Ice fishing in MN

Questions about Freshwater Fishing

Ice fishing in MN

Postby JdvorakD » Mon Sep 08, 2008 1:30 pm

Hello Larry,

I'm planning an ice fishing trip to central Minnesota for Jan 2009 and thought you might have some tips or techniques that would prove productive in my quest for panfish as well as Walleye. I'll be using a pop-up fish house and like putting out a couple tip-ups around me outside the house when allowed. I seriously want to catch a few Walleye this trip and welcome any suggestions you may have.

Thank you,

James
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Re: Ice fishing in MN

Postby trailtrekker » Mon Sep 08, 2008 10:04 pm

Good evening James! I hope this info does you well on your trip. My name is Chris and with my friend and I Frank we fish 350 days out of the year to say the least, I live in Greenwood Lake N.Y and our nine and a half mile reservoir is right here in our back yard. We fish tournaments here and all through out N.Y state religiously every year and we always do extremely well but most importantly we catch a ton of fish and have tons of fun. And walleye and yellow perch are our specialty, so here are a few pointers that I know will help you in your quest and catch you some fish to put on the ice. First, we always do well on foreign waters, lakes we have never fished before, because where ever we have fished this method has always worked,confidence is key, but through years of fishing we have simply found a tried and true method that works every where we go and a method that primarily walleye and yellow perch prefer. In N.Y we are allowed five tip ups and and two handlines. Our secret for the tip ups is we tie a large black swivel to the braid (for weight) and I string my tip ups with vanish flourocarbon, two to four foot leaders depending on depth and water clarity, to a RED # 6 Gamakatsu hook. And the secret bait for walleye and yellow perch is Fat heads. A hook right under the dorsal fin does well, the bait will swim horizontally and naturally and will swim strong if not pierced too far below the fin. I've fished tournaments all over, and on a majority where ever my buddy and I have went, we have out fished the competition. There's just something about the red hook and fat head combo that these two species love. Last winter we fished a small fire department tournament on a lake we had never seen and we picked a spot and as soon as we had our lines in the water for the gunshot start at 6am our flags started flying within minutes. This method will work on pickerel, large and small mouth bass and crappie as well, we won that tournament with my partner taking first in the pickerel category with a 6lb 15 ounce pickerel and I took first with the yellow's with a 2lb 6 ounce jumbo. And we caught a ton of fish and had a great time watching the locals standing around running for a flag here and there while I couldn't reset all five tip ups and get them in the water fast enough, we had fish flopping everywhere! Another trick is to drill 16 holes right away. Four holes in a line three or four feet apart and then another line of four, three or four feet up from the first line and so on until you have a square box of sixteen holes. Or 12 or 24 holes, whatever you like, but the box is key. Place one tip up in each corner and one smack dab in the middle. Whatever tip up is hot, move the other ones closer to it. For my jigging rods I set one of them up with 6lb vanish and tie just a red hook and a split shot or two a foot above the bait, hook on a fat head, drop it to the bottom and bring it up a foot, open my drag so the fish won't pull it in the water and set it in the rod holder and listen for the drag.I'll move it up or down accordingly until I get bit. If I'm not running for flags like a nut,I sit on my "sit and fish" bucket, a 7 gallon that puts you up higher matched up with a cushioned, padded swivel seat and I also have a boat seat with a back I constructed a piece of wood for the bottom to fit the bucket so my back can get a little rest,I just switch the tops. I know it sounds like luxury but I've sat on a bucket for hours in 10 below and thirty mile an hour winds or worse and having the ice hut and heater is also a good thing to have and sitting on a padded seven gallon bucket keeps your legs from going numb like the five gallons are apt to do. I jig with the other rod with gold and (or) silver kastmasters, gold and black jigging raps, firetiger raps, blue and silver kast masters and raps, no matter the water color or where we've fished we've found these lures and colors, especially orange and gold for walleye and yellow's, best. And if you don't have any marmooska jigs or have never heard of them, these little guys have won tournaments around the world and are my go to jigs especially the orange and black marmooska for the walleye and yellow perch.Orange, white and chartreuse are go to colors, and willow leaf blades with either silver and (or) gold backs coupled with either the orange, white, or chartreuse work like magic too. And tip the jigs with live mousies and get a jar of gulp maggots if you don't have them, they stink terribly but the truly work. Last year I had to use my left over mousies jig and bobber fishing in the spring for crappies because I used mostly Gulp maggots throughout the winter, the fish really love them. My fishing partners Frank and Kevin and myself, all got the new ice armour x ice fishing suit for Christmas from our families and I honestly don't know how I ever survived without it.The absolute best suit you can get, period. Waterproof, windproof,padded knees and rear, tons of pockets for storing gear in the jacket, it really is a must have for the severe cold extremist fisherman. I also picked up a pair of under armour liner gloves from cabelas to the envy of my friends, these super thin heat gear gloves are the best for keeping your hands warm, sensing light bites through the thin glove and tying knots and holding small hooks are not a problem.In extreme cold if I have to get my hands warm quick I wear one of those tube warmers the football guys wear around my waist( I forget what there called) and I open two or three heat packs and throw them in there before I get out of the truck or the hut. Brings heat to your hands fast and the packs are cheap and last for hours.Well James I wish you the best of luck and I hope this helps you. Ice fishing here is only a few months away and posting a reply to you has been a pleasure, I'm looking forward to getting my gear ready when the season comes! One last thing, bring an assortment of bait. Small , medium and large shiners as well as the fat heads. Tried and true I've seen the walleye and yellows always gulp down a fat head, from 3 feet of water to sixty feet of water, but it is fishing and you never know when they may prefer one thing over another. Good luck, God bless, have fun,catch some fish,stay warm and if you like my advice and have any more questions I could help you with, feel free to ask. Take care, Chris
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