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Ice Fishing Tips -Check your local regulations! => Perch => Topic started by: bassrat on Dec 10, 2013, 07:59 PM

Title: "teach me, oh great ones!!!"
Post by: bassrat on Dec 10, 2013, 07:59 PM
okay, here's the deal ....  not new to ice fishing by any means, but i'm new to this situation.  2 lakes I like to fish for perch are basically duck hunting marshes (shallow bowls) that at normal levels "top out" at about 4 1/2 FOW...this year the lakes are down about 2 feet and extremely muddy (can't see the bottom of the hole with 6" of ice)... there's also very little structure or weed growth...HOW WOULD YOU GUYS FISH THESE LAKES???  remember...muddy and 30" deep.
Title: Re: "teach me, oh great ones!!!"
Post by: Idahogator on Dec 10, 2013, 10:11 PM
I would make some noise to attract those mud-blind perch.

A couple good lures are: PK Lures "Predator"   See them here,   http://www.pklures.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=14&zenid=kimo6uup42dvpu50ga5tddccf5 (http://www.pklures.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=14&zenid=kimo6uup42dvpu50ga5tddccf5)

Another good noise maker is the "Buckshot Rattle spoon, which you may have on hand.     Good luck.
Title: Re: "teach me, oh great ones!!!"
Post by: Swift on Dec 11, 2013, 08:34 AM 
A - I'd probably look for another body of water
B - If there's no other option but to fish it, find the oxygen, it's probably going to be at a premium, beware of springs
C - Find the major food source
D - Find the deepest hole, even if it's only a couple inches deeper
E - Hopefully the 3 previous criteria are the same place
F - Find another body of water to fish anyway

			

			

				Title: Re: "teach me, oh great ones!!!"

				Post by: bassrat on Dec 11, 2013, 12:15 PM
			

			

				thanks guys...   best producers so far have been using chubby darters to bring em' in to hit a deadsticked minnow close by.
swift -  A. only real "perch lakes" within about 50 miles
            B. lots of springs
            C. mostly bloodworms and other inverts (but with the water clarity (chocolate milk) the vibrations from a minnow usually seem to work better)
            D. after roughly 6 years of drilling I haven't found the deepest hole yet (it's about 700 acres and with the springs, foot traffic is the only way out there)
            E. plenty of other bluegill, crappie and bass lakes within 15 minutes....   but perch do it for me like a Victoria's secret catalog to a 13-year-old zit-faced boy

keep up the responses guys...I appreciate the input.
			

			

				Title: Re: "teach me, oh great ones!!!"

				Post by: Jigmup on Dec 11, 2013, 03:20 PM
			

			

				I'd hit what ever basin it has and cut it up. Use florescent lures with rattles! Thats a tough one for sure.  
			

			

				Title: Re: "teach me, oh great ones!!!"

				Post by: Swift on Dec 12, 2013, 08:31 AM
			

			

				Would lay decent odds that those other lakes have decent Perch in them despite their possible reputation. Their general feeding habits aren't much competition to the 'gills, Crappies and Bass in them especially if it's a fairly well balanced lake. Probably are their, nobody has maybe looked all that hard for them. Potential quiet honey hole bonanza if figured out. Have fished a number of lakes where the common baitshop fantasy lore is that there isn't any Perch worth chasing on them (which is good), tend to land nice numbers of very nice fish, just had to figure it out
			

			

				Title: Re: "teach me, oh great ones!!!"

				Post by: Van_Cleaver on Dec 12, 2013, 01:04 PM
			

			

				What Swift says makes good sense. I personally would opt to drive an hour or so (heck I do all the time anyway) to fish water with a little more depth. If you get a deep freeze your 30'' is going to shrink and the oxygen content could go as well. Much as I like to catch perch; catching big blue gills excites me more. I'd go exploring for sure. Maybe next year your perch lake will be full up.

			

			

				Title: Re: "teach me, oh great ones!!!"

				Post by: Townie on Dec 13, 2013, 11:52 AM
			

			

				One of my 1st icing spots was a shallow marsh which topped out at 4-5'; held a nice population of jumbos. As the years passed it eutrophied and grew difficult to find the creek channel. Most holes drilled resulted in auger hitting the muddy bottom.  A few times
my UW cam revealed scores of fish huging the bottom, inactive and seemingly starved for O2.  It  has now become too difficult to find a worthwhile bite...  Less than 3' deep I'd be looking to fish else where.