A couple of questions for ice fishing freaks like myself.
Your favorite fish species?? I have 2 fav. 1) wallies 2)crappies.
Favorite lures, line weight, Bait for rod or tip up.Line brands for tip ups and jigging rods.
Crappies-Panfish:: all I have ever used to fish crappies with are the very small jigs with either the Berkley Gulp or powerbaits, power worms, maggots ect. i have used live maggots once. Never tried small minnows. I use 2lbs test line on my jigging rod and spring bobber.But the line i had last year kept freezing up on the reels and froze up my Guides any tips on keeping those ice free.
Walleyes::My favorite lures for walleyes on a jigging rod are Jigs of different kinds as long as hook is vertical, or diff. types of Spoons (littleCleo's) Sidewinders etc. For tipups I usually use just live minnow hooked right under the skin with a very light wire hook,(I can actually see hook thru the skin) from just in front of dorsal fin and hook point comes out forward. If there is a good current i have used homemade rigs that looks like a small bottom bouncer with small blade so it turns in current. On my wallies tipups I usually have 30lbs Power pro but I always use a 15lbs Seaguar Fluorocarbon leader. but I have one tip up that has 8lbs test Power Pro for current areas.
For my jigging rods for wallies I use power pro line but I do not like it because it freezes up on my reel. I've tried berkley ice line but i do not like that it has lot's of memory and with a light jig the line coils up too much.
Pike:: My favorites lures are big spoons ( treble removed)set up on tip ups with large minnows (8-10") on a quick strike rig, Or large dead Bait on quick strike rig under a windlass tipup. When I use a jigging rod for pike I use 30lbs test Power pro and black leader and mostly use big bucktail jigs with 4-5" minnow or a big spoon with minnow head on treble.
I have never fished for trout so I am no help there, but hopefully i will someday.
Dan aka WB
Ice fishing survey!!!
There are 3 fish that get targeted more than others when I am on the ice.
Crappie/Bluegill
The most saught after fish under the ice in many States and Provinces. Fishing panfish in the winter beats everything in my mind..there ability to suspend in the water column and shut-off through certain hours of the day make them a challenge to ice...Having the right tools is a must. I prefer a 24'' Ultra Light with 1-2lbs ice line for fishing very small jigs and finesse presentations...24'' Light rod with 2-3lbs ice line for fishing teardrops, jigs and slip-bobbers and a 28'' Medium light rod for fishing small spoons, live bait and a deadstick approach..I find the most important part to your combo is your reel..you don't need a $100 reel for ice fishing, just something with a smooth retreive and drag will do...Everyone has there own method or technique that works for them on any given day...some of include using a Northand or Williams small spoon to get the fish attention. Drop it to the bottom a jig it up to the surface slowly...When fish start to appear on your flasher, downsize to a teardrop and Gulp grub or small jig and maggots...Deadsticking with pinhead minnows or dace are a great way to catch active fish and get the bigger guys at that. Moving around is the key to a great day. Fishing over the same hole just doesn't cut it anymore
Walleye
While walleye remain a favorite to catch all seasons, I find getting them through the ice you have to follow the patterns as if you were fishing them in the summer...Walleye love rock and mud. Your journy should start with a map and a good flasher to detect bottom structure and density. Look for areas where walleye are likey to hold in the spring and summer..examples are rock shoals, transition areas(again rock to mud is a fav)drop-offs and the classic deep water(depending on where you are fishing)..Walleye are always on the move, if you find and land a few, they are likely to be on the move again, the map will give you a better idea as to where they might move next. Gear and techniques are pretty straight forward..Tip-ups are still being used by many, but the jigging scene is taking over slowly...I rarley use tip-ups for eyes unless fishing in Quebec Where I can set a multiple number of lines..I set them up using a nylon or braided Ice line...The line size really does not matter because you need to have a mono leader tied via small svivel to your bait.. Keeping the rig as simple as you can is a key, a small gami hook with a small split-shot about 8-12 inches aboove the hook is all you need to keep your bait down and in the strike zone. I try to stay away from emerald shiners because they tend to die VERY quickly...You place your set line along structure, drop-offs or in random places to locate fish...I usually put my minnow anywhere from bottom to a couple feet above it. While fishing walleye, I am jigging over %80 of the time...Spoons such as the Northland buckshot rattle spoon and small Williams wobblers acounted for most of my iced fish last year. On some days, the walleye prefered a small minnow or just the head of the minnow tipped on the spoon...The lures weight keeps the line tautand makes it simple to detect strikes..Fishing the spoon is easy, lower your lure and raise it slightly off bottom. Sharply lift the rod tipabout 12'', then immediatly drop it to let the lure free fall, fluttering like an injured baitfish back into place. You will notice the fish rarley nibbles but literally smacks it..Deadsticking is great to, the rig is the same as on a tip-up..Again a solid reel on a 28'' Medium - medium light rod with 4 - 8lbs line should be fine...Look into using fluro, it is invisible under the ice..
