Wheelhouses - Off the Beaten Path

If you own a mobile semi-permanent ice shelter of any kind, this winter you’ll likely face a familiar conundrum each time you setup on your favorite lake.  Where to put it?  Or, from another perspective, how far off the beaten path dare I go?  It’s a tough question with a variety of solutions, and sometimes none, depending on the ice conditions, snow depth, tow vehicle, and a host of other considerations. 

Ask a resort owner, plow truck driver, or avid ice angler about traffic patterns on their favorite water body, and they’ll give you similar answers.  People and pressure follow a predictable path.  First from the public accesses on early ice and popular resorts if they exist where you fish, out to the shallow shoreline breaks and eventually further and further to off-shore structure more mid-lake.  Community holes setup in familiar locations year-over-year, until fishing gets tougher in them, which is when people start fishing edges and get a bit more spread out again.  Hot bites pop-up here and there, villages relocate, only to be broken up and move again the following weekend.

As anglers, I think we’re programmed to a “grass is greener” mentality, which is often true when it comes to the fishing, yet rarely goes unpunished by the lake gods.  Just this weekend I was on Upper Red Lake, lamenting lake traffic that eventually started moving right past my wheelhouse in greater and greater frequency.  I’ve written about truck traffic before, and the effect I’ve observed on underwater cameras with real fish before.  Now put that on 10 FOW with thousands of trucks and wheelhouses, and the effect is multiplied.

After a reasonable evening fish, I decided to head to some open ice, much to the dismay of my quite comfortable family.  Thank goodness for good friends who nearly got stuck themselves yanking me out of a snow-drift.  Yet, I feel quite strongly that had I made the corner, we would’ve been more successful a quarter-mile away from the nearest shelter, rather than just 100 yards.  Super slick ice underneath only moderate snow was the culprit this time, and despite shovels and straps, I was stuck nonetheless.  New tire chains are on their way as we speak. 

It’s important to note that most larger wheelhouse wheelbases travel outside of your tow vehicle’s, meaning you’re dragging that trailer through new snow you haven’t packed down yet.  High-centering on packed snow then is the real killer, even if you’ve built up speed, making it imperative that you’ve got your trailer tongue height set appropriately to minimize un-evenness or spots where the trailer will catch on the snow.  You’ll still likely need a good shovel or two, a tow-strap, maybe even chains, but smart trailer setup will make travel both on road and off that much easier.

So will using your truck’s equipment and features to the best of its potential.  Good tires are worth their weight in gold, and there’s plenty of space on the internet devoted to opinions on which are best.  That said, out on the open ice, good tires won’t help you if you’re not using your 4WD, with any automatic traction control “off,” and differential lock “on” if you have it.  When stuck, switching to a 4WDL for “LOW” can benefit you by keeping the wheels from immediately spinning fast on slick ice too. 

Speed is your friend but also your enemy.  You need it to maintain momentum and carry you through tight spots, but even if you get through a big drift with your truck, the trailer usually gets hung up on it.  Which means you’re usually not just stuck, but you’re really stuck.  So, reading the snow and ice then is of primary importance, such that you never hit that big drift.  Good sunglasses and traveling during good light out on the open ice is imperative for getting off-trail without getting stuck.      

Driving patterns are important too.  Just like it’s easier to pull a logging chain straight through the brush than around a corner, your wheelhouse wants to go straight too.  Most times when you do get stuck, it’s when executing a turn.  Turns are inevitable, though you can make them gradually.  When I find a patch of open ice I want to settle on, I start a slight, tear-drop shaped driving pattern where I use the truck and wheelhouse to pack-down the snow for a few passes in what gradually becomes a really large circle.  I settle on the backside of the curve, after I’ve made the turn and have straightened out.  That ensures when I go to pull out the wheelhouse, I won’t have to make a sharp corner, and that freshly broken snow resets and gets harder for the next day. 

Eventually, snow depth limits lake travel to main roads and that’s when it gets dicey as a wheelhouse owner.  That’s where people crowd onto roads and bad decisions get made.  At this point in the season, it’s worth knowing a buddy with a plow, owning one yourself, or paying a resort to plow you in and out.  Not only are you more likely to have a decent spot to yourself, but you’ve also got some help on reserve if you need it.  You’ll have to be flexible with their schedule, and certainly pay them well for their efforts, but I’ve found it to be worth it when snow depths prohibit off-trail travel.

