Like most of you, my past month has been spent preparing gear for the coming ice season. Well, that time is now. Mother nature has given us and early ice cap on many smaller bodies of water here in the Dakotas. After a little recon trip, I found a little body of water with enough ice to feel comfortable venturing out on. With our spud bars and ice picks handy, we headed out in search of anything willing to eat. The weather wasn’t perfect, the wind was blowing, but fishing in the Otter 1200 Cabin was pretty darn nice.
It wasn’t the most productive early ice trip, but the quality of fish “outweighed” the numbers. As expected, the fish were relating to weed edges and pockets. Punching holes with the Solo and using the Marcum to look for these specific areas were key to finding these fish. One thing to stress on thin, early ice, it to be quiet around the area you intend to fish (especially over shallow water). Banging gear around is a sure way to push fish out of that area
We fished the new VMC Tungsten Tubby jig/Trigger X Mustache worm combo (deadly), rigged on 2lb Sufix mono. I like TUCR Precision Noodles for fishing panfish as it has a tip light enough to detect fussy bluegill bites, but yet has the backbone to handle the occasional walleye or pike.
The ice is not safe on many bodies of water. Open water, bad ice, and fresh snow cover has made it even more difficult to distinguish good ice from bad. Always use extreme caution and carry picks with you at a minimum. Rope, a spud bar, and a buddy are not a bad thing to have along, either.
I think ice conditions will improve dramatically in the next 2 weeks. Stay safe, IDOer’s.
Andy
The stud of the day. My buddy got to “tango” with this pike, on a 13 Tickle Stick/6061 combo. Not exactly fit for toothy critters, but after about 10 min and both him and I freaking out, we had this big gal topside. Measuring at just over 41″, she went back to live another day. Gorgeous fish.
