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Bay of Quinte Fishing

Weed-Relating Sunfish on Ice
By Tim Allard

Catching sunfish through the ice is a blast. The corkscrewing battle of big bluegills and pumpkinseeds test the integrity of ultra-light gear and often gets me giggling. Although pint-sized, these fish are worthy adversaries. Fickle sunnies challenge even the most experienced ice anglers. When things get tough, I fish weeds.

Weeds offer a lot to sunfish. They provide cover and hiding spots from predators. Vegetation's also home to many food items. Throughout winter the weed-sunfish relationship changes. Healthy plants are go-to spots at first ice. Sheltered bays and weed flats are prime early-season areas. Many plants die off by mid-winter. Weedbeds with still-standing stalks may hold fish. If you can’t find them directly in weeds search in nearby deep water, such as drop offs or flats outside of bays. At late ice vegetation grows again, attracting sunfish. They'll stage near spawning sites like shallow, fertile bays.

Electronics can give you an edge in weeds. Underwater cameras show plants, their health, and if sunfish are present. Sonars are as important, but can take some tweaking when in shallow-water weed areas. Using sonar's low-power setting or decreasing the sensitivity is often necessary to remove clutter for a clearer display. With experience you'll quick learn to tune your sonar to effectively fish weeds.

Locating weeds doesn't guarantee success. You still must coax sunfish to hit. Sunfish may relate to outside or inside edges, pockets, or the thickest parts of weeds. Be prepared to drill plenty of holes, moving often until you find biters.

My top sunfish baits are ice jigs. I carry horizontal, vertical, and 45 degree models as sunfish can prefer a specific profile. Lindy's Fat Boys and Genz Worm, Custom Jigs and Spins Diamond Jig and Two Spot, and HT Enterprises' Marmooska are proven producers. Northland's new Bro Bug Collection also holds promise.

Also add profile and flavour to jigs. Artificial soft-bait has its place, but when the bite's tough maggots are best. I mostly fish with two to three maggots. Sometimes a single maggot hooked in the middle is the ticket, while other days it takes four wigglers. Experimentation is key to catching finicky eaters. Rebait often. New maggots produce scent and trigger hits.

Attract sunfish using small hops or slow raise-fall sequences. Switch to pauses and micro-movements to trigger hits. Use spring bobbers if you don't already. They signal the faintest hit but also let you rock the jig up-and-down for a natural swimming motion.

When working weeds, divide the water into two parts: above weeds and in them. Swim the jig down till it's just above the weeds. Work it here to get fish's attention, trying to raise one to hit the offering. Sometimes this works, but often you need to dunk the weeds. Fish down to bottom watching your sonar for fish signals. Move to the next hole if unsuccessful.

You'll occasionally get hung up fishing weeds and will need to tear the bait free. Don't get discouraged, it's worth it for the fish you'll catch. It may also take a few tries to penetrate certain areas, using a heavier jig helps.

Remember to keep moving, fishing shallow to deep areas. Some holes will be over impenetrable weeds, while others will be over sweet spots, like pockets. Plants produce all winter on some water systems, but they shine at early and late ice. Fish them during these peak times for steady sunfish action.