Ice Fishing 101

For those of you that like cold weather fishing, the coming of winter means it’s time to bring out the ice fishing gear. For most of us here in the Southland it’s not feasible to fish local waters and requires traveling to more northern destinations such as the Eastern Sierra. There are other mountainous regions throughout Northern California and other western regions where the weather temps dip low enough to ice over ponds and lakes. 

Probably the most important thing to keep in mind when deciding to ice fish is safety. Every year lethal accidents have occurred to anglers who didn’t test the ice thickness before venturing out on frozen waters. The human body goes into shock once you submerge into really cold water. There are a few hard rules you need to pay attention to when walking out on a untested frozen body of water that you need pay mind to. Looking at the color of the ice to whether it’s dark (thin) or white (thicker) generally is a good rule to pay attention to. Using a long heavy stick or pole to tap on the ice to see if it cracks ahead of where your walking is an age-old simple method of testing ice thickness but not the safest way of testing. Wearing a self-inflating life vest may sound a little too cautious but a good idea in untested frozen waters. 

Having mentioned the dangers of ice fishing there is a plus side to this sport. It’s just plain darn good fun to ice fish! As long as you are well prepared for the elements with the proper clothing to wear and pay attention to safety protocols you can have hours of fun fishing. In the midwestern states it's almost a rite of passage to going ice fishing. Out here on the west coast, anglers are limited to places they can fish.  

The opening weekend up in the Eastern Sierra has been a hit or miss for being able to ice fish. Several popular lakes to fish have been Lake Sabrina, South Lake, Mammoth Lakes, Virginia Lakes and several others, all dependent on ice thickness and road conditions.   It’s not unusual to see well over a hundred people ice fishing on frozen lakes on opening weekend. My biggest fish caught ice fishing was a 3.25 lb. Rainbow trout from South Lake. 

Ice fishing requires special tools to access the water beneath the ice. Depending on ice thickness, this can be a really long strenuous job without the right tools at hand. Fortunately for me, a good friend of mine has a gas-powered ice auger. Using a power auger can make fishing holes in a minute or two and not tax your patience or fatigue you at chipping away at the ice with a long handle axe. Some guys use small chain saws to get the job done quickly. Once a hole has been made you need a kitchen strainer to remove ice chips from the hole. 

I generally bring along a small sized cooler. The reason is twofold. I can carry food, beverages and fishing equipment in the cooler and it makes a great seat when fishing. Many anglers use their kid’s snow sleds or purchase inexpensive plastic sleds now available through the internet to carry their supplies out onto the ice rather than lugging heavy backpacks. In really bad weather you can even pitch a popup tent for shielding against the wind and elements as long as it’s staked down to keep it from blowing away. 

Fishing equipment for rods and reels are scaled down as well. You don’t need a long fishing rod when ice fishing. Generally speaking, a small ice fishing rod and 500 series or smaller fishing reel is all that is needed. Using a long rod works against you when trying to fish over a small hole in the ice. You want to be as close to the hole in the ice as possible. There are many brands of ice fishing rods that can be found at your local stores and throughout the internet to choose from. For fishing line, it’s better to use 3-4 lb.test and some folks use 6 lb.test for using larger spoons like Kastmasters. Ice fishing is physically demanding on your line, so buy good quality line. As for fishing lures there are many choices to pick from.

 Mini jigs are very popular to use as well as tiny metal spoons. Jigging up and down is the preferred method of angling here. Adding scent to plastic baits can be a good idea as well. Lots of anglers use small pieces of garden worms added to their lures as extra incentive for getting fish to bite. 

 I like to drop my lure to the bottom and work on jigging my lures up several feet at a time for at least 15 to 30 seconds at each depth before reeling up another foot or so. This method has worked very well in the past but sometimes when the bite is good you can drop to the bottom and reel your lure in at a slow retrieve and have great success as well. Try experimenting with lure colors and sizes till you have some success. Use of a portable fishfinder can be used for depth measurement and if fish are present. If you haven't had much luck at your fishing location after a period of time, you may want to move to a different location.

There are many different techniques in ice fishing. Another popular device is a spring-loaded tippet that is placed over the fishing hole. It’s a tripod mounted device that can hold your fishing rod in place when bait fishing and pops up a small flag when a fish bites your line. These are more popular in the midwestern and eastern states than on the west coast but are good to use when fishing multiple holes in the ice. You must have a two rod stamp here in California if you're fishing with more than one rod. 

If you happen to be lucky enough to hook up to a sizeable fish, it maybe be necessary to put both hands into the hole in the ice to grab onto your fish and bring it out. Make sure to have a spare set of warm gloves to put on quickly after removing the fish from the water. Wearing warm felt/foam lined rubberized boots like Sorrels are a must when standing on ice for long periods of time, as well as a good warm parka with a hood attachment to protect you from windy conditions. Using sunscreen of SPF 45 or higher along with sunglasses and a hat are highly recommended. Safety and staying warm are the number one and two things to remember when ice fishing.

Checking with your local officials and tackle shops as to whether ice conditions are safe is good sound advice before heading out to go ice fishing. Winter can be a fun time of year whether you’re a skier or an ice fisherman. You’ll never know what you're missing until you try it.