My shoulders began to ache as my old hand auger punched yet another hole through the thick ice.  Although this was only hole number nine, it felt like fifty.  I had been on the ice for over an hour but it seemed much longer.  My flasher had told me that the previous eight holes where fishless duds.  Hopefully number nine would be different.  I lowered the transducer into the hole and finally I saw what I had been searching for.  The bottom read 24 feet and suspended between 5 and 10 feet above it were a dozen yellow lines.  Quickly, I grabbed my rod and lowered down the hole a small jigging spoon tipped with a minnow head.  As the line representing my bait approached the marks on the flasher, a yellow line ascended.  The two lines met and my rod tip twitched.  I took a breath and set the hook.  Finally, I had found the crappies.

    Panfish are both a challenging and exciting quarry through the ice.  They are often difficult to locate but once found provide fast and continuous action.  Many anglers make the mistake of going out on the ice, drilling a couple of holes and staying put, waiting for the fish to come to them.  In the winter, cold water temperatures reduce the metabolic rate of fish and restrict their desire to move.  Furthermore, panfish such as bluegill and crappie will often suspend high off the bottom over deep water with little or no orientation to structure.  This makes it difficult to locate them.  By remaining mobile, using quality electronics, and following a few general guidelines, an angler can greatly increase his odds of locating fish.

Crappies

    The best crappie lakes are typically relatively shallow lakes with bowl shaped basins.  In the winter, crappie will abandon shallow water areas and move to the deeper portions of a lake.  Start your search by locating deep water adjacent to structure such as points, sand bars, or islands.  Structures that provide cover in the form of bulrush, cattails, or brush are important spring and fall habitat for crappies and they will likely spend the winter in the nearby deep water.  If your lake has no structure, simply find the deepest water in the lake's main basin.  Once you have found a good location, begin drilling holes. 

    The more holes you drill initially, the less noise you will have to make later on.  I will usually drill at least ten holes before I even drop a line.  Once the holes have been drilled, simply use your flasher to explore the area.  I will typically begin with an attraction lure such as a jigging spoon.  The action of the spoon may attract fish from several feet away.  Try jigging at several depths.  Many times a hole will initially appear dead but once the jigging spoon finds the correct depth, the flasher will light up as fish move into the transducer's cone angle. 

    I typically start jigging ten feet off the bottom and lower the jig a foot or two at a time until I get a response.  If no fish appear within five or ten minutes, move on to the next hole.  Once you locate a school of fish, it is important to always work your jig above the fish.  Crappie's eyes are high on their heads so they typically see only what is above them.   If you see a large school of fish but they are not biting, you may be over a school of bluegill.  Try a smaller jigging spoon tipped with a wax worm.  If you catch a lot of bluegill, you may need to move deeper to find crappie.  Although they will often be found in close proximity to one another, crappie and bluegill will not typically be found in exactly the same location this time of year.

Bluegill

    Winter bluegill will typically be found near some form of cover or structure.  Much like crappie, they may be found high off the bottom but will also spend a considerable amount of time near the substrate.  Bluegills are typically found in shallower water than are crappie.  In some lakes, bluegill will remain near vegetation throughout the winter.  Open pockets in a thick weed bed are often great places to find them. 

    When I find a likely location, I will typically try a small jigging spoon tipped with a wax worm.  Jigging spoons can be used to attract active fish, and when used with a flasher, are great tools to judge the fish’s activity level.  If the fish are aggressive, the jigging spoon may be the best approach to catching bluegill.  If the fish rise to the bait but do not take it, a more subtle approach is needed.  If the fish appear to be passive, a wax worm fished on a tiny tear-drop jig under a light slip bobber will almost always result in a bucket full of bluegills.

Yellow Perch

    Yellow perch may be very difficult to locate during the winter.  In some lakes, they will be found associated with structure in depths in excess of 35 feet.  In other lakes, perch may be found anywhere from 6 feet to 30 feet over a wide variety of bottom types and cover.  The best bet in locating perch is to start near structure.  Use your auger and electronics to explore the structure in detail.  Try to find the breaklines.  Perch will typically be found just below a major drop off.  Off-shore structure will often be very good.

    Again, try a jigging spoon.  Watch your flasher closely to monitor the fish’s behavior.  Don’t be afraid to change tactics if the fish are finicky.  If you are jigging with a spoon and minnow head and the fish will only look at the bait, quickly drop down a wax worm under a float.  If they are ignoring a still-fished waxy, drop down a jigging spoon and make some commotion to get the fish’s gander up!! 

    Late ice is by far the best time of year to pursue panfish through the ice.  To the ice angler, bliss is a 40^o March afternoon sitting on a bucket and pulling panfish from beneath his feet.  Whether you are targeting crappie, bluegill, or perch, the action is typically fast, furious, and a lot of fun. 

Return To Features