Fished Mantua for a few hrs after noon arrival. Perch getting bigger, but only one gill. Also a token slimer. Just the opposite of last month. Ice still 8-10" with nearly a foot of fluffy stuff on top. Ventured out from the inlet spot on the south side. Good thing some 4-wheelers blazed about 5-6 trails out from there, or it would have been tough sleddin' for everybody. Gorgeous day w/sun & no wind. Talked to several of the 12 or so groups of fishermen out there, and pretty much the same story: light bite & you've gotta coax the perch off the bottom on tiny jigs 7 waxies. Shore ice no problem yet.
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Any size to the fish? what colors seemed to produce the best?
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Can you describe how one "coaxes a perch off the bottom"?
I couldn't buy a single nibble on Wed afternoon...
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Perch were all keepers in the 8-9" range. Tried everything I had in the box from ratsos to tear-drops, tho caught most of 'em on a small Prince nymph from the flybox. Coaxed 'em up by slowly lifting and stopping every 6" or so, then waiting for bite, which was very light.
Hope this helps.
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Hey Mike, I was there on that SE side as well. Just a quick trip..got a late start around 9:45 or so, and left just after 1:00. Too slow for me, but I did manage one nice 'bow amongst the few perch. Like you said, bite was slow (as expected). I think it was that way for most everyone around. Lots of fluffy stuff, good thing there were a couple of trails blazed for us!
Pics attached:
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