Desperate times call for desperate measures. The Crazy BASStard and I took a day to target lethargic largemouths through the ice. Hit the local tackle shop just before 8:00 am to pick up a dozen medium size shiners, then drove to a secluded pond just over the Vermont / Mass border to start the day. We are familiar with the area—one of our summertime hot spots—and knew of a submerged rock wall that spanned the width of the pond, and that’s where we started. We spent about one hour preparing 6 tip-ups along where we estimated the wall to be. We were disoriented as to the exact location of the wall, as there was several feet of snow drifted along the banks of the pond.
The day started off in the low ‘teens and warmed up to above freezing around noon before the clouds, snow, and wind moved in. 3 inches of powder sat over 24” of ice, though half was probably from condensed precipitation.
We spent two hours working along the rock wall with no luck. Most of the shiners had been hooked with a size 7 snelled Eagle Claw through the nose, while the others through the back. The nose-hooked baitfish were the first to breathe their last, so we began to rig the other live minnows through the back.
The pond is fairly shallow, maybe 15’ at its deepest point, but we stayed in approximately 10-12 feet of water at all times.
We relocated the tip-ups, putting the rigged bait-fish in the old milk jug for transit, and after another few hours we ruled out this location as well.
At about 3:30 pm we decided to try for one more location while there was still daylight. Walking mid-way along the length of the pond, I began drilling holes and scooping out the ice slush while Crazy set 3 tip-ups. He headed back to gather the others, and while I was scooping out the slush, I see an orange flag go up just a few feet behind me while I’m hunched over. I tossed the ice spoon and darted across the ice. The line was spooling quickly and I grabbed the line only to feel it go slack. I kept retrieving the line and began to feel some weight, when a beautiful 13 inch largemouth surfaced in the hole. Our first February largemouth!
We re-baited the line and I got back to my auger. Crazy hollered to me and another flag went up. I watched him hoist a solid 15 inch largemouth out, just 5 minutes after the first flag. The sun began to settle over the hills and we decided to wait until dark, having been out for 10 hours and my face completely wind-burned.
Just 30 minutes later Crazy and I watched another flag go up, the same one that produced the previous 15 incher. And it produced another beautiful winter largemouth bass of the same size.
Ending on a good note we packed up our gear onto the sled and headed home.
BASStard Bassin’ Pro Shop Results
Rapala Jigging Rap
Bass Pro Shops Hand Ice Auger
Northland Fishing Tackle Forage Minnow Jigging Spoon