Pike
The monster under the ice....And the easiest to catch. Pike are active all winter along which make them a fun specie to target(If you can find the big guys). Just about every lake and river in Ontario has a population of pike..Because they are at the top of the food chain in the under water world, pike will eat almost anything...I have never jigged up a pike, I find it a lot funner to just set out a tip-up and wait for a flag...Frozen baits can be purchased at grocery stores everywhere.I like bigger baits, Hmmm.Bigger fish
such as golden shinners and suckers. They seem to be more resiliant and stay alive a lot longer than other bait..A quick strikr rig to your main line or a treble hook will get 'em in most cases.
All this ice talk is getting me going
Hope I can target some lakers this year, brookies and bows too. I have a goal to fish Muskrat for lakers, Charleston for Jumbos, Lac Allard for walleye and smallmouth.. Also to get on a few farm ponds in my dads area that hold huge blueguill..Owner is ver nice 
To add to what orrsey said, you can add Pam to your scoop and auger blades too...
-Andrew
Crappie/Bluegill
The most saught after fish under the ice in many States and Provinces. Fishing panfish in the winter beats everything in my mind..there ability to suspend in the water column and shut-off through certain hours of the day make them a challenge to ice...Having the right tools is a must. I prefer a 24'' Ultra Light with 1-2lbs ice line for fishing very small jigs and finesse presentations...24'' Light rod with 2-3lbs ice line for fishing teardrops, jigs and slip-bobbers and a 28'' Medium light rod for fishing small spoons, live bait and a deadstick approach..I find the most important part to your combo is your reel..you don't need a $100 reel for ice fishing, just something with a smooth retreive and drag will do...Everyone has there own method or technique that works for them on any given day...some of include using a Northand or Williams small spoon to get the fish attention. Drop it to the bottom a jig it up to the surface slowly...When fish start to appear on your flasher, downsize to a teardrop and Gulp grub or small jig and maggots...Deadsticking with pinhead minnows or dace are a great way to catch active fish and get the bigger guys at that. Moving around is the key to a great day. Fishing over the same hole just doesn't cut it anymore
Walleye
While walleye remain a favorite to catch all seasons, I find getting them through the ice you have to follow the patterns as if you were fishing them in the summer...Walleye love rock and mud. Your journy should start with a map and a good flasher to detect bottom structure and density. Look for areas where walleye are likey to hold in the spring and summer..examples are rock shoals, transition areas(again rock to mud is a fav)drop-offs and the classic deep water(depending on where you are fishing)..Walleye are always on the move, if you find and land a few, they are likely to be on the move again, the map will give you a better idea as to where they might move next. Gear and techniques are pretty straight forward..Tip-ups are still being used by many, but the jigging scene is taking over slowly...I rarley use tip-ups for eyes unless fishing in Quebec
Where I can set a multiple number of lines..I set them up using a nylon or braided Ice line...The line size really does not matter because you need to have a mono leader tied via small svivel to your bait.. Keeping the rig as simple as you can is a key, a small gami hook with a small split-shot about 8-12 inches aboove the hook is all you need to keep your bait down and in the strike zone. I try to stay away from emerald shiners because they tend to die VERY quickly...You place your set line along structure, drop-offs or in random places to locate fish...I usually put my minnow anywhere from bottom to a couple feet above it. While fishing walleye, I am jigging over %80 of the time...Spoons such as the Northland buckshot rattle spoon and small Williams wobblers acounted for most of my iced fish last year. On some days, the walleye prefered a small minnow or just the head of the minnow tipped on the spoon...The lures weight keeps the line tautand makes it simple to detect strikes..Fishing the spoon is easy, lower your lure and raise it slightly off bottom. Sharply lift the rod tipabout 12'', then immediatly drop it to let the lure free fall, fluttering like an injured baitfish back into place. You will notice the fish rarley nibbles but literally smacks it..Deadsticking is great to, the rig is the same as on a tip-up..Again a solid reel on a 28'' Medium - medium light rod with 4 - 8lbs line should be fine...Look into using fluro, it is invisible under the ice..Pike
