Rusty Spoons

(Continuation from "The Tungsten Fly") The last article was on the VMC Tungsten Fly, but many different ice fishing tackle manufacturers make tungsten fly lures. For example, Northland makes a tungsten fly lure called the Northland Tungsten Larva Fly Jig. This lure is different than the VMC Tungsten Fly jig because it was designed to have a vertical presentation rather a horizontal presentation. Although a very disputed topic within the ice fishing community, personally, I feel that vertical jigs are better suited for picky fish. A very small sized Tungsten Fly Jig will have a slow descent rate due to the buoyancy of the hair. In this way, a Northland Tungsten Fly Jig in a very small size would be my lure of choice to catch finicky, shallow water bluegill and crappie. The Northland jig is also available in much smaller sizes - to as small as 1/100th Oz. - and is available in many different colors that better replicate natural forage. My preferred color for the Northland j...

Every year there are new innovations in the sphere of ice fishing; whether they be new rods, lures, techniques, electronics, often these innovations are ignored because they are not revolutionary breakthroughs that will radically change the life and success of an ice fisherman. This year, however, I think several new baits that have been released by VMC are revolutionary: 1. The Tungsten Fly. It is without argument that tungsten has revolutionized the ice fishing industry(discussed later), but the most notable and personally one of the most effective lures that I have used this year is the VMC Tungsten Fly. Although using artificial flies to entice fish is usually inherent of fly fishing, VMC has incorporated this subtle approach to catching fish into ice fishing. Because not many anglers use flies as lures, fish may be more inclined to hit a fly. The Tungsten fly not only imitates a fly but also many other aquatic insects, so the Fly is more versatile than the traditional Tungsten...

The frigid temperatures that swept into Westchester County this past week gave way to the start of a fruitful ice fishing season. Up to five inches of ice was found on one of our favorite spots. Off route 100 in Somers, a sizeable branch of the Muscoot Reservoir can be found. Our day on the ice started as the sun sailed into midday. It had warmed up, slightly to the mid 20’s, but hand warmers were still warranted. The morning before, we endured a coating of snow, giving the reservoir a magical twinkle or shine. The gear I employed on this day was a 13 Fishing White Noise Ice Fishing Rod paired to a 2000 size Shimano Sienna Reel. They held up beautifully despite the glacial temperatures. Our first operation was to drill holes. Around 250m off the bank of the reservoir, we began drilling holes. We tried to align ourselves parallel to distinct points off the bank. Unlike the average auger, the one we were using drilled smaller holes; perfect for panfish and other species. As a result, we...

"Skyscraper"perch, is a term that describes abnormally tall perch. On a recent early-ice fishing trip, we stumbled into large perch while targeting bluegill and crappie on the edge of a weedline. The transition from shallow weedy flats to a deeper basin is one of the best places to ice fish throughout the ice fishing season. Fish are drawn to this type of structure because it provides them easy access to forage - the basin, which contains bloodworms and numerous aquatic insects. Furthermore, weeds provide fish an opportunity to quickly escape from pursuing predators. It is very difficult to locate a break from weeds to basin, so patience, the grace of God, and certain ice fishing electronic tools are required to locate these fish hotspots. First, drill holes every 10 feet away from shore after locating water 10 feet deep. Next, use a fish finder or underwater camera to find this transition. It is difficult to find this transition without the use of electronics(however, it...

HT Enterprises Ice Blue Rod With ice fishing season around the corner, it's about that time to order new gear. A piece of equipment that I added to my arsenal this year was the Ice Blue Rod. I mainly bought this rod to test its capabilities - it is a sub $10 rod. Apart from the rod's horrendous color scheme of blue and white, the orange tip does serve a practical purpose in bite detection, the rod seems to be very limber - an aspect of a good panfishing rod. The guides of the rod, on first inspection, are fairly small, which can make the rod susceptible to being 'frozen' in frigid temperatures - this issue, however, is common on most ice rods, and can be easily solved by breathing on the guide or tip-top. The fifth guide from the top features a snake guide, which is common on fly fishing rods. The rod that I picked up is the 24'' UL rod; I expect that I will be using it for hole hopping purposes for ice fishing. It can fish very small tungsten jigs with ea...