my AFTCO Samurai hoodie and Fish Monkey Stealth dry- tech mitten gloves. It’s all I need to stay warm and sweat-free on the ice while hole hopping.
Day Bite
on the
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By: Brian “Bro” Brosdahl
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he early stages of ice have begun in most of the northern parts of the ice belt. While many large lakes need longer to freeze due to their size or deep water, shallow lakes are developing ice quickly due to the cooler water temperatures and lack of venting. Lakes such as Prairie lakes and shallow sloughs already have developed a sheet of ice and the ice thickens every night. This early season is the time of year when ice fishing requires a little more work than mid-winter, like RAZRing holes, measuring and testing the ice all the way out to the desired spot. The reality is that if there is less than four inches of solid clear ice, don’t go. Many resorts provide ice reports that detail ice thickness, foot travel and ATV travel funded by an access fee. If you are unsure about ice, there is a wealth of ice fishing safety tips online.
As winter progresses, large lakes will be filled with wheel houses camping overnight. Some will catch fish during the night and a handful will catch lots of fish during the night. I have fished at night many times, but I prefer fishing during the day up until “the hour of power” at sunset. There is a lot of fishing action to be had during the day on most lakes. There are bite windows where the fish get active and shut off based on weather, barometer fluctuations and sun/moon phases. Water clarity is a given. Dark water is consistent during the daytime and there are large lake destinations that are known to have banker-hour walleye bites, such as Rainy Lake and Lake of the Woods. Most of the lakes I fish have super clear water. If you are not seeing or catching fish during open water season in the boat, you move until you find them. On the ice, you RAZR holes until you locate fish. Today’s technology makes it easier in both fishing seasons. Humminbird has a two-pronged approach for finding fish under the ice. MEGA 360 gives a photo-like image of the landscape as well as fish shadows in a complete 360-degrees around you without moving the downrod. MEGA Live shows bottom solid objects and fish as they are swimming around you; turn the downrod with the supplied handle and slowly scan in a circle until you spot fish. I leave a distance chart on the screen. This gives me an immediate place to drill. You can set the distances you like to scan with forward-viewing in the menu screen. After you find the fish, drill your holes in a straight line and place the MEGA Live in down-view to monitor multiple lines at the same time. This is perfect for anglers to share the same screen – either inside a house or outside – and see all their lines. (Continued on page 47.)
Let It Slide Now that I’m hitting the ice, I never forget the most important tools of the journey. My Otter Utility Sled is loaded with ice tools of the trade: RAZR Synthetic Lite ice auger with a lithium drill and a few extra batteries in a bucket, Humminbird Helix MEGA Live ice bundle with Lakemaster Maps on the GPS facing forward towards me, Otter Rod Case with a variety of St. Croix Custom Ice Rods, A couple of boxes of perch/panfish jigs as well as walleye spoons, Northland Tungsten Flat Fry Jigs, Bro Bug Spoons and Mud Bugs to name a few. For walleyes, Glass Buckshots, Puppet Minnows, Coffin Spoons, Flutter Spoons, a variety of different-sized Gamakatsu Octopus and walleye wide-gap live bait hooks and split shots. A couple spools of Sunline Fluoro-Ice 4-7lb for leader material, Two Otter Pro Jump seats to throw on top of the buckets when not kneeling on the ice. All this fits on the Otter Utility Sled and pulls with ease. It also easily loads and unloads from the truck bed. I pack an Otter Vortex Hub if it is cold and windy. When you have walkable ice, minimal gear keeps you mobile. I rarely wear more than a pair of bibs and Just Fishing . 46
Winter 2024
