I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

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bigwoodsmn
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby bigwoodsmn » Wed Dec 24, 2014 6:08 am

BassBoysLLP wrote: I'm surely not missing an entire day. Just the time to drive back home and pick it up. :doh: :lol:


My last trip to Colorado we only had one Vexilar. We established the pattern with it but the guy over the Vexilar caught fish 3 to 1. We ended up taking turns, like little children, to avoid a fight. I knew I should have FedEx'd mine out to Colorado. I wonder if Delta would have let me have it as a carry-on. I couldn't check another bag because of the cost - had already checked a bag and skis etc. In a pinch I'd buy one and return it. My conscience would be OK .... in that big of an emergency. I think even Vexilar company would understand that predicament. I have an underwater camera but it is collecting dust. I don't even bring it along.

Spysar wrote:Holy crap Bigwoodsman! I been ice fishing all my life, and I'm learning just as much as Crazinamatese! I need to up my game.


I'm friends with ice fishing addicts and a little rubs off. I'm just not that mad at fish to walk around on 2-3 inches of new ice. "If my spud bar won't go through, then I won't go through..."...No thanks. They wear ice fishing jerseys at trade shows in November... when they should be hunting whitetails. However, I would like to do a trip for giant Lakers in Ontario with a knowledgeable local. Or do some winter camping in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and sort of blindly (but with a Vexilar) try for Lakers.


BassBoysLLP
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby BassBoysLLP » Wed Dec 24, 2014 6:13 am

bigwoodsmn wrote:
My last trip to Colorado we only had one Vexilar. We established the pattern with it but the guy over the Vexilar caught fish 3 to 1. [glow=red]We ended up taking turns, like little children, to avoid a fight.[/glow]I knew I should have FedEx'd mine out to Colorado. I wonder if Delta would have let me have it as a carry-on. I couldn't check another bag because of the cost - had already checked a bag and skis etc. In a pinch I'd buy one and return it. My conscience would be OK .... in that big of an emergency. I think even Vexilar company would understand that predicament. I have an underwater camera but it is collecting dust. I don't even bring it along.


:lol: Definitely been there. The guy without the Vex with invariably become the grumpy, drunk one. Sharing keeps the peace.
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Crazinamatese
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Sat Dec 27, 2014 2:04 pm

Today I went ahead and ordered the Showdown Troller fish finder. I been reading alot of sketchy reviews though. I later found out I was reading reviews for the wrong device all along. There are a few different models of the Showdown apparently and the model with the worse reviews is the one I bought. :cry: It seems alot of people are very 'specific' :roll: when it comes to fish finders, so I took alot of the reviews with a grain of salt. So, Im still gonna give it a try and it does have a one year warranty if it sucks. Not feeling to good about this.
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby BigHunt » Sat Dec 27, 2014 2:52 pm

Crazinamatese wrote:Today I went ahead and ordered the Showdown Troller fish finder. I been reading alot of sketchy reviews though. I later found out I was reading reviews for the wrong device all along. There are a few different models of the Showdown apparently and the model with the worse reviews is the one I bought. :cry: It seems alot of people are very 'specific' :roll: when it comes to fish finders, so I took alot of the reviews with a grain of salt. So, Im still gonna give it a try and it does have a one year warranty if it sucks. Not feeling to good about this.

been using Marcum for 5 years now .....no problems at all
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BigHunt
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby BigHunt » Sat Dec 27, 2014 2:58 pm

Image

Image



just picked up this ice suit from sportsmen's guide ....very good deal 150$ parka and bibs for 80$ a piece 8-)
completely water proof and padded knees
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Crazinamatese
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Fri Jan 02, 2015 1:17 pm

