Volume 1, Issue 1 - Feb. 2001 Canadian Trophy Fishing Lake Ontario Fishing Charters www.cdntrophyfishing.com In this issue: Ice fishing for perch Ice fishing safety Pg 3. The case of the missing minnow bucket Pg 4. Classifieds Pg 5. Live Bait & Tackle Shiners, Maggots, Waxworms and Mousies 310 King Street East, Cambridge, Ontario. Phone:(519) 650-3465 talltales@talltales.on.ca www.talltales.on.ca Your Ad Could go here for as little as $20 Ice Fishing for Perch Small Holes = Big Perch - Catching Jumbos Through the Ice by Justin Hoffman To some people it is always a sad occasion to put the boat to bed, and bid farewell to the open-water season, knowing that it's a long time till the robin's make their return. But for me, my smile remains intact, as ice fishing is just around the corner and that means one thing - JUMBO perch. Perch through the ice is one of life's great pleasures. For many seasoned ice anglers, it is a back to basics approach to fishing; standard and simple rigs, large schools of fish and delicious fillets for the dinner table. For the beginner, it means relatively easy fishing with the possibility of 50 or 100 fish days! By following these simple tactics and techniques, sticking to lakes that hold quality fish, and spending the time needed to find the fish, you will be on your way to bucket loads of perch and broad smiles. (And who knows, maybe you'll put the boat to bed with a smile on you face next time too.) Where are They Hiding? One key thing to remember when searching for perch is to keep moving. Perch gang up in big schools during the winter, and will spend the days cruising in search of food. If you can intercept one of these untouched schools, you can be sure of great fishing, as long as you give them what they want and are prepared to move with them. Your best bet to start, as soon as the ice is safe enough to venture on to, are the shallows. At the start of the hard-water season, the shallow water bite is on big time, and the fish seem almost suicidal. Your lure will hardly make it down the hole, before another hungry perch grabs your offering with almost reckless abandonment. Action like this can be hot for days or even a week, depending on how hard the shallow fish get pounded. One thing to keep in mind, is that ice fishing for perch is a popular sport, and the ice can become "crowded." If you can keep ahead of the next guy, and find an untouched school, you will reap the rewards. When only the best will do! Bug Shirts, Sleeping Bags & Canoe Packs! Check out the 2001 Lineup www.duenorth.net/outdoor Undoubtedly the time will come when the shallows will be devoid of perch. Fish will now be found in deeper, off-shore areas, yet can still be easy to find if you search for them. Begin by trying deeper water adjacent to shallow spawning areas. Another good bet is areas between islands or off of points. Perch will often be found throughout the entire water column, so it is often a good idea to experiment with depths. Unlike the walleye, which is usually found on bottom during the winter, perch will often suspend a foot below the bottom of the ice. The key here is to experiment and probe the depths, and make note how deep that first fish was caught. A productive way to find out where the fish are, in relation to the lake, is to talk to hut operators or local tackle shops. They will be more.. Continued on page 2
Volume 1, Issue 1 - Feb. 2001 - Page 2 Travel North West Nipissing Subury East Travel Guide - travelnorth.ca Ice fishing for perch con't.. than happy to give you the information, and this has often saved the day for myself. Another key is to look for the huts and crowds of anglers. Hut operators are in the business to make money, so you know their huts, and paying customers, will be in the vicinity of the fish. Finding these areas can definitely pay off big. Tactics The first thing to do, once you arrive on the ice, is to start drilling holes. Drill a half dozen holes in a zigzag pattern over an area that covers approximately 30 yards, and start fishing hole number one. Begin the day with a small spoon, ( tipped with a small shiner or maggot ), or a small tube jig. Try to work all areas of the water column, from a foot below the bottom of the ice, to inches off the bottom of the lake. What you are searching for with these faster-moving presentations are the active fish, which will show you the location of a school. If after five or ten minutes you still haven't connected, then move to the next hole to see what's down below. Once you've caught a few fish from a hole, it's time to slow down your presentation, and also set up a secondary line, which will be your tip-up. The best placement for your tip-up is approximately five to 15 yards from your primary jigging hole. This will be set up close enough to get to quickly, and will also be in the vicinity of the school you located. If the action starts to die down in the area that you're fishing, it's simply a matter of moving outwards until you connect with the "migrating" school. Three winters ago this scenario took place, and became one of my fondest fishing memories ever. I was fishing the famed Lake Simcoe in early February, with my two good friends, Scott Fleming and Jason Jones. The weather was glorious, and, in fact, enabled us to fish in just our t-shirts! After the first few holes were cut, we hit pay dirt. Jumbo after jumbo perch were flopping on the ice, and we really had our hands full. At times, all three of us had fish on at the same moment, not to mention our tip-ups being pulled down. However, as soon as the action started it would die down, and we would work our way outward to locate them once