Be smart out there.  Come prepared with a tool kit when you can, and travel in groups if possible.  Many hands make for light work when you’re stuck and expect it to happen now and again.  Learning how to get unstuck is part of the process, and it’s nice to both get help and give it.  If you see someone buried without help, and you can lend a hand without getting stuck yourself, it’s usually worth it from my experience.  After this past weekend of taking more from the jar than putting back in, I owe it to more than a few of you.  See you on the ice.      

Early Ice - First Break Walleyes

It’s been a few years, but I’ve always been a big fan of full-moon fall trolling on the big lakes.  What thermocline may have kept bait and ‘eyes out deeper all summer, gave way to incredible shallow water fishing come late October and November.  What surprised me however, was just how many anglers had that full-moon fever bite going, and never re-connected with it come first ice.  Those same fish didn’t make vast moves or change their feeding patterns too much.  They were just under a few inches of ice now.

It’s that same mentality you need to take with you to the lake come first ice walleyes, especially from a location perspective.  You’ll have plenty of time to pound off-shore reefs, deep mud, gravel bars, and rock piles.  Early ice is the time for fishing right off of shore, just below or on the “first break.”  By that, I mean simply that you should look for the first appreciable steep drop from shore, which could bottom out anywhere from 5 to 15 FOW.  First ice walleyes love to cruise the bottom of these edges in search of food, and when you’ve got some weed cover, substrate change, or other features to target, the spot is all that much better.

Large, main-lake points are favorites no matter where you go, to focus feeding attention of hungry ‘eyes.  They’re also angler magnets, so if you’re fishing pressured bodies of water, understand that you don’t always need to be on a prominent piece of structure to get it done.  More and more, I’m looking for small areas of interest.  A living-room sized patch of rock that doesn’t show up on the contour map, a quality weed-bed that’s more dense than the surrounding area, or even some hard-pan sand vs. nearby mud or muck.  Often, that’s all it takes to gather some near-shore walleyes once the lakes freeze over. 

Where most anglers miss out on the shallow water walleye bite, is that they fish it the way they would mid-winter walleyes in deeper parts of the lake.  They ice troll across the shallow flats, scaring the very fish they seek.  With fall trolling, we learned that there were nights where hundreds of feet of line behind the boat was what it took to get bit.  The same walleyes that don’t love hanging tight in your main-motor wash, don’t appreciate lots of hole drilling and overhead traffic.

For that reason, it’s best to have a few dead-set approaches.  While there are a few ways to skin that walleye, the two I employ are tip-ups and deadstick rods.  Tip-ups for early ice eyes are a mainstay and have been around for forever, so there’s not much new under the sun here.  Select some quality fluorocarbon line in or around 10lb test, select a good light wire live-bait hook, and rig up a small sucker or preferably shiner pegged with a sinker above the hook a few inches.  Put that sinker closer to the bait if a lively sucker, or further for less lively minnow species.  Set your tip-up on a very “light-trip” setting, preferably not under the notch unless needed for wind’s-sake.  Then you wait.

Tip-ups are great, but do have their problems.  Namely, fighting a fish hand-over-hand, especially if it’s a trophy.  Dead-stick rods on simple rod-holders have been a great solution to that problem and more, while offering several advantages over the standard tip-up scenario.  Why a specialized rod for this type of fishing?  Mostly because a dead-stick is unlike any other ice rod.  The action is extremely slow for half or better of the length of the rod, offering bite-detection and minnow-monitoring convenience.  Then, a hard-wall on the blank that goes straight to very stiff backbone – perfect for setting the hook. 

While dead-stick rods may tangle, any issues are usually seen quickly and above ice, rather than the below-water snarls that can happen on a tip-up without you knowing about it.  More importantly, a quality dead-stick will telegraph every movement of the minnow, all while offering you immediate clues both during and after the bite.  Set the rod in the holder, and watch your bait or several baits to to work.   