The monster under the ice....And the easiest to catch. Pike are active all winter along which make them a fun specie to target(If you can find the big guys). Just about every lake and river in Ontario has a population of pike..Because they are at the top of the food chain in the under water world, pike will eat almost anything...I have never jigged up a pike, I find it a lot funner to just set out a tip-up and wait for a flag...Frozen baits can be purchased at grocery stores everywhere.I like bigger baits, Hmmm.Bigger fish
such as golden shinners and suckers. They seem to be more resiliant and stay alive a lot longer than other bait..A quick strikr rig to your main line or a treble hook will get 'em in most cases.All this ice talk is getting me going
Hope I can target some lakers this year, brookies and bows too. I have a goal to fish Muskrat for lakers, Charleston for Jumbos, Lac Allard for walleye and smallmouth.. Also to get on a few farm ponds in my dads area that hold huge blueguill..Owner is ver nice To add to what orrsey said, you can add Pam to your scoop and auger blades too...
-Andrew
You guys are gonna start driving me nuts already.....
My favorite species are, order of priority: walleyes-pike-perch
Walleye: I fish the St-Larry and the Ottawa for walleyes which needs 2 different approach. In the St-larry, we find big numbers in the Maritime channel of walleyes, saugers and saugeyes. Here, I jig with Rapala's about 85% of the time and the other 15% is spoons, tipped with a head. Eventhough I am allowed 10 tip-ups, I just use my jigging rod and sometimes, a dead-stick rod.
Last year we found a pattern that found us some larger walleyes, large weed flats, 15ft deep, that connect with the maritime channels. Two outings at this spot got me 12 walleyes between 3-6 pounds, 3 the first day and 9 during the second outing. Salmo chubbys got the larger fish moving with some on tip-ups and spoons. We would have fished here more often but the ice only lasted 2 weeks
due to warm weather and current, kinda itching to go back, kinda.
In the St-Larry, walleyes are on all day, even on the flats. I also drill tons of holes and move a bunch. Here, it's that simple, the more holes you drill, the more fish you catch, 10-15 strokes per hole----next, unless you find something. Then you catch what'S there, change lures, catch a few more, then move.
On the Ottawa though, early season has great all-day catches outa Wendover and Petrie but later-on, I stick to dusk-dawn. Lures are spoons and fire-balls with larger shiners, jigging raps are sometimes the hot lure but only during first-ice, i found anyways.
Pike
I will often set-up with tip-ups but jigging always get more bites. I jig with Raps (no7 produce more for me then no9's) but the best lures for me is a Whistler Jig with a larger shiners. On tip-ups, if I can't find large shiners, I use medium shiners, then suckers.
Equipement
I use Thorne custom rods with Shimano reels and P-Line fluoro-ice 4lbs on the jigging rod and 6lbs on the deadstick. I am packed as lite as possible to be able to move easier, 2 rods, small tackle box, hand auger, cleats, spool of line with leaders prepared on a Lindy snell thingamajig in case I feel like using tip-ups and that's pretty much it.
Wallyboss, thanks for providing us ice-freaks with a soap-box, feels good talking about it.
Manny
My favorite species are, order of priority: walleyes-pike-perch
Walleye: I fish the St-Larry and the Ottawa for walleyes which needs 2 different approach. In the St-larry, we find big numbers in the Maritime channel of walleyes, saugers and saugeyes. Here, I jig with Rapala's about 85% of the time and the other 15% is spoons, tipped with a head. Eventhough I am allowed 10 tip-ups, I just use my jigging rod and sometimes, a dead-stick rod.