again. It didn't take more than a few holes, and we were knee-deep in fish again. At day's end our smiles told the tale; a bucket of tasty perch, sun-tanned faces and a whopper of a fish that evened the scales out at one-and-a-half-pounds! Who says ice fishing isn't fun? Equipment For jigging purposes, any good quality, light action rod will do the trick. These will usually be between 18 and 24 inches long and must have a sensitive tip. (This will be necessary in order to work the light-weight lures to their up most effectiveness.) A quality ice rod of this style can usually be found for less than $30. Match this with an ultra-light reel with a smooth drag, and spool it up with two to six-pound-test monofiliment. Use two-pound-test if you are using extremely small baits or if the fish are really finicky. If there is a healthy population of walleye in the lake, it may be best to use six-pound, just in case you hook one of these larger predators. I've found that four-pound-test has worked best for me, and is strong enough, yet also supple enough, for perch. Any of the standard tip-ups will do for perch fishing, as long as they are smooth and sensitive. Many people even use a simple willow-branch, with line attached to one end, out on the ice. Tip-ups are very inexpensive and can be made quite easily from a few pieces of wood. The most effective presentation to use with a tip-up is a spreader rig, which, quite simply put, is a heavy weight attached to your main line, and two or three single hooks spread out from your main line, one to three feet from the bottom. Attach a lively one to one-and-a-half-inch shiner or pinhead minnow through the back, just below the dorsal fin, and you're on your way. There is a myriad of lures for perch fishing out on the market, but my best advice is to purchase a half dozen or so, and see which ones work best out on the water. Some of my favourite lures that have produced for me in the past, are any of the spoons in the 1/32 oz. to 1/8th oz., such as the rocker minnow, walleye hawger or rat finkee. Tube jigs in bright or natural colours, in the above mentioned sizes, can also be dynamite, as can the swimming rapala jigs. Experiment with size, colour and tipping options, (shiners, maggots, meal or wax worms), and sooner or later you will ring the dinner bell. Sometimes the simplest presentation can be the key, and often times I've produced dozens of fish with a small hook and shiner, slowly jigged up and down. Let the fish dictate what they want, and do not be afraid to try new and different things, in order to limit out. - continued on page 3
Volume 1, Issue 1 - Feb. 2001 - Page 3 Ontario Cottage Sales ontariofishing.net/cottages.html Ice Fishing for Perch Cont. As you can see, ice fishing for perch is a wonderful way to spend a winter afternoon. By following through with these tactics and techniques, you'll be on your way to becoming a successful perch fisherman, and will start to appreciate that winter is not the end of the fishing season, and that putting the boat away, is just the beginning to a new angling experience. Have a great ice season and be safe out there. Justin Hoffman is a graduate of The North American School of Outdoor Writing and also a member of the Outdoor Writers Assoc. of America. He has been published in Ontario Out-Of-Doors, Canadian Sportfishing, and Just Fishing Newspaper, and works for a number of internet sites. Justin is available for freelance writing and photography assignments as well as lodge and product reviews. Ice Fishing Survival Tips by Laura Reave If you ask experts when the ice is safe, they will often say, "Never!" That is because ice thickness can vary by several inches even just a few feet away. Variables include water current under the ice, schools of fish that can cause warmer water to rise, vicinity to bridges and islands, and other factors. Given that, many people have still enjoyed ice fishing for years. How can you help ensure your survival while ice fishing? Here are a few basic tips: 1. Before you leave, tell someone where you are going and when you plan to return. Survival experts suggest that if you are not back by that time, the person should call for help. 2. Leave your car on shore. According to safety expert Tim Smalley, 68 percent of ice fatalities in Minnesota involved a vehicle. Ice must be much thicker and more stable to support the weight of a car or truck, or even a snowmobile. 3. Make sure there are at least 4 inches of clear, solid ice, with no open water or melting ice near shore. Open water and melting indicate unsafe ice. Carry an ice spud or chisel to check the thickness of the ice as you proceed. 4. Always go fishing with a companion. 5. Wear a lifejacket. 6. Carry two ice picks, hand spikes, or wooden screwdrivers tied together with cord so that you can pull yourself out if you do fall in. 7. Carry rope to help drag your buddy out if necessary. 8. Carry a cell phone to call for assistance. 9. Carry flares or an emergency signal marker so that you can be seen if you need to be rescued in a storm. Other storm survival equipment includes chemical hand warmers, flashlight and batteries, chemical light sticks, compass, reflective "space" blankets, portable camp stove with fuel, pocket knife or pocket tool, and matches or a lighter. Laura Reave, Ph.D., is a marketing consultant specializing in writing for the internet and search engine optimization. You can see some of her work at http://www.fcsurplus.ca "Remember that angling is an art, and an art worthy the knowledge and practice of a wise man." Izaak Walton
