I'm looking for advice on rainbow trout. I've been ice fishing on little Squam for five years without a lot of success. I've tried sandy flats and steep drop offs, but no consistancy anywhere. What does everyone use for bait on their tip-ups?Hook size? Location and water depth? Thanks for the help.
When ice fishing most of the rainbows I catch are in less than 6 feet of water and as shallow as a foot. Use a 4-6 pound leader a fee feet long, salmon eggs, and a single salmon egg hook. Gamakatsu are the sharpest in my opinion. You just need one egg on this style of hook. Fish it just under the ice. http://www.gamakatsu.com/catalog/single_egg.htm
Bait your holes with an egg each and check them once and a while. Shallow sandy areas near some flow of water are the best locations. Once you have an empty one, they are not far and you can sometimes almost hand feed them right over the hole. This is cool to see when it happens and keep a jigging rod with a small jig tipped with a maggot ready for these scenarios.
Some other advice: Be quiet, fish early (sunrise), drill a bunch of holes early, and have fun.
Once you have found them and have a little confidence in what you are doing to catch them, don't be afraid to experiment a little. Small shiners, smelt, powerbait, crawlers, and of course jigging small jigs on lite line tipped with a maggot. I love jigging and is what I try to do most of the time I'm out for rainbows and lakers.
Mopst people I see on Squam fish off the beach in Ashand, about 50 yards from the Squam River. Don't kpow if they catch any however ???
John S.
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I'm looking for advice on rainbow trout. I've been ice fishing on little Squam for five years without a lot of success. I've tried sandy flats and steep drop offs, but no consistancy anywhere. What does everyone use for bait on their tip-ups?Hook size? Location and water depth? Thanks for the help.
