Late Ice Perch - Plastics Plastics Plastics! The author Jason Mitchell with a giant perch caught over a soft bottom transition using a Northland Tackle Blood Worm. There is no silver bullet with late ice perch regarding location but make no mistake, some of the most impressive catches and fishing for the whole calendar year take place in march. Late ice is prime time for jumbo perch but the tactics and patterns can run the gamut. On so many lakes, late ice perch move relatively shallow and become more aggressive as the ice rots. Large sand flats or gently sloping flats that have chara and sand grass often hold fish during late ice particularly if these locations are near the mouths of bays and other shallow water that where these fish will eventually spawn. These shallow flat patterns ... [ Read More ]

That Time of Year The season is finally beginning to make a switch and believe me it’s for the better. Last weekend was the first time I could drive my truck on the ice all season, going wherever I wanted to. This counts mid-winter resort ice roads, as the snow was too deep to get off the beaten path. I was pretty much sitting atop a snowmobile for nearly the whole ice season. If I didn’t, I was unable to get to the fishing holes of my choice. Now, however, it’s a breeze, although at the time of this writing (Sunday night) more snow is forecasted for the North Country. Hopefully we won’t get as much as they’re predicting. It’s so nice to fish out of the back of a vehicle, which is what I did last Sunday. Driving around, looking for perch, all of the necessary gear was at arm’s ... [ Read More ]

Night Shift Walleye - Ice Fishing Walleye After Dark Not all bodies of water offer solid after dark fishing opportunities when ice fishing walleye but there are so many notable fisheries where we have traditionally caught the majority of fish or sometimes the largest fish long after the witching hour when the sun sinks into the horizon. On many bodies of water, the best walleye fishing happens after dark. From Montana’s Fort Peck Reservoir to the Finger Lakes of New York with a long list of fisheries in between these two destinations, the night shift is where it is at for catching walleye through the ice. I cut my teeth with after dark walleye fishing on the east end of Lake Sakakawea and nearby Lake Audubon, both large impoundments created by the damming of the Missouri River in ... [ Read More ]

Ice Fishing Panfish If you go ice fishing panfish in mid-winter and you want to have more fun catching fish you want to be mobile and use the tools that help you accomplish that. by Jim Uran The mid winter doldrums as they call it, have set in! But in reality most of the fish out in the lake don't know that. I'm not sure where that term mid-winter doldrums came from, but in all honesty there are ways to deal with them. By now, on your local lakes you will find those out ice fishing panfish at the usual crappie towns located in the same spot year to year, this is the time of year that things slow down for them, not because the lake is slowing down, it's because their spot is slowing down. A spot like that is a good place to fish, but the inevitable happens every year. The ... [ Read More ]

Ice Fishing by Feel or Sight If this sounds like a normal weekend to you, then you just may have what it takes to ice a bluegill over 10” this winter. Big bluegills can be tough customers. Now choose which is better, decide, will you primarily be ice fishing by feel or sight? It’s 5 am and you’re up brewing coffee. Lake map in hand you make last minute decisions before heading out to load gear. Mother Nature’s icy grip has taken hold as you head out to temperatures well below freezing. Armed with an assortment of jigs and plastics you make your way out into the frozen tundra. Big bluegills can do crazy things to a person. They can consume your thoughts. Do you go ice fishing by feel or sight? If this sounds like a normal weekend to you, then you just may have what it takes to ice a ... [ Read More ]

Ice Fishing Walleyes Cold Front - Tackling Tough Walleyes When ice fishing walleyes cold front can put them off their feed. Slow eyes not biting are frustrating. Here is how we GET them to bite under the ice.... by Jason Mitchell Slow rolling walleyes that do not accelerate up to the lure and just nose in can be frustrating. Anybody who has spent any time fishing for walleyes can relate to times when the fish almost appeared timid. Too high of a lift or too hard of a pound results in a sediment cloud as a hard tail flap scoots the fish away , when ice fishing walleyes cold front turns them off… we can actually scare them at times with lures. Some days, walleyes might bight during peak times and than get turned off as the sun gets higher, other situations that shut down a ... [ Read More ]

Ice Fishing Crappies & Gills If you are going to go out ice fishing crappies and gills you owe it to yourself to read through this strategic article with powerful information by by Matt Johnson We once believed that the best kept secrets for targeting winter panfish were shared at local bait shops, church meeting rooms, neighborhood coffee shops; basically those unknown locations where old-timers spend most of their time spewing the tricks of the trade. On the contrary, the modern age has drastically helped define the new set of secret shared by panfish enthusiasts when ice fishing crappies. Now, don’t go home and tell grandpa that I’m saying he can’t fish, instead just think of this article as the second chapter in the great book of panfish secrets. #1: Stay Mobile – ... [ Read More ]