Last year we found a pattern that found us some larger walleyes, large weed flats, 15ft deep, that connect with the maritime channels. Two outings at this spot got me 12 walleyes between 3-6 pounds, 3 the first day and 9 during the second outing. Salmo chubbys got the larger fish moving with some on tip-ups and spoons. We would have fished here more often but the ice only lasted 2 weeks
due to warm weather and current, kinda itching to go back, kinda.In the St-Larry, walleyes are on all day, even on the flats. I also drill tons of holes and move a bunch. Here, it's that simple, the more holes you drill, the more fish you catch, 10-15 strokes per hole----next, unless you find something. Then you catch what'S there, change lures, catch a few more, then move.
On the Ottawa though, early season has great all-day catches outa Wendover and Petrie but later-on, I stick to dusk-dawn. Lures are spoons and fire-balls with larger shiners, jigging raps are sometimes the hot lure but only during first-ice, i found anyways.
Pike
I will often set-up with tip-ups but jigging always get more bites. I jig with Raps (no7 produce more for me then no9's) but the best lures for me is a Whistler Jig with a larger shiners. On tip-ups, if I can't find large shiners, I use medium shiners, then suckers.
Equipement
I use Thorne custom rods with Shimano reels and P-Line fluoro-ice 4lbs on the jigging rod and 6lbs on the deadstick. I am packed as lite as possible to be able to move easier, 2 rods, small tackle box, hand auger, cleats, spool of line with leaders prepared on a Lindy snell thingamajig in case I feel like using tip-ups and that's pretty much it.
Wallyboss, thanks for providing us ice-freaks with a soap-box, feels good talking about it.
Manny
GREAT TOPIC WALLYBOSS........ 
ice fishing way to go...........
,,,,,FOR MYSELF...anything that swim under the ice is great to catch..
crappies on tin line are fun.........seeing that tip up going down at 120 feet frome you on all ice is great rush,,,,,,,,, 
..
bring me some hard water anytime soon..
joco
ice fishing way to go...........
,,,,,FOR MYSELF...anything that swim under the ice is great to catch..
crappies on tin line are fun.........seeing that tip up going down at 120 feet frome you on all ice is great rush,,,,,,,,,
..bring me some hard water anytime soon..
joco
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bucketmouth
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Great thread Dan... never too early [LOL]
1. Walleye
- 24" lite action or 28" deadstick, can't beat a fireball jig with stinger and a lively shiner IMO jigged ever so softly once you know they're in the area. That or a Jiggin Shad. 8lb test fluoro.
2. Crappie
- 28" ultralite with spring bobber, 2lb test, jigs down to 1/100th, small plastics, waxworms or Berkeley Honey Worms are all deadly on feeding crappie. I only target them at ice-in or ice-out.
3. TIE Pike/Bass
Pike - tipup, tipdown or any variation of the sort. 40lb+ braid, quickstrike rig and the biggest, deadest bait you can find. Will be trying windlass this year, had no success on them in the past when I've owned them.
Bass - usually taken on Marmooskas with honeyworm-tipped Northland EyeDroppers or Forage minnow spoons down to 1/64th or so.
1. Walleye
- 24" lite action or 28" deadstick, can't beat a fireball jig with stinger and a lively shiner IMO jigged ever so softly once you know they're in the area. That or a Jiggin Shad. 8lb test fluoro.
2. Crappie
- 28" ultralite with spring bobber, 2lb test, jigs down to 1/100th, small plastics, waxworms or Berkeley Honey Worms are all deadly on feeding crappie. I only target them at ice-in or ice-out.
3. TIE Pike/Bass
Pike - tipup, tipdown or any variation of the sort. 40lb+ braid, quickstrike rig and the biggest, deadest bait you can find. Will be trying windlass this year, had no success on them in the past when I've owned them.
Bass - usually taken on Marmooskas with honeyworm-tipped Northland EyeDroppers or Forage minnow spoons down to 1/64th or so.
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Moosebunk
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Basically enjoy ice fishing for what's available here. Brookies, pike and eyes.
Brookies - 6lb mono with 5lb flouro lead on light jiggin' rod, jigged or on a gad. Williams jiggin' spoons or Champs tipped with moose meat or a minnow head.
Pike - 50lb braid with 12" 30lb steel lead. Homemade Tip-down. Big Williams spoons, single treble, tipped with fallfish, sucker or leftover walleye (when Bren's around)
Eyes- 10-20lb superbraid, sometimes with 8lb flouro lead. Jiggin' rod. Champs, Cleos or bucktails tipped with live minnows.
