Next Stop on the Seminar Tour.....Springfield Sportsmen's Show

 My next stop on the seminar trail is the Springfield Sportsmen's Show, website: https://www.osegsportsmens.com/index.html  This show is one of the biggest outdoor shows in the northeast. It runs from Feb. 25 through Feb. 27 at the Big E in Springfield, MA.  The show is unique in that it has everything outdoorsy from fishing exhibitors to hunting to camping to boating to guides and more.  If the topic has to do with the outdoors, you will find it here. 

The show also features an all star line-up of seminar speakers that run both hunting and fishing seminars. I will be there on Saturday, Feb. 26.  I will be doing a carp fishing seminar and a striper fishing seminar.  The striper seminar is all new for 2022.  It is called Striper-mania and deals with the striper comeback in recent years and strategies to catch them from shore and kayak in southern New England.  My carp fishing seminar is called Strategies to catch BIG Carp.  This seminar will focus on strategies to catch large carp over 20 lbs. As of this writing the seminar schedule has not been finalized yet.  Keep looking at the show's website for the seminar time updates.

Hope to see some of many of you there. 

Like a Snake Coming Through the Hole!

 

The GLORY Hole!

 

This hole produced over 20 fish
in a short amount of time.

The hot ice fishing that I have been experiencing lately just continues.  I went out on this drizzly winter day and only jigged two holes.  I didn't have to move because I hit the jackpot in one of them.  One hole produced over 20 fish in a short period of time.  The 20 included loads of variety.  I landed sunfish, bluegills, yellow perch, white perch, crappie, a largemouth bass and a large pickerel. Hard to believe that all these fish would be hanging around together on the bottom, but they were.

I got all my fish jigging a small gold Kastmaster along with a meal worm attached to the end. I can report 8 to 9 inches of ice in the pond I was fishing.

One observation.....there have been very few ice fishermen around these days. Years ago you'd see a lot more.  Another observation is that the fishing is as good as I have ever seen it. And, I have been fishing multiple spots and it's been the same all over. Maybe the decreased pressure and lack of (or little) ice fishing activity in recent years has allowed the fish to multiple.  Not sure, but few people and lots of fish. 

A big surprise today was this good size white perch.
I have been fishing this pond for years and never saw
a white perch there!

On an Ice Fishing Roll

 

I landed this good size largemouth 
today in one of my favorite jigging
ponds.  The fish hit a small Kastmaster
that had a meal worm attached.

It's been like the good ole times for me. In between skiing, I've been going ice fishing and catching big time.  I only jig when I ice fish.  I move around a lot from hole to hole looking for any type of fish that is willing to hit my small gold Kastmaster with a meal worm attached. I'm fishing some high percentage spots that used to produce a lot years ago when we had cold winters. This week I caught good numbers of yellow perch, bluegills, pickerel, crappie and largemouth bass.  Today I landed a real good size largemouth, one of the biggest I have caught in years. I got this on a twig of a rod, a small reel and just six pound test line. It took a bit of skill and a lot of luck just to get this biggie through the hole! This is certainly the year to get back to ice fishing, and I am really enjoying it!

Hitting the Hard Stuff

 

Yellow perch action was hot and heavy today.
I found a school of them and caught big numbers jigging.

I got out fishing today, ice fishing that is! It's something I used to do almost daily when the kids were young, and the winters were colder. We used to get home from school, put on the heavy winter clothes, head to a local pond and jig until dark. With our recent warm winters, ice fishing has been very limited in recent years.

When I say ice fishing I really mean jigging.  I spent the afternoon today in a productive pond that had between 5 and 6 inches of hard, clear ice.  As luck would have it, I think someone was there before me, and drilled about 20 holes in just the area I intended to fish. I never had to chop a single hole.

I was jigging a small gold Kastmaster spoon.  On the hook I had a meal worm.  These can be purchased in pet stores.  Meal worms are a must if you are looking for serious action.   Almost immediately, I started catching yellow perch.  Most ice fishermen know these fish run in schools, and I caught most of my perch in holes that were about 20 yards apart.  While I landed a lot of perch, I also landed some hefty bluegills and a foot long largemouth which was the surprise of the afternoon.

It was a productive day and it felt great to get back on the ice today. 

The surprise of the day turned out to be this
largemouth bass. I landed this largemouth,
some bluegills and a load of yellow perch.

First Big Show of the Year.....NE Fishing Expo, Boxboro, MA, Jan. 28-30

 The big fishing and outdoor shows are open for business again this year.  As many of you know, I have done fishing seminars at these big shows in the past and I will be at it again this year.

My first show will be my new carp fishing seminar titled "Strategies to Catch Big Carp".  I'll be doing that seminar at the New England Fishing Expo in Boxboro, MA on Sunday, January 30th at 11:00 AM.  I've done this show in the past, and it is one of the best pure fishing shows in New England. You'll find a lot of stuff on freshwater as well as saltwater fishing, and they have an all star line-up of seminar speakers.

So, if you've got cabin fever and are looking for something fishing related to do next weekend, consider attending the show.  Info and website is at https://nefishingexpo.com/  

Hope to see you there!

Favorite Bucktail Jigs

 I've been tying up a storm in the last week or so making lots of bucktail jigs for the upcoming season. I make all my own from start to finish.  I use molds from the Do-It Corporation.  I'll pour them first.  Then I put on a coat of powder paint, and lastly add the bucktail.

Last year I caught the majority of my fish on bucktail jigs spiced with plastic curly tails.  I expect the jigs top be hot catchers again this year.  Though I have about two dozen jig molds, I will admit that I three FAVORITE jigs that I use throughout the year.  You will see them in the photo at the bottom (top to bottom: Spire Point jig, H Style jig and Flathead jig).

Spire Point Jig-  I like this in a one or one and one half ounce model. It is a beefy jig and casts like a bullet. I like to use this in rough water with a wind driving into my face. It has taken a lot of big stripers for me in the past, especially in the fall. Also it is very effective at night in moving water.

H Style Jig- My favorite size is a half ounce jig.  I like using this either off a float or alone. It has a slim profile with a thin fish head and is especially effective when stripers are feeding on bay anchovies (which happened a lot this year).

Flathead jig-  My favorite is the half ounce version.  I like this jig in the spring and summer.  It has a thin, fat profile and is especially effective when stripers are feeding on peanut bunker. I mostly use this off a wooden egg float although it can also be used alone.