MyFishFinder Forum
MFF US Northeast => New Hampshire => Topic started by: zwiggles on Mar 25, 2020, 09:53 AM
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Curious to see what others go to when the ice goes out early season?
For me it’s a beaded grey ghost tandem fly. Although they tend to get mangled pretty good, they always seem to produce on Winni early in the year, and then go all but silent for me.
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My go to is shore fish only til first week of May and I’ll keep up with anyone in a boat for numbers and I’m just throwing fly patterns on jig heads so I can cast and jerkbaits
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My go to is shore fish only til first week of May and I’ll keep up with anyone in a boat for numbers and I’m just throwing fly patterns on jig heads so I can cast and jerkbaits
No doubt, the only thing us boat guys can keep up with is if we’re running smelt, and the bite is on. It’s usually slow for a while once the ice has been out for a bit, but like you said may and when it hits 55 degrees can be a lot of fun.
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Agree
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My go to is shore fish only til first week of May and I’ll keep up with anyone in a boat for numbers and I’m just throwing fly patterns on jig heads so I can cast and jerkbaits
You've never seen my numbers... YOU'D DECIMATE THEM
Anyway, I tend to troll tandem streamer flies and smelt pattern flat fish. Sometimes when none of that works I will drag smaller stick baits.
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No doubt, the only thing us boat guys can keep up with is if we’re running smelt, and the bite is on. It’s usually slow for a while once the ice has been out for a bit, but like you said may and when it hits 55 degrees can be a lot of fun.
I'm going to disagree. ;) Smelt can be hot if you're on top of the fish. I don't like using live bait cuz you have to go too slow! If you're not on top of the fish, it takes too long to find them at .5 - 1.0 SOG or pick up and try another spot.
I didn't fish ice out last year, but the year before a friend and I picked up 20 salmon one day. Might have been a bow in there? The next day, we picked up 22, mostly all salmon. One day we were off the water at noon and the next done around 1:30. Most fish were caught on hardware. A few on single flies.
I don't care for tandems! They look pretty, but get twisted way too soon. It's not easy to get them to travel right afterwards if you can at all?
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You've never seen my numbers... YOU'D DECIMATE THEM
Anyway, I tend to troll tandem streamer flies and smelt pattern flat fish. Sometimes when none of that works I will drag smaller stick baits.
;D
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I'm going to disagree. ;) Smelt can be hot if you're on top of the fish. I don't like using live bait cuz you have to go too slow! If you're not on top of the fish, it takes too long to find them at .5 - 1.0 SOG or pick up and try another spot.
I didn't fish ice out last year, but the year before a friend and I picked up 20 salmon one day. Might have been a bow in there? The next day, we picked up 22, mostly all salmon. One day we were off the water at noon and the next done around 1:30. Most fish were caught on hardware. A few on single flies.
I don't care for tandems! They look pretty, but get twisted way too soon. It's not easy to get them to travel right afterwards if you can at all?
That’s awesome! I’ve only had a few days with numbers like that, and never that many salmon. Although I get more early and late in the year I feel like I generally catch more rainbows and lakers than salmon.
I’ll have to try some more singles this year, and I completely agree about getting them to run correctly after being hit. My father had the magic touch for that, i usually just go for a new fly. Our best days number wise are usually once the thermocline has set up well, or right as the water is getting to 55.
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I have no idea from the outside looking in but I’d try shallower
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I have no idea from the outside looking in but I’d try shallower
I have to agree with this guy. Now im not much of a troller but we caught 142 "touges" from shore last spring in 8' of water 3 days after ice out..
The smelts are running and the trouts are pushing them in close.. 8)
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I have no idea from the outside looking in but I’d try shallower
This is the debate that rages in our boat until it’s too hot out to be had, haha. I would say I’m way too impatient, and I constantly want to switch until we find a rhythm. Everyone else in the boat just laughs at me switching lures, flies depth, speed etc every 30 minutes but it keeps me entertained, and in my mind I’m building a playbook for trips in the future.
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;D
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I’ll have to try some more singles this year, and I completely agree about getting them to run correctly after being hit. My father had the magic touch for that, i usually just go for a new fly. Our best days number wise are usually once the thermocline has set up well, or right as the water is getting to 55.
Flies are way too expensive for me to throw away after a fish or two. Doesn't take many, maybe the first salmon to twist a tandem in to a pretzel.
I agree, cold water fish are much easier to target after the thermocline sets up. That said, at ice out you can find salmon in the top 15' unless the water's flat and the sun's high.
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Flies are way too expensive for me to throw away after a fish or two. Doesn't take many, maybe the first salmon to twist a tandem in to a pretzel.
Same here, I don’t throw them out either. I just find it’s quicker to deploy the same type of fly from the “tackle box”, and then try to straighten out the wrecked fly while it’s “working” counterpart is swimming. My father can manage to get them swimming well quickly, but I always waste to much time trying to get it working again.
Heck I have found that a lot of streamers that get shredded by fish and lose feathers or some shape almost fish better then there full bodied counter parts. I had one joes smelt fly that caught a few dozen fish it seemed before it was basically just a hook. The good flys that catch a bunch of fish and get real beat up get “retired” into a box I have, and then I usually buy a bunch of duplicates.
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Same here, I don’t throw them out either. I just find it’s quicker to deploy the same type of fly from the “tackle box”, and then try to straighten out the wrecked fly while it’s “working” counterpart is swimming. My father can manage to get them swimming well quickly, but I always waste to much time trying to get it working again.
Heck I have found that a lot of streamers that get shredded by fish and lose feathers or some shape almost fish better then there full bodied counter parts. I had one joes smelt fly that caught a few dozen fish it seemed before it was basically just a hook. The good flys that catch a bunch of fish and get real beat up get “retired” into a box I have, and then I usually buy a bunch of duplicates.
Abused flies ALWAYS fish better.
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I used to fish with a guy that tied his own and I too got into tying, he always said, the fly you tie doesnt have to be perfect (the fish wont know or care) there are no perfect bugs/smelt..He was right, usually the more tattered the better..
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I hit mine with a wire brush just a tad before I fish them