First Encounter

Catching a beautiful northern pike through the ice will always be exciting, but experiencing it with my daughter for the first time brought it to another level. It has been incredibly rewarding introducing kids to ice fishing. Their reaction to this predator getting pulled from the hole is going to stay with me for a long time. 

Hells Bells

Our limit of 12 lines was set under the ice before the sun lifted over the trees. Despite only having a half day to fish, hopes were high as we drilled the first holes on this waterbody of the season. There was a layer of gray ice on top of a thinner layer of black ice; enough to feel comfortable, but an approaching storm bringing warm air and heavy rain meant a total reset was imminent.  

It’s funny how two anglers in the same area using the same thing can have completely different results, but that’s precisely how our day started. We had a mix of tip-ups and jigging rods spread over a familiar spot. They were baited with medium shiners that Buddy was able to secure on short notice. For the first two hours, my partner’s flags popped left and right resulting in more than a dozen yellow perch to my none. When one of Buddy’s perch came topside, it puked up dragon fly larvae and gave us a neat glimpse at what some of the fish were eating below.    

Out in deeper water, I hopped around and jigged the extra holes we drilled at first light. There weren’t many targets showing on my sonar, but I eventually coaxed a bluegill into eating a Hali jig. If not familiar, this little lure has a gold drop-chain hook and I tipped it with a piece of fish meat. The flash and action of the jig call fish in, but the freebie on the hook is what seals the deal. The dark bluegill was a modest first fish of my ice season, but I was happy to be on the board.  

The calmness was soon broken up by a jingling sound behind me. Bells clipped to a jigging rod bouncing violently set me in motion like a fire alarm. The drag on my reel had been loosened, but apparently not enough as the rod managed to free from its holder and inched closer to the hole in the ice. I grabbed the sliding rod and, all in one motion, cupped the spool and reared back to set the hook. 

By the weight on the other end, I knew straight away this wasn’t a panfish. I tightened the drag, yet left it loose enough to protect the light line for what turned into a lengthy back and forth. As the fish tired, it flashed under the hole a few times revealing the telltale markings of a northern pike. After a quick photograph it was sent back down to keep on growing. Still, it was a solid pike, especially on the rod and reel.

Once the excitement settled down, I set out for one last jigging mission. Every so often I picked my head up from staring at the fish finder to scan our spread. After one such check, I looked back down at the screen to see a large mark merge with the small mark of my jig. The hit and hookset were simultaneous and the rod immediately bowed over. It was on the lightest rod and reel combo on the ice that day and, while it was a smaller pike than the first, the battle was just as spirited. Thankfully the Hali’s tiny hook perfectly pierced the outer skin of the fish’s top jaw or else there was no chance of landing it. Catching those fish back-to-back further cemented just how much I enjoy fighting pike through the ice on jigging rods.

While my time was up, Buddy stayed through the afternoon and returned for a few hours the next day with another pike and more yellow perch to show for it. Unfortunately, after that, the integrity of the little ice we had came into question. The warmup and rain on Christmas Eve were the death blow for this spot and a handful of other places in Connecticut that had fishable ice. It was a tease by any definition, but I was grateful to have been on ice at all. As I type this in early January, I’m holding out hope for an extended cold spell and the semblance of a real hardwater season, yet the days are getting longer and sun is getting stronger so it had better happen soon!

Lost Winter

It may be hard for someone who does not ice fish to comprehend just how frustrating this winter has been for those of us who were chomping at the bit waiting for it. There are not many fishing seasons that get virtually skipped over certain years because of weather, but hardwater is one of them and it's happening again this winter. I am thankful for things that I can blindly count on throughout the year, such as striped bass chasing river herring or trout rising to may flies, but targeting northern pike and walleye through the ice in Connecticut is not one of them.

October's mega snow storm had me excited for another impressive showing by Mother Nature this winter and perhaps an early start to our ice season. Instead the last few months have been a constant tug of war between warm and cold, with one never outright beating the other. Our local ice fishing options have been severely limited since. Many of my favorite bodies of water were good to go for a few days or right on the cusp before rain and warm temps rendered them shady at best.   

This ice was FUBAR.

So things have been rather depressing lately for hardcore ice anglers. There are a handful of shallow lakes in high elevations that I can burn $30 worth of gas driving to, and I have done just that a half dozen times already, but most of our bigger lakes don't stand a chance now. The days are growing longer and the sun is getting stronger. The deep freeze this weekend will help, but next week brings more mild temperatures and rain. That's the hand we've been dealt.    

But it is not only the ice anglers who are missing out. How about all the small businesses that are sitting on bait and hardwater inventory? Expect some ice fishing sales coming soon. For me the breaking point was the 60-degree day on February 1. To add insult to injury, just two days later a chubby rodent in Pennsylvania claimed there will be six more weeks of winter. I'm not buying what you're selling, Phil!

This ice was better.

And this was safer than it looks...

It's not just Connecticut anglers experiencing this winter hiatus; it's the same story all over New England. Our neighbors in Rhode Island haven't had a decent patch of safe ice all season. The anglers to our north have fared a little better in regards to ice opportunities, but it's no picnic up there either. The annual ice fishing derby that I fish on Maine's Sebago Lake every February was canceled and there are currently white caps where there should be two feet of ice.

Like anything else, it's what you make of it. If the ice doesn't come to you, you have to go it. Plenty of dyed-in-the-wool ice fishermen are heading north and west to find quality frozen waters. Lots of my fishing buddies have been hoofing it to the Berkshires or Adirondacks. I have a trip to Maine in the works for the first weekend of March to fish the annual Statewide Derby with old friends. There is a $100,000 bounty on the 54-year-old state record lake trout, but it will take an old togue of nearly 32-pounds to best it! 

Nevertheless, a short season of plan B ice outings is still beats not getting on the ice at all. I turned down some prime winter fly fishing for trout last weekend to catch a handful of eight-inch smelt through the ice. But, hey, I I was ice fishing, and pretty soon it will be another nine months before I can do that again; maybe. 

Photo credit: Aaron Swanson

Photo credit: Aaron Swanson