Volume 1, Issue 1 - Feb. 2001 - Page 4 Lincoln Motel Nipissing Snowmobiling Stopover nipissing.com/lincoln THE CASE OF THE SUBMERGED MINNO BUCKET. Jim Fogarty www.cdntrophyfishing.com On Wednesday January 17 my buddy Irv and I went up to Lake Simcoe to set up the huts and get ready for the ice fishing season. There is a real shortage of minnows and after a considerable length of time trying to get minnows we succeeded. Our huts are out about 6 miles from Beaverton so did not get there until about 9 A.M. At that point we put the minnows in the bucket and hung them down the hole while we cleaned and set up the huts. At approx. 11 A.M. we everything ready so we pulled up the bucket and put 4 minnows on the lines and sent the bucket back down the hole. In a few minutes a fish came along and stole my minnow so I went to pull the bucket and the handle broke and down it went to the bottom full of minnows. For the next 2 hours we spent trying to retrieve it and finally gave up. At this point I went for a walk to see if anyone had a few minnows that they could spare. I found a couple of guys who loaned us 24 minnows and I promised to return the favour. We started fishing again and for the afternoon we had 6 hits and caught 3 fish. All were whitefish. When I got home I proceeded to get some magnets ready, and some heavy line with large hooks to try and get the bucket back only for the supply of minnows. On Saturday January 20 I went back up with all the equipment prepared to do what was necessary to retrieve the bucket. When I got there I figured I might as well put a line down first while I got set up and maybe catch a fish. In a few minutes a fish came onto the screen and I took my line to see if I could catch it. All of a sudden I felt a heavy weight and guess what. YES I had hooked my bucket and brought it up full of minnows. You may think this is strange however this is only one of many items that we have retrieved. The list consists of two rod holders, a radio, a rod and reel, and now a full minnow bucket. I wonder what it will be next week. Joke of the Month... I'm sure you've heard this one before... but if ya havent! This guy goes ice fishing, takes out an auger and starts drilling. He hears this LOUD VOICE FROM ABOVE: There's no fish there. Guy goes to another spot and drills. LOUD VOICE FROM ABOVE: There's no fish there, either. Guy tries a third spot. LOUD VOICE FROM ABOVE: Nope. Not there either. Guy, getting a little nervous: Are you God? LOUD VOICE FROM ABOVE: No. I'm the ice rink manager. "If a man fishes hard, what's he going to do easy?" - Roy Blount, Jr.
Volume 1, Issue 1 - Feb. 2001 - Page 5 Classifieds 1978 STAMAS F/B GREAT LAKES TROLLER etinsley6@earthlink.net Boat is in fantastic shape-cared for like a baby.both engine and outdrive,were rebuilt and have less than 100 hrs. on them since that was done. Fully rigged for the lakes.with 5 electric down riggers,outriggers,boards,you can fish as many rods as you like.miregulations-three per person. Lots of proos rod holders-each rigger has three,plus the over head storage holders.she comes with a super custom tri-axle trailer with new tires, breaks and bearings. If you are interested in deep trolling, then this is a boat you have to check out. Email me for pictures, and more info. etinsley6@earthlink.net. or call 810-982-2576 Asking $23000US The Ontario Fishing Network has an international circulation and is published online 12 times annually. Present circulation is 650. Contributions, letters and photo's are are welcome. Stories, cartoons and columns appearing in this newsletter reflect the view of the artist or author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. Advertising rates available on request. Ontario Fishing Network P.O. Box 2288 Sturgeon Falls, Ontario P0H 2G0 (705) 753-2387 Fax (705) 753-6113 newsletter@ontariofishing.net 25' Starcraft with Trailer Mitch Makohoniuk at mmmak@pathcom.com For Sale 1975 Starcraft Aluminum (25')with a dual wheel trailer. Inboard 6 Clyinder Volvo Penta and outdrive. Comes with Marine radio, Down rigger, Rods, Life jackets, oars, anchor, etc.has a bathroom and kitchen.selling price $8500.00 or B.O. Become an Outdoor Writer! People who write for fishing magazines may have the best job on earth-- how can you beat getting paid to go on fishing trips to exotic locations? If you've ever wondered about pursuing a fulltime or part-time career as an outdoor writer, then a new Canadian correspondence school is just for you. The North American School Of Outdoor Writing, directed by awardwinning journalist and Real Outdoors 'columnist Roger Brunt, provides a comprehensive program that teaches how to create and sell stories about the outdoors. The curriculum, which takes from 12 to 18 months to complete, includes detailed instruction on identifying markets, crafting effective query letters, getting assignments, taking appropriate support photos, gathering material, interviewing techniques, book publishing and more! Call us: (604) 889-1032 linksnorth.com/outdoorwriting Looking to trade or sell my 1989 Larson Cuddy with a new 350 motor with maybe 2 hrs on it,comes with fish finder,electric compass,electric trolling motor, 2 electric Scotty downriggers, 2 downrigger poles,large salmon net, 4 life jackets, flares, 2 orrs, the boat sleeps to 3 to 4, has port-a-pottie, sink, ice box,and comes with a trailler. open to offers or what have you got to trade? windzor@efni.com Boat Wanted I am looking for a 12-15ft aluminum boat with up to a 15hp and trailer in good condition, looking to pay up to $2000.00 for it. Please call me and or e-mail me if you have something like this you want to unload. jpostiguy@hotmail.com Fly-fishing is the most fun you can have standing up. - Arnold Gingrich, 1969