General trout fishing tactics

[IDFisher]

Hi Guys,
Just looking for some general advice on fishing for trout through the ice.  I've been focusing on Perch the last few years but I'm thinking I want to take a trip to Horsethief and maybe a couple other places to target trout this year.  I've never fished for them exclusively through the ice so I am just looking for some starting advice.  Should i be fishing deep or shallow water?  Will they be near the bottom or suspended?  What type of lures or bait should I start with?  Thanks for anything you can give me.

[RANDAL801]

My experience has been they are usually suspended. Mostly they will be either right under the ice or between 20 FOW and up. I use paddle bugs in white, pinks and greens tipped with wax or meal worms. You can dead stick or light jigging. Hope this helps with getting you started.

[Idahogator]

They really go for a piece of night crawler, about an inch long, threaded onto the hook.

I give them about 2' of slack line. It seems they get a grip on it better before they sense any tension on the line.    An easy way to do that is only have a small swivel and hook on the line, NO split shot or other sinker.  Be patient, it will slowly sink to the depth you set.  A rod holder or bucket support helps a lot and when set, pull a foot or so of slack line down between two eyelets and drape a piece of trail tape over that loop, bright colors are best.   Do several of these in a straight line, spaced to avoid tangles.  Mind the law on number of lines.  I set four of these and hold the 5th in hand.     When that bright ribbon of tape rises get to it.   Last thing to remember, tie the rod/pole to something bigger than the ice hole.   I you have sonar, find the depth they're coming through your set and have your bait there or up to a foot above the average.     

Good luck.

[panfishman13]

i set up a spread of dead rods or tipups that goes from about 6-10 feet of water to 20-30 feet. corners are good, points are better. trout tend to cruise along the shoreline looking for food, so figuring out their path of travel is the first item of business. move the rods that get hit less over by the rods that get hit more.

i run a rig that consists of a jigging spoon with a small jig about 6 inches to a foot above the spoon. i bait the spoon with waxworms, nightcrawlers, or mealworms, and the jig i'll bait with either waxworms or eurolarvae (maggots, spikes). i suspend the spoon 1-2 feet off bottom.

[Hamstn]

Generally very early morning is best and bite slows later on into early afternoon. Like above, points are my favorite just off the shore. Start 3ft below ice up to 10 and go deeper and further from shore as time goes on.

On the free floating worm idea, go ahead and use a sinker but put it on a foot or two above hook, and then take syringe and pump air into worm. Will give a bit before fish feels line.

[Idahogator]

Man's many ways, and they all catch fish.     


Probably not the place to mention the spring pole with line trigger.       

[1sorearm]

Small jig tipped with wax worms worked great this A.M.   2 feet under the ice

[fishermantim]

bait hook and put in water...doesn't get any more "general" than that. 

Seriously, depending on what type of pond/lake you are on, you would do well to start early and shallow.
Trout prefer to hunt in shallow waters where they can chase their prey close to shore. Since the ice tends to block the ereally shallow areas from the bait, they tend to get picked off more often than usual.
Most anglers I have encountered like to set up a tip-up line, where they cover most of the shoreline where the trout usually travel along, so that their baits are somewhere in the trouts field of vision.

Jigging is a little different, as you will be set up at one spot waiting / hoping for the fish to cross your path.
You can pre-drill your jigging holes and move about until you find which depth and distance from shore is the one the fish are traveling through.

Next you will have to decide which bait or lures to use, but that's a thread for another day....

[FG Steve]

Should i be fishing deep or shallow water?

Good general advice here for shallow and early.  Decades ago we set up in the middle of a small res and watched an old man catch fish after fish.  When he left, he invited us to move over to the edge where he was fishing in and near the willows.  We finally caught a few.  These days I like to set up a line of dead sticks perpendicular to the shore, from barely enough water to fish out toward deeper water.  I like it if I can find some vegetation--seems to hold forage.

Will they be near the bottom or suspended?

Depends on the day, time of year, location, depth, temperature, and oxygen distribution.  Often trout will suspend when other species hug the bottom.  If you have a deep water column, then marking fish on one of the electronic options is invaluable.  In shallow water, less of an issue.

What type of lures or bait should I start with?

Hard to beat a piece of night crawler tipped with corn.  I actually fish that 3 ft. below a hookless kastmaster attractor.  I usually dead stick four of these and play with different lures on a fifth, things like paddle bugs or crappie jigs tipped with mealworm.  On many days it seems like lots of things work or nothing works.  Barometer, solunar, cosmic rays, pick your superstition.

If you have an underwater camera, you can learn a lot about how they are biting that day.  Crazy stuff like bumping the jig then turning around to inhale it.  Or just staring at the bait/lure forever.

Dang I'm ready to get out there.  Good luck.  I love trout fishing through the ice.

[SlaptheFish]

Nice Posts!  Learned quite a few things reading through this topic. 

Thank you

[IDFisher]

Thanks to all who replied, very useful information here.