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| 12/29/2006 8:30:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article |
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| Plastic minnows jigged on a traditional lead head jig or on a Swedish Pimple can be just as effective as live bait, said fishing guide Steve White, but last longer in cold water temperatures. |
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The power of plastics: Ice anglers embracing artificial lures
Nugget grubs offer twice the number of bites at half the cost
Debbie Munson Badini
Sports/Outdoors Editor
As the ice continues to thicken on Northwoods lakes, many anglers are busy putting the open-water fishing gear into storage and organizing the jigging sticks, ice auger and minnow buckets for the winter.
But according to Kevin Thompson, co-owner of R&K's Outdoors Sport Shop in Woodruff, ice anglers should stop for a moment and look in that tackle box to consider which of their summer time plastic lures might work just as well through the ice.
"Plastics are now so technologically advanced, that they can go from the boat to the bucket," Thompson said. "We use plastics all summer long with success, so why not use them in the winter, too?"
From what Thompson has seen at his shop, anglers are beginning to embrace artificial plastic lures for ice fishing in numbers he has never seen before.
"It's hard to get people to change and plastics are pretty new for winter, but they are catching on more and more," he said. "They have become so advanced with how they can mimic grubs and minnows. Live bait still works great, no doubt. But the plastic manufacturers are doing something right when they can catch up to what live bait can do."
Twice the bites, half the cost
Though plastics are being developed for all types of ice fishing, Thompson said the majority are currently aimed toward anglers who jig for panfish, with a smaller number of lures designed for walleye fishing.
"Obviously, you aren't going to go out and jig a nine-inch rubber worm through the ice," he said. "But there are plenty of plastics out there that mimic the live bait you use during the winter."
To jig for panfish, Thompson said he would recommend using a variety of soft plastic grub larvae or "nuggets" instead of buying a tub of live wax worms or mousees.
Plastic jig bodies in black, white, chartreuse and orange and marabou jigs with a feathery tail are also highly recommended, he said.
A package of six grub nuggets will cost just over $1, Thompson said, while three dozen wax worms will run around $2.
"You can figure you will use one grub for every fish that bites," Thompson said. "But on a plastic, you can catch 10 to 12 fish before it wears out."
In sheer numbers, that means 36 fish for the three dozen waxies, while six plastic grubs can bring in a whopping 60-72 fish - or, twice the bites at half the cost.
Finicky fish need some scent
"If you are successful with plastics, they are going to save you a little bit of money," Thompson said. "But fish can be finicky and will sometimes need the scent."
That's when the scent-impregnated soft plastics like Berkley's Gulp grubs and minnows come in, he added.
"If you get a smaller plastic minnow, or cut a larger one down to the right size, you still get a lot of the motion of live bait plus the scent," Thompson said. "That way, you can trick them."
A package of 10 Gulp minnows costs around $5, Thompson said, while one dozen live minnows runs closer to $3.
Paying more for scented plastic minnows instead of buying live minnows to jig for walleye can be preferable for a number of reasons, said local fishing guide Steve White.
"First, live bait can become soft on you or die in the cold temperatures," White said. "Plus, you can save plastics for another time, whether it is tomorrow or next week, where you need to use live bait up before it dies."
The Gulp minnows are colored and designed to resemble a live minnow so closely that it is hard to tell the two apart once they are in the water, he added.
Chena Bait tops for durability
Another non-live but not truly artificial bait White recommends is Chena Bait, which is a roll of preserved seal skin that can be cut into small pieces and put on the end of a jig instead of a live grub.
A three-inch portion of Chena Bait costs about $5, White said, but lasts for a long time due to the very small amount needed per outing.
"In fact, I am still using the same package that I bought last year," he said.
The draw of Chena Bait is its long life and the motion it gives in the water, according to both White and Thompson.
"Because it is seal skin, it naturally tightens up in the water, so it won't just fall off your hook if you get a bite," Thompson said. "And if you cut a small strip and cut a little tail into one end of it, it gets very life-like motion."
The durability of Chena Bait is an important factor for success on the ice, White added.
"Being able to move quick is the key for ice fishing," White said. "If you don't have to constantly stop to put a new grub or minnow on, you will be a lot more productive."
The one-two punch
Another trick White said he recommends is the one-two punch of combining live bait or hard plastic Rapalas with scented plastics.
"For walleyes, I will jig a Rapala, but put a chunk of Gulp on it for the scent," White said. "The Gulp will stay on longer than a piece of a real minnow."
White also will tip his Rapalas with a small piece of Chena Bait to add some scent.
"Basically, you need to be prepared with a variety of baits and just keep using different combinations until something works," he said. "It never hurts to have a little of everything on you, because it never fails that what works one day will not necessarily be working the next day."
"That's a great time to have plastics and know how to use them, because you don't have to buy all of those different kinds of live bait," he added. "If it doesn't work, you just put it back in the bucket until next time."
Debbie Munson Badini can be reached at debbie@lakelandtimes.com.
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