A Beginners Guide To Buying Ice Fishing Gear
Going fishing on a frozen body of water is Winter activity that can be done as a family. The cost is minimal to get started and with just a little bit of knowledge, a Greenhorn can be expected to have success their first trip on the lake.
But what’s required to begin ice fishing? One has a variety of choices in fishing reels on store shelves, a person can easily lay out hundreds of their hard earned money on ice fishing supplies and never get what they really need.
So I’ve put together this list of the basic ice fishing equipment that you will need to get out on the ice. What’s even better is that for less than what a Family of for can eat out at a steak house these days, you could get all the fishing gear that the Fisherman will need to begin drilling holes in the ice for those tasty fish.
To begin with, you’ll want to find an auger meant for ice fishing to make holes in the hard water. If it was me, I’d get a 5 or 6 inch auger meant for ice fishing for panfish. If you want to go after bigger fish like Bass, Pike and Walleye, then I recommend a 8 or 10 inch ice auger. You can get the power augers or the manual augers. You need to keep in mind that the manual augers are not as expensive as the power augers but require more work to make a hole in the ice. You’ll also need a scoop to get the ice chips out of the hole you’re fishing.
Next on the list are tip ups and ice rods. Many fishermen bore a bunch of holes over weed beds and other structure and use tip ups to increase their chances of catching fish. Not surprsingly a lot of fishermen prefer to ice fish with a short rod. If it was me,I’d get a few tip ups along with a good rod so you can see which technique you prefer.
Line for ice fishing should be designed for fishing through the ice. The ice cold water can make the line so stiff that it breaks easily. That is why you will want to be certain and buy fishing line specifically designed for ice fishing. Cortland makes a product called Ice Line that is great. Ice fishing line is the most important part of your ice fishing supplies.
Be sure to get some jigs and lures designed for ice fishing. Small jigs are great for panfish like Perch, Bluegill and Crappie. Also tear drop jigs and tiny spoons will come in handy when the panfish get finicky. As for bait, panfish love mealworms and spikes while larger fish such as Walleye prefer Worms or baitfish like smelt. Talk to the people at your local bait store to see what’s preferred on the waters you’ll be fishing.
It would be wise to get something to sit on. Most seasoned ice fishermen make use of an ordinary five gallon bucket. A select few will bring along lawn chairs out on the ice, but a 5 gallon bucket will also help you haul your gear to and from your hot spot.
That’s all you need to to start ice fishing. Be sure to buy a fishing license and read up on the regulations for the area you plan on fishing. Running afoul of the law for breaking a law can ruin any trip. Now get out there and have some fun. And most of all, be safe and follow all the safety rules for ice fishing.
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