Sometimes the fish will grab the bait and sit right below the hole, which is easily seen on a deadstick as it very slowly loads.  That’s far less visible and harder to manage a hookset when that happens on a tip-up.  I highly recommend bait-feeder reel designs for these rods, as with the flip of a switch, free-spool is offered to running walleyes.  These quick runs are easy to detect for either tip-ups or dead-sticks, but the hookset and fight are usually superior on a dead-stick-setup.

Usually, I’ll either jig on the deeper side of the break and watch a deadstick rod right on it, or many times, simply put out the max number of lines I’m allowed in dead-sticks and wait.  As with most things walleye, the bite is best early and late, but cloudy days can make for spurts of great fishing throughout.  It’s a really fun way to fish if you’ve got a group of friends, as you can cover a long section of break, all while enjoying each other’s company until a rod goes off. 

Just make sure to tend the set, just as you would a tip-up.  Extreme cold weather doesn’t bode well for this type of fishing, but the good news is that first ice is typically pretty mild after that first blast of cold that locks everything up.  Check your baits, make sure the hole isn’t icing up too badly, and more than anything, resist the urge to drill too many holes and stomp around throughout the day.  These fish are sensitive to noise, as you may only be targeting them in 5-8FOW. 

Especially when your panfish lakes aren’t locked up well, or you’ve got good walkable ice near-shore but not the whole way out, this is the way to go.  Setup a few hours before dark, stake out your spot, and wait until some rods start bending or flags start flying.    

Early Ice Panfish Prowling

To a true ice-head, getting to groups of un-harassed panfish before the masses do, is of prime importance.  So often, early ice community holes have become shells of their former selves by the time the rest of the hoarde gets there.  For good reason.  Especially with panfish in shallower settings, traffic brings noise, and perhaps more problematically, buckets that haul panfish home with their owners.  Which, for most early ice crappie and bluegill anglers means, you’d better be the one who finds the bite rather than someone who latches onto it too late and after it’s already waning.

Ice thickness and resulting safety measures are really the one rule we must all play by.  3-4”es of freshly formed, “black” or clear ice that’s free of slush, re-freeze, or defect is what we all want.  Note that this may mean you only have 1-2”es in portions of the lake with springs, ducks and geese, or where timber may protrude up and out of the water-body.  It’s why you’ll need to get good with a chisel by measuring how many good hard chisel strikes it takes to bust through 4”es.  A small plastic or steel bump board and an ice auger are great for measuring ice.  Drill a hole, stick the lip of the bump board under the ice and note ACTUAL thickness, not estimated.  Then, get good with figuring out your chisel and feel free to estimate.  It’s like sighting in a rifle where you calibrate on target to ensure success when in the woods.  Don’t skip this step.

After ensuring the water is safe to walk on, the first big question is really “where?”  Hopefully you’ve been doing some fall scouting to help you at this query, as so very often, the fish haven’t moved or at least haven’t moved far.  Side imaging has made it very easy to locate schools of panfish late season.  Sometimes in shallow remaining weeds, while other times suspended down over 50 feet of water.  Much depends on the lake you’re fishing, the predator prey relationships, and what weed cover is available to the different species you’re targeting.

For shallower weedy systems, you’ll need to find the “good” weeds and best groups of them in the lake.  Underwater camera scouting is really important here, with the target being cover, not fish.  You’re looking for bright green, standing beds of cabbage in lakes north, or coontail so often in lakes that don’t have cabbage.  Even when these weed species are not present, you’ll want to note specific features in the weeds themselves.  That can be pockets of weeds in front of dock or cabin areas, or it can be weed edge features.  Pockets are hardest to find, while lakes with a good defined weedline can have very predictable twists and turns.

Start by looking at a high resolution contour map of the lake, if available.  Small bumps, blips, and twists in contours often can be mapping or map-line interpolation errors.  These can be places where an anomalous depth reading cause the underwater topo-line to zig, instead of zag.  More often, and as lake mapping gets better, they often reveal something larger in nature related to bottom content.  A small jog out to sea, then back towards shore can mean a short sand or hard-bottom underwater point.  A small circular sliver just off of an edge can mean a bit of rubble.  Conversely, a dip in depth along a weed-edge can mean an inside turn.  Of all weed edge features, these are my favorite, as they provide a “pocket” for fish to seek refuge and cover. 

