Fifteenth post,
January, 17, 2014
Getting a bead on perch
Beaded spoons are the hottest new lure in perch fishing. Partly because there’s no other design like them, partly because they haven’t been used for a long time in Canada, but the main reason is that they just catch fish.
A beaded spoon is a concave piece of metal usually stainless steel with a hook welded on with a bead on the shank of the hook. The bead is on the hook shank because the flash of the spoon attracts the fish then they bite at the bead, a perfect combination. You don’t need to tip these spoons with live bait, which mean you save your hands from freezing when getting minnows out of the bucket.
The best way to fish it I find is a 2-4 foot “rip” jig meaning a quick snap up then letting it slowly flutter down and entice fish.
One great thing about these spoons the wide flutter action you get when they are falling in the water column.
A second great thing about these spoons is that you don’t need to tip them with a minnow as stated earlier, saving your hands from getting wet and cold. So you have a more enjoyable time fishing.
A third advantage to beaded spoons it the quality of fish you catch when using small live bait the smaller 4 to 5 inch fish can eat those so you will be going through you minnows fast catching a lot of small fish but with a beaded spoon you will usually catch the larger fish. This is because as it falls the larger fish are more aggressive and will beat out the smaller fish for the bait.
A fourth reason for the beaded spoon being my favourite ice fishing lure is the variety of fish you can catch. All species are attracted to them, perch, crappie, sunfish, walleye, pike, you name it beaded spoons will probably work.
A fifth reason is the ease of fishing. It is easy to fish because you can jig it all different ways rip jigging, just jigging or even as soft as dead sticking.
One large beaded spoon company is slab grabber. They make all different shapes and sizes. The shapes are a diamond cut, a round top cut, and a fan blade cut. All of these come in 1.5 inch and 2 inch, plus the round top comes in a 3 inch spoon. With many different colour and sized beads there is one for every water condition.
For all these reasons Beaded spoons are a staple in my perch fishing box.
January, 17, 2014
Getting a bead on perch
Beaded spoons are the hottest new lure in perch fishing. Partly because there’s no other design like them, partly because they haven’t been used for a long time in Canada, but the main reason is that they just catch fish.
A beaded spoon is a concave piece of metal usually stainless steel with a hook welded on with a bead on the shank of the hook. The bead is on the hook shank because the flash of the spoon attracts the fish then they bite at the bead, a perfect combination. You don’t need to tip these spoons with live bait, which mean you save your hands from freezing when getting minnows out of the bucket.
The best way to fish it I find is a 2-4 foot “rip” jig meaning a quick snap up then letting it slowly flutter down and entice fish.
One great thing about these spoons the wide flutter action you get when they are falling in the water column.
A second great thing about these spoons is that you don’t need to tip them with a minnow as stated earlier, saving your hands from getting wet and cold. So you have a more enjoyable time fishing.
A third advantage to beaded spoons it the quality of fish you catch when using small live bait the smaller 4 to 5 inch fish can eat those so you will be going through you minnows fast catching a lot of small fish but with a beaded spoon you will usually catch the larger fish. This is because as it falls the larger fish are more aggressive and will beat out the smaller fish for the bait.
A fourth reason for the beaded spoon being my favourite ice fishing lure is the variety of fish you can catch. All species are attracted to them, perch, crappie, sunfish, walleye, pike, you name it beaded spoons will probably work.
A fifth reason is the ease of fishing. It is easy to fish because you can jig it all different ways rip jigging, just jigging or even as soft as dead sticking.
One large beaded spoon company is slab grabber. They make all different shapes and sizes. The shapes are a diamond cut, a round top cut, and a fan blade cut. All of these come in 1.5 inch and 2 inch, plus the round top comes in a 3 inch spoon. With many different colour and sized beads there is one for every water condition.
For all these reasons Beaded spoons are a staple in my perch fishing box.
Thirteenth post,
January, 5, 2014
Advanced ice tactics for Panfish
Panfish is a great species to target, when ice fishing for them it can be exceptionally fun. Panfish school up in the winter time which increases your chances at catching piles of these hard fighting agressice fish. Regular ice fishing tactics will catch you fish but better tactics will put you ahead of other fisherman on the lake with you. It could be the difference between having a good day on the ice and having a great day on the ice, well every day fishing is a great day so it’s a “win win” situation.
