Ice fishing: safety, gear and target fish

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What you need

• Ice auger or ice chisel to drill holes and check the thickness
• Tape measure to check the ice
• Ice picks around your neck, ready to grab
• Life jacket or float suit, plus a rope
• Short ice rod with a small reel and light line
• Small lures: jigging spoons, balance jigs or small jigs, tipped with a minnow head, waxworm or maggot
• Ice scoop to keep the hole open
• Warm, waterproof layers, ice cleats for your boots, a bucket or sled to sit on
• Phone in a waterproof case; call 911 in an emergency

Step by step

1. Only step on ice that will hold you. The Minnesota DNR recommends at least 4 inches of new, clear ice for ice fishing on foot and says to keep off anything thinner.
2. Double those guidelines for white ice, which is weaker than clear ice. The DNR says ice is never 100% safe.
3. Ask local experts such as bait shops or resorts about known hazards, and check whether ice fishing is allowed on your water.
4. Never go alone and tell someone where you are fishing. Wear buoyant gear and keep ice picks within reach.
5. Avoid pressure ridges, areas with current, inlets and outlets, and dark spots. Ice thickness varies, so check it as you go.
6. If the ice cracks, lie down flat to spread your weight and crawl back the way you came.
7. Drill your holes along drop-offs, weed edges or humps and lower the lure to just above the bottom.
8. Jig the lure briefly, then let it sit still. Many bites come during the pause, often just a slight twitch of the rod tip.
9. Lead the fish head first into the hole. If you keep fish, dispatch them quickly and humanely.

Tips

• Never fish alone: bring a partner and a throw rope, and keep it ready on shore and on the ice.
• Drill several holes in a line and move between them. Once you find a school, stay there.
• In Germany the DLRG lifesaving society names at least 15 cm on still water and 20 cm on rivers, a little more than the Minnesota guideline.

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