When shielded on three sides by a wall of weeds, it’s much easier for first-ice gills and crappies to see roaming bass and pike that are looking to pick them off.  It’s the same reason that pike and bass use the points, as it gives them a predatory advantage to ambush prey coming around a corner unseen.  That’s not to say panfish don’t use these points, but so often they’re found on either side or at the base of it, rather than right off the tip.

On other lakes, early ice crappies are the target, and they’ve been suspended in their ice haunts for weeks or months.  Small tear-drop shaped, deep, and attached sub-lakes can hold some great early ice crappies.  I see this so often in large panfish lakes, where a small waterway connects another separate lake or a deep bay.  I target these specifically during early ice, as they tend to get hit hard in the coming weeks.  The best fishing in them is usually right away.

From there, it’s out to main-lake basins, and just like the inside turns of weedlines draw fish, they do the same in deeper-water mud spots.  If a basin in 30-60FOW is rather circular, focus on a slightly shallower irregularity up against it.  Rarely are they a perfect circle, and usually you’ve got one part of it that necks-down, comes tight to some shallower structure or cover, or has a small jog to it.  These irregularities to the basin are great places to start drilling and finding.

Notice I haven’t said anything about fishing yet?  So much of early ice is about finding, such that once you do have a place to start, expect the fishing to be pretty good.  Fish loud and proud.  For both crappies and bluegills I’m typically using spoons first ice for max attraction and speed fishing.  I’m hitting lots of spots and expecting fish to generally be in a good mood to eat. 

That said, I have experienced with bluegills especially that first ice doesn’t always mean a flurry of activity.  Especially in ultra-clear systems, over the past few years I’ve observed some abnormally tough bluegill bites with 3-4”es of clear ice.  Not all systems are the same, and note that these lakes usually pick up with some snow cover on the ice, or thicker ice in general.  Too much light penetration in certain water-bodies can be too much of a good thing.  In bog-stained, tannic water, I tend to find the opposite.

Don’t hesitate to bring a one-person hub or flip-over shelter either.  They’re great for keeping wind off your line and keeping that light from penetrating too far into the water on clear first-ice.  A little shelter can keep you fishing longer too, and that’s important when on certain lakes the bite can be more related to timing than anything else.

No matter where you fish first ice or for which panfish species, expect some active fish.  Fish quickly and expect there to be a bite somewhere, abandoning lakes when you’re not finding what you want in favor of another system and some cooperative fish.  Use a chisel.  Bring a friend, a throw-rope, and some ice picks.  Consider safety a top priority, and focus on finding fish first.  Only then should you start to try and catch them. 

The Covid Effect on Early Ice Prep

Covid19 has fundamentally changed our fishing and hunting seasons, for 2020 and likely years to come.  From increased participation, to the trials and rigors that go with heavy use of the resource, the early spring “shutdown” has lasting effects that are being felt as ripples throughout our outdoors experience.  It should be no surprise then that it’s changing how you’ll likely need to prepare for your ice fishing season.

Ice season comes after deer camp has been packed up and meat is in the freezer right?  Perhaps not this year.  Anglers are already seeing ice-gear at outdoor sporting goods stores, and that’s a function of the summer sell-thru happening from coast to coast.  CEOs and inventory specialists from a broad range of fishing manufacturers had a several month “gap” in their production, meaning that loss of supply is now being felt up and down the chain.  It’s hard to find rods and reels, certain brands of lures, line, and a number of fishing related accessories.

The net result has been an early stocking of ice equipment that’s being sold through earlier and more often than ever before.  In talking with friends in the industry, some store sets went up at the end of August where summer product was scarce.  All of which has led to increased buying for ice on account of availability.  That’s triggered re-orders of supply from manufacturers, an unheard of concept when we’re talking September and October.  Typically, this may happen only in December or January, and even then on only the most in-demand products.

When it comes to ice gear, the concern is that so much is forecasted and manufactured to that spec for the coming season, and once it runs out, there’s no more coming for another year.  In a season with so many new anglers to the sport, along with an early stocking, it’s a perfect storm for lack of availability.  This can be a problem in normal ice seasons, but my prediction is that we’ll see a run on your favorite items this year like never before.