Today was a blast! I went out the local lake today. Some guy in the parking lot almost drove his ATV right off the trailer in the parking lot so I helped him pick up the front end that was up and over the front rack on the trailer. I asked him where he was catching fish and told me to go way to the NE side of the lake where there is a long flat with 10 feet of water. So I did. He also told me crappies were hugging tight to the bottom. I drilled a few holes and used my new Marcum showdown troller I bought recently for the first time to try to mark some fish. Really nothing was showing in the 5 holes I drilled. I just picked a spot to set up. Around 12:30 I began seeing some marks on the troller and I could see my jig about 6 inches off the bottom. The fish were right on the bottom.Then a small perch came off the bottom and hammered my jig. My first fish of the day. Then after that it was dead for a few hours. I tried all types of presentation and fish would come up look at it and drop back to the bottom. Around 2:30 I tied on a small orange and chartreuse jig with a waxie. I dropped it to about a foot off the bottom. I can see all this on the showdown troller which was really cool. A few fish would come up and check it out and not hit it. I was out of ideas for presentations. So, I decided to drop the jig all the way to the bottom and jig it up slowly. Thats when the action began. I pulled in a nice slab bluegill. Then after that I caught about a dozen crappies. One was 12 inches. All the other ones were right around 10 inches. Not bad for 10 feet of water. I could see the mark from jig come off the bottom as I jigged it up, then a mark would appear right below my lure as they slowly came up. The crappies were not hitting the bait hard at all. It seems they just inhale it and kinda sit there. I would see them come right up to my jig but no pull on the line. I learned quick to set the hook once that black line was over my jig mark and that worked real well. I wish I could have stayed longer because the action was really cranking up right at dark. The Showdown Troller worked wonders for me today. Can't wait to get back out there this weekend. Also, I forgot to bring a camera to take pics. :snooty:
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bigwoodsmn
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby bigwoodsmn » Fri Jan 02, 2015 5:13 pm

Awesome! It'd be tough to fish without it now....

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Hilts
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Hilts » Sat Jan 03, 2015 2:27 am

Nice. Aside from all of the advantages of having electronics, my favorite part is watching the bite happen. The anticipation as you see the fish come up and then the rod bends :D
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Crazinamatese
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Sat Jan 03, 2015 8:45 am

Hilts wrote:Nice. Aside from all of the advantages of having electronics, my favorite part is watching the bite happen. The anticipation as you see the fish come up and then the rod bends :D


Right! It was fun watching them on the troller. I think this has been helping my jigging techniques too.
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Bowhunting Brian » Sat Jan 03, 2015 9:05 am

cool. that is why electronics are a must. people that don't use them really miss out.
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Crazinamatese
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Sun Jan 04, 2015 1:10 pm

Had an ok day on the ice today. I fished almost the same spot as the other day. Fish were real picky. Had alot of fish show up but they seemed uninterested for the most part. I tried several different presentations. I caught a 12 inch walleye, couple of small perch, a few crappies, and a bluegill. I think Im starting out good for a rookie.
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Edcyclopedia » Sun Jan 04, 2015 1:48 pm

You Go Joe!!!

I still want some pics - Chop, Chop!
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Crazinamatese
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Sun Jan 04, 2015 2:46 pm

Edcyclopedia wrote:You Go Joe!!!

I still want some pics - Chop, Chop!


I forgot, I did get a pic of one the crappies today. I gotta start taking more pics. :shifty: It been to exciting.
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Hodag Hunter
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Hodag Hunter » Sun Jan 04, 2015 2:49 pm

Looks like you're starting out great. Ice fishing is relaxing, enjoy your time on the ice.

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Crazinamatese
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Sun Jan 04, 2015 3:05 pm

Hodag Hunter wrote:Looks like you're starting out great. Ice fishing is relaxing, enjoy your time on the ice.

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I been using that rod with the spring bobber you sent me. Works awesome. I do have a question about presentations. I noticed today fish would come up when I jigged aggressively. I usually stop when I see the mark right over my jig, then the fish would drop back down after a few seconds. Once they drop back down I would hammer on the jig more and the fish would come back up again, but no hits??? Should I continue to jig hard, or slow it down when they come up? The way these fish have been hitting I don't see the strike when I jig it when they come up. The other day, they would come up, I would stop jigging and the spring bobber would start bending, then I set the hook. Today was different. They were very difficult to get to bite. Not sure how to deal with fish when they do this.
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