A subtle approach is necessary during early ice

The period of early ice is a coveted time of year for anglers. Fishing can peak on many small lakes in particular during early ice.

The reason for great fishing simply might be that fish are concentrated over shallow basins or secondary basins, and the first anglers at these locations experience some of the best fishing of the season. These locations simply don’t recharge during winter.

Small, well-known lakes with prominent and predictable patterns are especially popular at early ice. Another advantage to early ice is the shortness of daylight; the peak windows are closer together.

Unlike late ice, however, when you might be in a sweatshirt while geese and swans are flying overhead, the weather that’s creating ice can also make the conditions on top of the ice harsher. The most effective anglers have developed a system for fishing outside when the wind and temperatures are often brutal. While the fishing can often be good, early ice is not always easy.

MORE ICE FISHING COVERAGE FROM OUTDOOR NEWS:

Early ice getting positive reviews in Minnesota, officials urge anglers to use caution

Here’s how to find those early ice hotspots

Comfort, mobility, efficiency: Top ice-fishing gear for 2024-25

One of the toughest situations at early ice involves extremes in water clarity. Extremely clear water with just a handful of inches of clear ice can create one of the most challenging situations for finding fish. Every move you make, every step you take, and every hole drilled can push fish away from you.

You cannot simply walk up to a spot and immediately catch a fish right below you.

We have long had assumptions about this when dealing with thin, clear ice over clear water. With forward-facing sonar, we can now see what is happening and confirm our assumptions. When you can see through the ice and see the bottom in 8 feet of water, you need to adjust your strategy.

There are two things in particular, from a noise standpoint, that really seem to send fish running: dragging something on the ice – a sled or fish house – and walking with ice cleats. That’s unfortunate, because sleds haul our gear and cleats keep us from slipping and falling.

You need to have ice cleats, and you need to bring some equipment, so not having these items isn’t practical. When you get to locations that you want to fish, however, be aware of the noise factor. Take your cleats off when you get to your fishing locations, and leave your sled or flip-over shelter in one spot.

Simply slowing down and being methodical is often necessary at early ice. After you drill your holes and get set up on a location, you often must give a spot some time for fish to cycle back beneath you. If you get too aggressive and move too much, you can keep pushing fish away from you. How long to wait? You should still see some fish show up within half an hour.

Typically, you might need to “grid” the ice right away. Get your holes drilled and let the locations settle down. If you’re using FFS, try to walk and drill holes to push fish you can see toward an angler already set up. Finding fish and then walking an angler over the top of fish, drilling a hole, and catching fish can be difficult when fish are spooking with every step you take.

Realistically, the best approach is to simply walk to a location that you can reach – one where you caught fish in the fall. Where you put fish to bed in the fall is usually where there will be some fish at early ice. If the fishing was poor or tough through the fall, keep looking, because these fall patterns usually carry into early ice. In other words, if the fishing was bad or nonexistent on a lake in late October, the fishing doesn’t miraculously get better at early ice.

In environments where you’re dealing with clear water and clear ice, low-light conditions can be really important.

You can struggle during the day but then catch almost all species into the dark. Crappies are famous for firing up after dark, but even bluegills can turn on at dusk on some lakes. The evening sunset window in particular is really important.

The opposite of extremely clear water is turbid water at early ice. On some wide-open, wind-swept lakes, strong winds right at freeze-up can make the water extremely murky. I’ve seen this phenomena on lakes such as Minnesota’s Upper Red Lake and even Lake of the Woods, but this can be a common occurrence on the shallow, windswept lakes of the Dakotas, too.

There are times when the water gets so turbid that you can’t see the bottom of the hole on top of 4 inches of ice. Colder, denser water holds or suspends the particles in the water for a much longer period of time. Extremely turbid water caused by a strong wind right at freeze-up can also make fishing much more difficult.

Loud rattle spoons, short and hard jigging cadences, and increasing the size of the lure are important adjustments for walleyes and perch in these situations.