Consumer ice shows may not happen this season, with more than 50% of them currently cancelled throughout the Midwest at the time of this article.  That doesn’t mean retailers won’t be selling, but more on that later.  So many anglers wait until show season so they can put their hands on whatever item they may be interested in, compare it to like products on the market, and do some price shopping at shows which typically discount.  Yet, without slashed prices at such shows, and an incredible demand for new product, it’ll likely be tough to find a good sale on many pieces of equipment.  Bottom line, if you need it, purchase early and don’t get too greedy on the price.  If you can live without it, chances are this might be the season to sit it out and live with what you already own.

A digital marketing study showed that 47% of Americans will be doing the vast majority of their holiday shopping online, jumping by double the amount of folks that will likely never visit a brick and mortar location unless they have to.  That same sentiment can be seen in online fishing sales throughout the summer anecdotally, and will likely be the same case for ice gear.  Once in-person ice shows will turn into online shows, with information, seminars, slight sales, and maybe some breaks on shipping.  If you’re not comfortable with this method of shopping, there will still be plenty of retail locations open with gear too, you’ll just need to get there earlier than you’re used to and do some shopping around town if looking for very specific items.

All of which, isn’t a problem at all provided you’re prepared.  If there was ever a year to dig out the ice gear a little early, this would be it.  Go through the big ticket items first and foremost.  Check your shelter to see what items or accessories need replacing, and if mice chewed holes through the fabric.  Go through your auger, and if gas, make sure it has a tuneup long before ice.  If electric, just like the rest of your ice electronics, charge batteries and do some initial testing.  Electric is great, but without power you’re dead on the ice, so check to make sure you’re good to go before fishing.

Speaking of electric, there’s some great new Lithium and LiFePo4 power options out there, and we’re lucky to be living in the age of lightweight, high performance gear.  Consider the switch from sealed lead-acid (SLA) batteries this season, as I know it’s made use and even maintenance a snap as I’ve slowly been converting over everything.  A 12V10AH LiFePo4 battery should be on every ice anglers list, and can easily replace your standard battery.  You know, the one you haven’t messed with in years?  That’s likely the one that’ll fail you this year, and it’s nice to shave the weight of the battery by half or more.

From here, go through rods and reels, then tackle.  Inventory and evaluate honestly, paying particular attention to staples.  I’d rather experiment with new colors on a proven bait, than too many new baits I’m unfamiliar with.  Confidence is earned, not purchased, and it’ll take time for brand new lures to keep getting secured to your hook keeper, rather than cut off and placed back in the box.

When it comes to ice apparel, it’s a bad idea to own a floating suit if you don’t already.  The ones these days are custom made for ice, and ergonomically designed for angling first and foremost.  No longer are they experimental lifejackets tucked into loose windbreakers, with all kinds of great designs for anglers.

No matter your needs for ice, from just a few new jigs, to getting fully equipped for all the new iceheads out there.  It pays to start doing your shopping and price checking immediately, as your options this season will likely be more limited, more quickly, than ever before.

Ice Prep - Battery Checking Season

The evolution of modern ice equipment has been rapid, to say the least.  Mere years ago, electric options for ice augers were in their infancy, with gas-powered versions dominating the icescape as they had done for decades and decades before.  Standard SLA (Sealed Lead Acid) batteries based again on decades-old technology were heavy and the default for any ice-electronics purchase or replacement.  In my youth, the best lighting option for fishing after dark was a white-gas powered lantern.  Now, portable shelters have dimmable LED lighting accessories that draw very little juice, and are powered by far more capable batteries than the SLA’s of old.  Point-being, as ice anglers, we use more electric power than ever before, for things that were never electric to begin with.

All of which means that the success or failure of any given fishing trip comes down to a battery.  Or more likely, multiple batteries.  Can’t fish without a hole in the ice.  Can’t (or won’t) drop a lure without underwater eyes in the form of a flasher or camera.  Can’t fish after dark in the pitch black either.  So you’ve got some work to do as an angler in getting ready this season that maybe wasn’t as pressing in year’s past, given so much of our gear has gone electric.  Especially if you’re running older SLA batteries, this might be the year to go Lithium, but more on that later.

