in a primary hole to get the fish to approach, then quickly reel in and drop the jig down to catch the fish. It’s the ‘ol bait and switch! This works well, but there are times when the fish leave so quickly that the tungsten jig arrives late to the party. Another idea is to fish two holes very close to each other. You can work one rod with each hand, or have the jig sitting as a deadstick. Using the deadstick approach, when a fish comes into the vicinity, a minute, calculated and condensed jigging motion often gets the fish to turn their attention to the small jig. However, experiment by pulling up the spoon and letting that tiny jig sit solo and motionless. Sometimes with negative fish, it’s exactly what they want.

Move

Mobility is a huge asset for today’s ice angler, and moving is probably the most valuable adjustment you can make. Sometimes it’s as simple as moving a stone’s throw away, but often, when those fish are incredibly tight lipped, bigger moves are better. On very large bodies of water, each bay can fish like an independent lake. Don’t get intimidated by the overall size of the entire lake, but focus on one individual bay. If you’re using your cell phone for mapping, both the Navionics and Lakemaster apps work well and will give you great insight into which direction to head based upon each bay’s physical characteristics. On smaller lakes, pulling the plug and heading to another lake is often a good idea. Though there are times when fish activity in an entire region is affected by weather, it’s more common that a shift to another lake produces the bites you’re after!