Preparing for the Winter

I was running around Plymouth this weekend and saw a small pond with a thin partial skin of ice over it and it made me sit up straight in my seat.  Most of the ponds and lakes haven't frozen at all yet.  It varies by a lot of factors like exposure to wind or sunlight.  But this was the first ice I saw all year.

My family was in town for the weekend and I convinced them to drive me to Cabela's so I could stock up on fishing stuff for the winter.  I got everything that I thought I needed - quick strike rigs, depth finders, and an auger for $55.  Total bill was around 90 which isn't too bad considering I probably won't need anything else for the year.  

I just thought that I would run over a few necessities for those of you that are thinking about getting into ice fishing.  A lot of it depends on what you are trying to catch though.

I'm mostly a pike fisherman so I use tip ups.  Tip ups can be used for a variety of fish, like walleye and trout as well, but they are mostly used for northern pike.  They work by suspending a minnow or piece of bait in the water and springing a flag when a fish takes the bait.  You then have to set the hook and pull up the fish.  Tip ups often work best with dead bait, not live, because the fish are much less aggressive in the cold of winter.  Live bait will work best in very early season and perhaps at late season, but the pike will take dead bait all year.  Suckers do if you don't have anything better but oily fish like smelt, shad, or ciscoe are better.  Use a quick-strike rig - a rig with two treble hooks - so you can hook the fish quicker and easier.  If you are practicing catch and release, don't get too far from your tip ups, and don't keep the fish out of water too long because their eyeballs freeze over.  

You'll need an ice auger to drill the holes.  Match the hole size to the fish.  Most fish in the metro will fit through a six inch hole, except for unusually large pike and musky.  I use at least an eight inch hole because I find it easier to work with and I do a lot of pike fishing.  Gas augers are fast and powerful, but they are also heavy and loud.  Noise, although it can sometimes attract fish, is more likely to scare the fish.  Electric motors are much quieter but expensive.  Hand augers are quiet, portable and cheap but they also take a long time.  Make your holes count... hehe.  Resharpen your blades periodically and wipe down after a day on the ice to prevent rust.

Ice fishing rods are largely similar but there are differences.  Again, match the rod to the fish.  There are a large variety out there nowadays. 

A sieve-like spoon is good for getting slush out of your hole.  Small clip on depth finders take your line to the bottom so you can find depth easily.  Warm clothes are an obvious must.  A shovel clears off snow.

The stuff piles up quickly, especially if you opt for a portable tent, heater, and fish finder.  Make sure your sled has room in it for everything.  I also like snacks :)