Walleyes, White & Yellow Perch, Pike

[MooseKnuckleVI]

I'm brandy new to this ice fishing thing. So far I have a flip over hut, gas auger, buddy heater, and some other stuff. All I need is rods and tackle.

Going to start with 2 medium heavy rods for pike/eyes and 2 light rods for perch. What about lures? The thing that I can't wrap my head around is not being able to cast to different sides like you do while on a boat. Ice fishing is literally just jigging through a hole, so what's some good methods and lures for:

Eyes
Pike
Perch

I'll be fishing in upstate NY on lake Ontario's bays, possibly Black Lake as well.

Thanks in advnace

[stripernut]

The thing that I can't wrap my head around is not being able to cast to different sides like you do while on a boat.

Most days until you find the fish, plan to cut lots of hole... I think of each hole as a cast and often cut more than 50 hole a trip... Others are willing to wait for the fish to come to them, some of us are not...

As to lures you will get a long list of lure, each having a time and place... For me most days (but not all days) Chubby Darters are a great lure, when fished right you can get them to "swim" many feet to the side of the hole and then they turn and swim back and is very enticing to fish... Best of luck!
It also helps a lot if you let us know where you are from in your profile...

[derek_buck]

I will try to keep it short so as not to overwhelm you.  For walleye, the three lures that I use the majority of the time are Rippin Raps, Buckshots, and Tingler spoons.  You can get these in different sizes, the smaller sizes work well for perch and the bigger sizes for walleye.  As far as pike go, I don't jig for pike. I only tipup fish for them, and it is a very simple set up that consists of a 20lb backing line, a steel leader, and a quick strike rig, baited with chubs or smelt.  If you don't know what a quick strike rig is, you can search it and you should be able to find threads explaining how to make one.

[MooseKnuckleVI]

Thanks!

What's your opinions on in-line vs spinning reels? One or the other or a combination of both.

[stripernut]

For me, I am not a fan of inline, but many are... I like spinning reels. If I was into holding a jigging rod with a pencil grip, I might think differently... Also a big part of not being a fan of inline is fishing deep is not as convenient with a inline...

[Elrik]

Also a big part of not being a fan of inline is fishing deep is not as convenient with a inline...

Have to respectfully disagree. Freespooling to bottom is so much nicer in deep water than having to pull loops off a spinning reel forever, and with the 3.7:1 ratio on the frabill 371 i have the line back up to the surface in no time.

[stripernut]

It is true with some of the new inlines, have free spool and gearing that make them more like a conventional reel. I also don't use the tiny spinning reels that many ice guy like that coil the line so small that you need to pull the line off the reel... Smallest I fish is a 2500 Stradic, open the bail and the line falls off...

[Water Wolf]

Hi MooseKnuckleVI,
Welcome to the world of ice fishing, it's a great sport to get into.

In winter I usually fish for pike and burbot, but do sometimes fish for walleye and perch.

Pike are usually fairly active under the ice and sometimes bite when the other fish species shut down.
For winter pike one can't go wrong with a good sized smelt or tullibee (if legal in your area) attached to a horizontal or vertical quick-strike rig.
This bait can be presented under a tip-up or my favorite a set rod, so I feel the fight and have a bit of shock absorption when the fish makes a run.

I also like jigging for pike and this can be done with soft plastics, like single or double- tail grubs, swimbaits, tubejigs and the such.
They also go for a variety of spoons like the good old Len Thompson Spoon, Eppinger Daredevle spoon, PK flutterfish or PK spoon or little cleo.
Lipless Rattle baits are another winter pike producer. Some good brands are Koppers Live Target lures. Northland, Lindy or Rapala. 

For the winter walleye and perch I have caught them on jig heads and a frozen minnow.
They will go for a regular jig head but I like it to rattle, spin or have a blade on it.
I have also caught them on small spoons or lipless rattle baits tippet with a bit of minnow or other bit of bait for smell.

Perch and walleye are usually caught jigging, but a set rod or tip-up baited with a hooked live or frozen minnow should also do the trick. 

Perch and walleye are usually found in a bit deeper water for most of the winter, while the pike can be found both shallow or deep, near their food source.

I also found this video a while back which will help in choosing what to use for walleye.
http://www.outdoorcanada.ca/the-top-4-lures-for-catching-walleye

Gord is a great angler who. really knows his stuff.

I can't comment on white perch as we don't have them here in my area.

Make sure you check out the walleye, perch and pike forms here on IceShanty, lots of great info there.

Good luck this winter, and be safe

WW