First and foremost, if your deer hunting is winding down, it’s time to get going.  I’ve detailed in these pages before what a record supply shortage will do for product availability this season, coupled with the fact that there will likely be the largest freshman class of anglers stepping on ice this season that we’ve ever seen.  Sales forecasts developed a year ago had never heard of Covid-19, and there’s probably not more product coming for all but the most nimble of manufacturers.  Interpretation: if you need it, better get it sooner than later.

Pull out your electric auger first, as likely the batteries inside of it are specialized.  If there’s a battery indicator on it, check and see where you’re at, assuming you topped it off before storage, and maybe even gave it a charge or two over the long summer?  Even if no indicator, put a full charge to the battery and attach it to the auger.  Spin it a few times, revving to full speed, while ensuring it’s not dead-on-arrival.  While Lithium technology is much more rock-solid than SLA, you can drop a battery, damage the leads, or otherwise still destroy them if you’re especially rough on things.

Consider ordering a spare auger battery.  It likely won’t be cheap, but it’s nice to have if you’re a hole-hopper anyway.  Lithium batteries hit a wall once drained vs. their old standard counterparts which would slowly lose power, letting you know it was time to hold off or get another battery.  With Lithium, it just stops, and the battery is done.  Now that could come mid-hole, or just before you’ve drilled out the perfect tip to an underwater point you want to attack, so having an extra battery is more than a trip-saver, it’s a tactical advantage.

Now on to your ice electronics.  In talking with flasher manufacturers over the years, the one constant in customer service is battery issues.  As many as 90% of the issues they handle at the outset of a season are completely and totally related to battery failure.  So If your flasher will not turn on, or exhibits any of the following symptoms, a bad battery is the most likely culprit:

·         Unit turns on, but there are no lights

·         Unit turns on, but only works for a short time or screen flickers

·         Unit will not mark bottom, with transducer clicking - (When doing pre-season preparation, the bottom is your floor and reads only when the gain is turned high enough. When conducting this check, be sure that your transducer is a few feet or more off the ground, and hanging straight down.)

The next step in battery inspection is to ensure that your positive and negative wire leads remain attached securely to the battery and are not starting to bend or break.  Then, fully run your battery down and re-charge it.  If your flasher battery sat unused over a few seasons, it’s probably lost some performance hours.  So even if you charge it to what looks like full capacity, it won’t hold a charge as long as it used to, and could shut down out there on the ice.

Once you know it’s time to replace a battery, you have two main choices to make: Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) batteries or Lithium LiFePO4.  SLA batteries can last 3-5 years, run a bit more than 5lbs each, give you all-day power to an average ice sonar system, and have a lifespan of around 200 charge cycles.  All for around $20 to $40.  Lithium LiFePO4 batteries last 10+ years, are half the weight, give you 2+ days of power for most ice flashers, and don’t start to degrade until after 2,000 charge cycles.  All for around $100 with the all-important specialized Lithium charger, as you can’t charge Lithium batteries of any kind effectively with an old SLA charger.  

If you run the numbers, I’ll put it as strongly as saying there’s not much to decide, Lithium LiFePO4 technology is cheaper to run over the long haul.  Most ice electronics manufacturers are realizing this too, and not even offering SLA batteries for sale.  Basically, it comes down to paying now, or paying more laterou can pay now or pay more later.  Why not enjoy half the weight, longer run-times, and a stress-free battery that you don’t have to replace until a decade or longer from now?

Even if your SLA battery is fine for now, or you have a lithium battery in the lineup, consider buying a replacement battery now.  Just like with your ice auger, it’s the cheapest insurance you can have for not ruining a great day on the ice.  Add up your fuel, bait, food, and other gear, and consider that this is only a one-time expense.  I started to like running Lithium because it was roughly half the weight, but the other benefits are great too.  Being in far-away fish camps with little power or no access to it makes you far more confident in your gear towards the end of day two.  Not to mention, the charging process is faster in these batteries as well, making the whole experience more enjoyable. 

No matter what you power your ice gear with, go through it early and give it a check.  Consider a replacement before it ruins a fishing trip, and be mindful that especially this year, mid-season gear may be harder to track down than ever before.