Perch on ice

Please share any tips on how to catch more perch on ice! I have watched some idofishing videos on perch but i am a perch fanatic and can not get enough! So please share tips, lures and thoughts.

My largest fish have come on spoons. Finding them is 95% of the equation. Just remember they eat minnows and larvae on the regular.

Tyler,

Our largest Perch are caught using Crappie Minnows on Tip Downs. Here are a few examples of a few of them.

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Tyler –

I too love perch. Completely agree with Frenchman on finding them being THE biggest key. To find them (in significant numbers and size), you need to be on the right bodies of water and drill LOTS of holes. Other than the Dakotas, that generally means larger lakes (think Mille Lacs, Winnie, Devils Lake).

Perch seem to respond to flash/sound as well, so noisy + flashy spoons (i.e. Buckshot) tipped with either minnow head or larvae are usually a great go-to.

Check out these 3 episodes as well for some tips from the master (the Lake Winnie episode is classic MN perch strategy):

– Devils Lake – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9GhgmbdYzY
– North Dakota – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHSUgXYDP74
– Winnie – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3_D8PdKxi3QxIwJxMqmRvg

Being mobile is one of the keys I’ve found. Perch roam so hole hopping is usually essential to successful perch fishing. Fishing on the river, I tend to find them in deeper holes (deep being relative to the area, so if most of the area I’m fishing is 6-7 feet deep, I’ll try to find a hole that’s 9, 10 or a little deeper). A second key that I’ve found is a hard bottom. On the river, slight current also helps, however you don’t see that as much on lakes. I like to use 1/16 oz. slender Spoons tipped with minnow heads or waxies. I switch the stock trebles out to a larger size to keep the bait on better and help with more hook-ups. Once you catch one, try and get back down as soon as you can to keep the school fired up and underneath you. Hope any of this helps! Good luck and let us know how you do this year!

Alex W wrote:

Being mobile is one of the keys I’ve found. Perch roam so hole hopping is usually essential to successful perch fishing. Fishing on the river, I tend to find them in deeper holes (deep being relative to the area, so if most of the area I’m fishing is 6-7 feet deep, I’ll try to find a hole that’s 9, 10 or a little deeper). A second key that I’ve found is a hard bottom. On the river, slight current also helps, however you don’t see that as much on lakes. I like to use 1/16 oz. slender Spoons tipped with minnow heads or waxies. I switch the stock trebles out to a larger size to keep the bait on better and help with more hook-ups. Once you catch one, try and get back down as soon as you can to keep the school fired up and underneath you. Hope any of this helps! Good luck and let us know how you do this year!

I like the way you think Alex ..Although,I’ll use a 1/8oz from time to time..We will have to get out this year..

The best way is to scout lakes out. Start on-line find lakes recently surveyed. Lakes with 30 plus per gill net pull are great. (MN lake finder, SD lake surveys, ND game fish. Find the best map and start early in the morning on points. This way you get walleyes to. Then move out to the basin. What works for me is finding some difference in the basin weather it is depth change or bottom change.