Hardwater Pike

[severus]

Ice fished with some friends today and although it was slow, this young lady in our group managed to land this 27" pike that took a minnow suspended beneath a tip-up.

 

Fortunately, the ice was 10"-12" thick, or this pressure crack might have worried me. Spring is not far off. I think I may have to start doing my annual warm-the-hell-up dance soon.

[Ian FG]

Good pics, thanks for posting. I can't remember the last time I saw a lake so frozen I could walk on it, it was the early eighties I think.

[Peter Waller]

And not a bivvy or Real-Tree clad angler in sight!

 

Do ice anglers basically fish with handlines or do they use rods?

[jeepster]

the ice fishing rods i've used have been between 12 and 18 inches long, crazy looking things!

[severus]

Peter, handlines with a tip-up flag such as the one in the picture are used for pike; short rods with reels such as the ones Jeepster mentioned are used to catch other species. They're short for a reason. There's not much room inside a heated shanty, like the distant ones in the lower photo.

[poledark]

Peter, you really must get up to date mate, the bivvies are camoflaged in "Realsnow" so of course you can't see them

 

 

Den

[Newt]

severus:

They're short for a reason. There's not much room inside a heated shanty,

And even if there were (or you were fishing outside - in the open), given a hole maybe 12" diameter or less, do you really want a 10ft rod so that with a fish on, the tip will bend until the rod touches ice about a foot behind the tip and then keep bending in just the end/tip section? Broken rod in a hurry.

[severus]

Here's a typical ice-fishing setup. A 30" jigging rod on the left for walleye, a swish rod on the right for perch, minnows, scoop, and a Vexilar.

 

The Vex is a fishfinder with a spinning circular graph which shows the surface and bottom as 2 solid red areas, and everything between is represented by either a green or red line. It sees the tiny lure 30 feet down and shows a thin green line, and if a fish appears it will be seen as a red line. They're very sensitive devices, and great for still fishing.

 

It's fun watching the lines intersect, then seeing the rod tip or bobber jump. Unfortunately, electronics don't make the fish bite, or even appear. My fishing record this winter has been awful.

 

[Jim Murray]

Good pics Severus. Always been intrigued by ice-fishing. How much of the Winter does it take up? Thinking really about muskie and pike fishing(which we practice in the UK year-round but more actively in the Winter - minimal iceup problems here.).

 

Does the fishing for big pike & muskie stop during the Winter? I'm assuming all the lakes will freeze, or can you still find some with open water? It sounds a bit depressing, if all your stillwaters are iced up for months at a time; then again, I've never tried to ice fish, they say it's fun!

 

Jim.

[Dick Dastardly]

Ever since seeing the film "Grumpy Old Men" I have always found the idea of ice fishing,with one of those huts any way!, quite apealing