how to trap minnows in winter?

[ckfish]

I fish in upstate ny. In summer i set a trap in a creek and catch hundreds of minnows. How could i get them in winter? They seem to disappear. Would you catch them out of a lake?

[Woodsman]

I seem to get them in a creek near where I live in the winter.
Sometimes I have to cut a hole in the ice to put the trap in the water.

[ckfish]

I'll certainly try it thanks

[1MOFISH]

you need to find deep holes or ones with leaves the chubs hide to keep warm trap at night too!
GOD BLESS
mo

[ckfish]

the creek is small not too many deep holes but there's rocks everywhere

[b turdy]

how long do you let the traps sit

[ckfish]

i let them sit overnight. In summer I catch hundreds, in winter maybe 10

[b turdy]

give it a few days

[shaun_300]

When I used to trap them in the winter I'd go to a beaver pond close to my grandma's. Cut a hole in the ice the size of the minnow trap, and use a chunk of wire to attach the trap to a cut branch wider than the hole in the ice. Leave it for a day or two and come back to a trap full of minnows! Used bread for bait in the trap.

[ckfish]

thanks for the advice! there is a beaver pond near me

[Somers]

ck, just be aware you need to use the bait in the same water you fish.  Gotta love NY for making you have a receipt for bait if not from the same water you're fishing.  Just an FYI to avoid a ticket.  Been checked in southern NY...

[ckfish]

ya I'm aware. Never been checked though

[FRESHBAIT]

here is how i do it.  I cut a hole about the same size/dimension as my minnow trap and lower through the ice.  On the rope that is attached to the minnow trap is a piece of 2x4 or 1x2 that goes accross the hole that is in the ice.  I usually set my trap just below the ice and depending on the pond I may get a few dozen or hundreds.   For the small brooks/streams I find an area that the water isnt moving very fast throw my trap in and tie it of to a tree.  It depends on where I'm trapping as to how long I leave my bait traps in. One spot a couple hour soak will get me hundreds of dace, another hundreds of shiners,  other spots I let them soak 24hrs and get only a few dozen.