Minnow Trapping in the Winter

[Skywagon]

Yesterday four of us broke trail into our winter minnow trapping lake. This has become an annual event, we pick a nice day when we are all available and set traps. This year we lucked out and did not have an over abundance of downed trees to clear on the trail, so we got to the lake in record time. The program is to set two traps and fly in periodically to check them, they usually provide enough minnows throughout the winter for our needs. This is about as far away from being a money saving venture as it gets, but it's a great excuse for 4 overgrown kids to get out for a day and play in the bush.

[Whytie]

Do you find the minnows pretty shallow this time of year or deep? I've never seen minnows in the areas I fish during the winter so I assume they go deeper then 30ft or hide in the rocks all winter.

[Skywagon]

Less than 15' of depth, traps are near the surface.

[frnak001]

I have a lake here that I trap minnows in the summer. Never thought about the winter. It may be worth bringing a chainsaw and trying it. Best trap bait? I usually just throw in an old bagel.

[Skywagon]

Chain saw will work depending on ice depth.  Our ice was way to thick for a chainsaw this time so we used an ice auger placing holes close together and breaking everything out with a spud, or similar.  Bagel, bread, any of that works well for bait.