OT: Ice fishing

Oooh! Ooooh! I am! :wave:

I'll probably be starting at Loon Lake between Christmas and New Year's. (There's already 4 inches of good ice there.)

I bit the bullet last year and bought a Frabill cabin style shelter. I usually go with a buddy, set out a bunch of tip ups and jig for panfish and have a few Genny's within the comfort of my heated shelter.

Last year I mainly went to Loon, Conesus, and one bitter cold day at Hemlock (caught over 100 smelt that day!).

I'm looking to log some time on the ice if the weather cooperates this year.
 
Never done it before. Ever go anywhere in Rochester. I live in Webster and i wanted to know where to get pike and walleye?
 
You can get pike in Sodus bay. Not sure about Irondoquoit bat.

There's perch, pike, and bluegills in Conesus Lake. You can access the north end via Vitale park right on 15/20A in Lakeville.

For walleye, give Honeoye Lake a try. I've caught a few eyes out of that lake.

If you haven't yet, check out the forums at Iceshanty.com. Lots of great guys over there. I lurk and occasionally post under the same username.

If you're interested, I'll shoot you a PM when I plan on hitting Conesus. Loon may be a bit south for you to drive. (It's about 25 minutes south of me!)
 
I use to go all the time but hant been out in years. I use to go to Silver Lake mostly never been to Conesus. Maybe will hae to get together and give it a try sometime. Im only 30 min from Lakeville



Tim
 
My FIL took me and two of my boys out on Irondequoit Bay last year at the end of the season. The boys caught a ton of perch...seemed like dozens. It was pretty neat just being out on the ice...the bay seems really wide when you have to walk to the middle of it.
 
There are a bunch of little ponds near durand thay have some kick *** ice fishing put a few tip ups out for the big fish then grab a box of mousies and jig for blue gil all day good spot
 
I've always wanted to go ice fishing, but never have. This winter I'll start. If any of you guys want to take a newbie out let me know. I'll bring the beer.
 
I've never went before but always wanted to give it a try. The cold doesn't bother me at all (I used to work outside in the winter for 8 hours a day at a ski resort). I live near Irondequoit Bay and there are always a bunch of huts out there on the weekend. It sure does sound like fun.
 
Sunday I went down to Mayville to fish Chautauqua. The ice was about 6 inches thick under snow and slush in about 6 feet of water. My blades on the auger need to be replace so I gave up on trying to drill a hole when i saw someone else packing up to head out. I took over their 2 holes but I was too busy catching fish that I didn't get a chance to use the second. The first perch was caught within the first 15 seconds of dropping my jig in the hole. I arrived there about 1pm and the fish didn't stop biting until about 430. Most of the fish were small, 18 were were large enough to keep. None were of any size to brag about but I caught easily at least 150 fish. Everyone that I spoke to out there was having the same luck.
 
i wish I had my 11 year old daughter with me, it would have been a perfect day to try to get kids interested.
 
How much did it cost you guys to get into ice fishing? I don't want to spend a lot of money and end up not liking it.
 
the cost of a case of beer and a fishing license is the initial investment. Usually everyone that ice fishes has extra equipment for example jigging rods, tip ups. To start out it can be really cheap, jigging rods and tipups are pretty affordable but of course better equipment does cost more.
 
+1 on what greg said.

If you have a tackle box chances are youll have what you need to try it out. Just go out and buy a small ice fishing rod and reel. Take a 5g bucket out with you to sit on and see if you cant find someone to drill you a hole or two. Or fish a hole thats already there. A hut is nice, but kind of an investment if you turn out not liking it. Chances are though, if you like regular fishing, youll feel the same about ice fishing, as long as you dont freeze your *** off. Maybe you might want to invest in a cheap hut and a heater anyway.
 
gotcha. The cold doesn't bother me, so that is good. I worked at a ski resort for 5 years standing outside for 8 hours a day.
 
NirvanaFan said:
How much did it cost you guys to get into ice fishing? I don't want to spend a lot of money and end up not liking it.
Click to expand...

I'm a displaced Minnesota boy; ice fishing has a bunch of meanings for me, one of which involves days spent on the ice in large luxury houses that have bunks, bathrooms, carpet, everything including the kitchen sink. When I was in Idaho and wanted to fish a small put and take trout lake I used a modified northern Native Am technique. I picked up a spool of 4# mono, some small hooks, and split shot; I cut willow branches and used small nails so i could wrap them with a wee bit of line, a couple half-hitches keeps the line in place down the branch, and for a float I used pieces of packing peanuts. The locals with their exceptionally heavy gear for 9" trout thought I was nuts, even when I was tossing them all fish from the holes they left. Keep it simple, go lite, a ice chisel cost about $30, but you can easily get by fishing old holes opened with an ax or maul. Watch who is catching fish and chew their ear off about what they are doing, most go out with plenty of bait and jigs to spare, and anyone with a guide spirit like mine will gladly toss you a little something to help you out.
 
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