I spend a lot of time up north fishing lakers and I even take trips into the BWCA in the winter. When up on a weeklong camping/fishing trip in winter I wouldn’t trust my hands to anything other than choppers. When it is forecasted for below 0 degrees Fahrenheit I will add wool fingerless gloves for a second liner. In my experience choppers can’t be beat.
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December 8, 2016 at 9:11 pm #1655702
I agree with Carter on this one. So you know where i come from on this, I typically fish medium sized lakes about 5000 acres for first ice walleyes. We spend most of our time between 11-15 feet of water and punch a lot of holes. (Its easy to punch holes in a few inches of ice) Try to find a natural fish highway (deep weedline, depth funnel, dropoff) that they are known to cruise in the spring but just a bit deeper water. I always start with a gold slender spoon and minnow head. After you have found the fish you can see if they want other baits but id say half the time i end up just keeping the slender spoon on. Cheers.
December 8, 2016 at 3:48 pm #1655620For many species first ice doesn’t matter as much. As far as walleyes go around my area there is a huge rush to get out as soon as possible. I agree that the walleye fishing gets better all fall and the through ice up. When the ice comes over however, the metabolism slows down considerably and for how we like to fish (using a more active style) it means less fish. With that said im sure we could consistently put numbers of walleye on the ice using slower techniques like slip bobbers and minnows all through the year except under arctic blast conditions. Its just not our thing. We spend three or four good weeks chasing the walleyes before we move on to other species. Im a believer that temp above all else will effect the fish, not so much noise. (If noise were a factor how would we catch fish on the fourth of July with speedboats ripping around all day?) Coming from Northern Minnesota if a cold front comes in we wont even bother with walleyes.
For those of you looking to walk out as soon as tomorrow like myself if i find some ice please be safe in doing so. Wear your life jacket. Bring your spud and picks. Tie a rope around your torso and let it drag behind you when going from hole to hole. A friend can use that to help you without getting close to you as to put themself in danger. (and you cant just bring a rope to throw because a person who has fallen through the ice will not have to dexterity to hold on to it.)
All in all good luck and be safe i hope to see pictures of gorgeous fish soon from The Ice.December 7, 2016 at 7:55 pm #1655358I try to use all long rods for any species. The only time I dont is when it gets so unbearably cold that I need to be in my shelter. Otherwise I prefer to stand and hole hop with long rods that have considerably better action than short ones. Just my preference. I know some short rod users that are much more skilled than I ever hope to be.
December 5, 2016 at 6:47 pm #1654826Is That a Zoom Plastic Forktail on that jig? If so thats my go to. You wont need the blade on the jig, instead attach a small rattle and Lakers will love it. They will cut down the weight of your box and you will still catch big fish on them. The Only Exception i have is lake superior. I am fortunate that i can fish it semi often and a large White and Blue Buck-tail is the best thing i have used to date. Good luck out there, Im counting down the days until the trout opener in Minnesota as we speak.
November 10, 2016 at 11:57 am #1649843That’s a great idea getting out in the fall and finding them with a boat before the ice gets here! That will give me a starting point at first ice. I will try to get out there soon.
November 10, 2016 at 11:07 am #1649833Like I said the lake is very large one basin gets to 94 feet another few basins hit 60-70 feet and many basins hit the 40 foot average. The problem is there is so much structure it could take a week of strait fishing to cover all the spots I see as fishable. I am not afraid to reveal the lake because it is known as a walleye lake and not many people target crappies on it yet. It you want a challenge take a look at the west basin of island lake resivior north of Duluth Minnesota and tell me what you think.