Brookies - 6lb mono with 5lb flouro lead on light jiggin' rod, jigged or on a gad. Williams jiggin' spoons or Champs tipped with moose meat or a minnow head.
Pike - 50lb braid with 12" 30lb steel lead. Homemade Tip-down. Big Williams spoons, single treble, tipped with fallfish, sucker or leftover walleye (when Bren's around)
Eyes- 10-20lb superbraid, sometimes with 8lb flouro lead. Jiggin' rod. Champs, Cleos or bucktails tipped with live minnows.
My favourite species are walleye pike and perch
Walleye: I usually use tip up with a plain hook sinker and minnow, secondly jigging with some jig head with a stinger hook with a minnow hook through its gills and the stinger hooked on its back. But this winter I want to tried some other things like a spoon tip a with a minnow etc thats about it for walleyes.
Pike: Mosted of the time I use tip up with some plain hook and minnows and just sitting down there and waiting for the bites.
Perch: I jig for them with some kinds of bugs hook with some maggots, berkley honey worms and some berkley power nuggets.
I cant wait to go on the ice this comming season and this winter Im planning on targeting some crappie as well and maybe some brookie in Quebec at an outfitter we went earlier this year. I Just dreaming to be fishing down the Nation river around Casselman.
Walleye: I usually use tip up with a plain hook sinker and minnow, secondly jigging with some jig head with a stinger hook with a minnow hook through its gills and the stinger hooked on its back. But this winter I want to tried some other things like a spoon tip a with a minnow etc thats about it for walleyes.
Pike: Mosted of the time I use tip up with some plain hook and minnows and just sitting down there and waiting for the bites.
Perch: I jig for them with some kinds of bugs hook with some maggots, berkley honey worms and some berkley power nuggets.
I cant wait to go on the ice this comming season and this winter Im planning on targeting some crappie as well and maybe some brookie in Quebec at an outfitter we went earlier this year. I Just dreaming to be fishing down the Nation river around Casselman.
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slushpuppy
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You're allowed two lines in the water. You'll see some people with 5 on the Ottawa, because Quebec licences can have 5 on the border waters (ice).Clap_For_The_Wolfman wrote:I will be trying ice fishing for the first time this comming winter.
I have a few questions that maybe you guys can answer......
1. how many tipups are you allowed to set up in addition to your rod?
2. what's a 'deadstick' rod?
3. any good beginer ice spots arround the city?
thanx
Good beginner spots, for constant action, are Petrie Island in the East end and Constance Lake in the West end. Constance Lake has panfish and small pike. I wouldn't eat the panfish because they have worms, but you won't be skunked. Shirley's Bay is another spot, it has walleye but you can get skunked there unless you know where to set up.
My favourites:
Panfish on a spring bobber rod with a Genz Bug jig, usually fluorescent orange, pink or blue, tipped with live maggot, waxworm or butterworm. My favourite worm is the butterworm because it's not as gross as the other two and the fish love'em.
Pike on a tip-up using a quick-strike rig and a large live minnow. I also like jigging for them on a medium action ice rod with a swedish pimple and small minnow (live or dead/salted).
Haven't caught enough walleye on the ice to get excited about them. Maybe this year!
Bowzog uses a Marcum flasher but I love using an underwater camera. It's fun to watch the fish inspecting the bait and it's really exciting watching a pike cruising in. You get to see what bait/action works and what doesn't.
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Wall-I-Guy
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I guess since our little conference back and forth with the PM's about ice fishing you really got excited...
Great post Dan!
My preferences are Trout/Walleye/More of each..
Virtually all my time is spent jigging although when allowed a second line, I use a dead stick too which can produce the odd surprise.
I really have to learn to clean Pike though. Seeing as I get quite a few of them and always chuck 'em back. Taste pretty dang close to an 'eye IMHO.
But, still lots of Quinte time ahead folks, ice will be here soon enough..
Great post Dan!
My preferences are Trout/Walleye/More of each..
Virtually all my time is spent jigging although when allowed a second line, I use a dead stick too which can produce the odd surprise.
I really have to learn to clean Pike though. Seeing as I get quite a few of them and always chuck 'em back. Taste pretty dang close to an 'eye IMHO.
But, still lots of Quinte time ahead folks, ice will be here soon enough..