Fishing Forum

I have never fished for burbot through the ice but plan to at least once this season.

Because it is such a long drive from where I live up to the Gorge, I would like to make the best use of my time by getting some input from those of you who have already been successful in catching those ugly things.

So share your knowledge here in this post. I’d like to know things like best lures, sizes of lures, jigging techniques, line test, locations, times of the day/night, best baits, regulations, things to avoid, and any other tips and tricks that you find useful in ice fishing for burbot.

I know this video was posted by MountainmanZ in another post but it was pretty interesting so I’m sticking it in this “How To” post also:

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I’m excited to read what you all have to share.
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This being a new fish for many of us here in the West many of us are on a similar learning curve you are. Here's what I did to have successful burbot fishing last winter. I searched BFT and other places on the web for fishing techniques and then fished using the techniques that overlapped the most in my research.

Here's my simple suggestions:
- Keep it simple
- Fish at night to increase your odds of finding active fish.
- Fish rocky, moderate to steep slopes in water from 5 to 45 feet deep
- Keep the bait close to the bottom (6" to 12")
- Use only as many rigs (6 max) as you can handle
- 6 to 10 lb line is plenty heavy
- Use quality glowing lures and keep them charged
- Use jig heads tipped with 2-3" tubes or twisters
- Glow spoons may also work well
- Tip lures with meat (suckers, carp, shiners)
- Liberal application of Smelly Jelly may help
- Active jigging vs. dead sticking is determined every day
- Don't be affraid to drill two dozen holes and move around a little
- Don't forget your lanturn
- Pay attention

That's it, now go kill some burbot.
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Thanks fishnate for the info.

Any preference on color of your tubes?
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I used glow jig bodies. The jig body may not make that big of difference other than just offering a nice soft texture for the fish to hold on to while you set the hook. Adding a glow body would deffinately increase the visibilty from a greater distance. These fish are built to hunt in the dark so they will find your jig sooner or later but the glow catches their interest from greater distance then they home in on the scent of the meat/Smelly Jelly.

Get on YouTube and enter "burbot fishing." There are a number of Aqua-Vu videos that show how the fish react to bait and jigging etc.

Once the lake gets good and frozen find a day/night you want to go and I'm sure someone whose done this before can meet you up there and help you out.
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