I am new to ice fishing. So new that I’ve never done it! In fact, the only gear I have is a hand auger and an ice spoon.
I’m hoping to get set up this week with rod and all the accessories. What advice do you have as far as “must haves” for gear? (power auger and ice hut aren’t in the cards this year) What lures/flies are must haves? What would you guys suggest for accessories for an ice rookie like me?
Hope to be hitting the hard deck as early as next weekend. I’m pumped…I’ve been wanting to get into it for a while. So now is the time. Thanks ahead of time.
Where do you plan to ice fish and what do you want to catch? I’m no ice expert but I have my favorites for different waters and different species through the ice. One thing I’ve noticed, in my experience, is that the later the season gets the smaller baits work better. Ice flies, small spoons, etc.
I made due with a hand auger and a 5 gallon bucket to sit on/pack gear for several years. As FOD illustrated, you can get by with a very simple assortment of jigs. All this will fit in a Jet Sled Jr nicely. It also drags very easily. With this setup, you can be very mobile as well.
Now that my buddy and I have big huts, heater, fish finder, etc, we plop down and are very reluctant to move. (I now regularly fish in my t-shirt though!) He has a big sled that’s hard to pull. Unless the ice is thick enough for my wheeler, moving around is a giant pain in the butt. So each set up has it’s advantages.
Where I want to go and what I want to catch…I am open to about anything really. I’ve never done it. I don’t know where I want to go yet, but I do know I hope to have a couple perch fries this winter, and I wouldn’t mind catching some trout as well. Not picky, just think this will be a fun activity that I can do in the winter and possibly get my kids involved in as well. It will be a while before they’re old enough to stand in a river and whip a line around.
Just wondering if there are any basics that are must have’s in general for an ice fisherman.
A few things I always have no matter how light I’m traveling are wire bobbers, a spool of 6# flourocarbon, 2.5" tubes in glow, white and chartreuse, ice flies in pretty colors and a couple small spoons, slush scooper and bait. Oh! and an auger of course.Throw that in the buckets and away I go.
My hut doubles as a sled so everything can go on top. I used to fish with just a bucket and auger but I’ve collected alot of stuff at winter end blowout prices and now I haul stuff around that I hardly ever use but sometimes it’s worth having.
I took my daughter out to Settlement Canyon today, used #12 ice flies about 10" under a glow spoon and caught bait for the next year. That’s what I use for most perch, the big perch will also take a tube tipped with chub meat.
I don’t fish for trout often but when I do I use the powerbait tubes or grubs.
you can get by with very little gear a cheep ice rod. some small jig’s and some bigger ones.. i like tube jig’s my self. but some small ice fly’s are needed as well.. thats the easy part..
hard part: good cold wether gear… good pack boots, 2 pair of gloves. good ski bibes and coat. and a ski mask or good beenie all are a must to have.. nothing will ruin a ice trip faster than being realy cold..