The first tactic I use is having a smaller bait rigged vertically above a larger bait many times i have caught two fish at once, it is a great feeling. Rigging a small 1/80th or 1/64th with a ½ to 1 inch bait with a 1/16th ounce jig with a soft plastic or minnow on the bottom will give fish a variety of choices almost like a buffet.
Another tactic I use is to drill two holes right beside each other 6 inches apart then have a rig similar to the one I spoke about above. Then in the hole besides that have a jigging spoon like a Swedish pimple or blue fox flash spoon which has a rattle to call fish in from far.
Both these tactics work well to find and dominate the Panfish action.
January, 5, 2014
Advanced ice tactics for Panfish
Panfish is a great species to target, when ice fishing for them it can be exceptionally fun. Panfish school up in the winter time which increases your chances at catching piles of these hard fighting agressice fish. Regular ice fishing tactics will catch you fish but better tactics will put you ahead of other fisherman on the lake with you. It could be the difference between having a good day on the ice and having a great day on the ice, well every day fishing is a great day so it’s a “win win” situation.
The first tactic I use is having a smaller bait rigged vertically above a larger bait many times i have caught two fish at once, it is a great feeling. Rigging a small 1/80th or 1/64th with a ½ to 1 inch bait with a 1/16th ounce jig with a soft plastic or minnow on the bottom will give fish a variety of choices almost like a buffet.
Another tactic I use is to drill two holes right beside each other 6 inches apart then have a rig similar to the one I spoke about above. Then in the hole besides that have a jigging spoon like a Swedish pimple or blue fox flash spoon which has a rattle to call fish in from far.
Both these tactics work well to find and dominate the Panfish action.
Twelfth post,
December, 26, 2013
Icing finicky perch
Sometimes when perch fishing is at its best through the ice you can land hundreds in a day, but sometimes when the action isn’t so hot it can be like musky fishing endless casts with no fish in sight (musky fishing isn’t always like this). But there are some cures for the days of ice fishing where you just can’t seem to catch one, even one. The first cure for this is downsizing baits, the second one is live bait, the third one is to use lighter action.
The first one is downsizing baits, when perch fishing you usually have to waft through schools, among schools of small 5”-8” perch using larger baits will usually only allow the larger 10”+ fish. But when you’re just looking to drum up a few bites small baits under an inch long will help. Some of these baits are the atomic series from Berkley, the best colour for finicky fish are clear and light colours, they appear more natural in more water conditions.
The second thing I try is to use live bait, when the action is on the fish will chew up all of your minnows in a hurry plus by using small plastics will save time on rebating your jigs and will save you some money with minnows at about $5 a dozen. Live bait seems to always lure in finicky fish.
The third is to use lighter tackle; lighter lines will not spook fish and will increase your chance at catching them. Additional light tackle that I use is a spring bobber, this device can let you see even the lightest bites will look like the biggest fish.
All of these tactics will help you catch finicky fish on a cold winter’s day.
December, 26, 2013
Icing finicky perch
Sometimes when perch fishing is at its best through the ice you can land hundreds in a day, but sometimes when the action isn’t so hot it can be like musky fishing endless casts with no fish in sight (musky fishing isn’t always like this). But there are some cures for the days of ice fishing where you just can’t seem to catch one, even one. The first cure for this is downsizing baits, the second one is live bait, the third one is to use lighter action.
The first one is downsizing baits, when perch fishing you usually have to waft through schools, among schools of small 5”-8” perch using larger baits will usually only allow the larger 10”+ fish. But when you’re just looking to drum up a few bites small baits under an inch long will help. Some of these baits are the atomic series from Berkley, the best colour for finicky fish are clear and light colours, they appear more natural in more water conditions.
The second thing I try is to use live bait, when the action is on the fish will chew up all of your minnows in a hurry plus by using small plastics will save time on rebating your jigs and will save you some money with minnows at about $5 a dozen. Live bait seems to always lure in finicky fish.
The third is to use lighter tackle; lighter lines will not spook fish and will increase your chance at catching them. Additional light tackle that I use is a spring bobber, this device can let you see even the lightest bites will look like the biggest fish.
All of these tactics will help you catch finicky fish on a cold winter’s day.