Fishing without a flasher can be successful.

Mike/HOF and I have been VERY successful so far this ice season without the use of a flasher.
I believe that in some instances, someone without a flasher may have an advantage.
This observation comes from personal experience and watching others closely.
When fishing without a flasher, yes, you are blind. You have no idea what if anything is below you.
Consequently you fish with blind faith. However you will have a tendency to fish delibertly with a consistent presentation. Your hops, jiggles, bumps, wiggles and gyrations most likely will be non stop with little interference or hesitation.
You do this again becaue you can’t see what is going on down there, so you are trying to coach whatever is down there into becoming interested. If you attrack them, they may bite because it was your movement that brought them in.
Now watch that same fisherperson using a flasher.
Oh they start off with the correct and consistent jigging motions trying to get those distant lighter outside signals to come in and turn red.
Here is what has happened to me and I have seen happen to others.
OK, that faded green line turns to orange, then red hot.
You know you got them interested.
Then for some strange reason, you get buck fever.
That bright red signal is like seeing the big buck come within range.
For some crazy reason, you might have the tendency to freeze and depart from the movements that interested them.
Like, oh oh, he is there, don’t want to scare him off, take it easy, slow it up, make it easy for him.
It is this departure from what interested them, make them stop, think and back off.
Why would something that gets my attention, just stop for no apparent reason, makes me suspicious.
The really succesful flasher fisherpersons have learned once they see the signal get stronger at your lure level, forget looking at the flasher and concentrate on what it was that made that signal strong.
Don’t misunderstand, I am not anti flasher. Have one and love it, especially in deep water. This will narrow down time searching the water column.
Now if I only could get used to taking my eyes off the red line and concentrate more on the movements that interested them.