Soldier Creek heat wave

[The_Coach]

Took the team out today for some outdoor fun. The neighbor kids were anxious to get out with mine and raise some <*?:"% "fish". With 6 kids total and 2 dads can one expect to catch allot of fish? Not a doubt in my mind, but the fish had other plans for us. After getting plenty of "beauty" sleep we hit the road at 6:45ish and dropped the first line by 9:00. First fish landed with within seconds as the lines on the showdown went bizzerk. A school of planter cuts hit three poles at once and a great day was beginning. Within moments they had vanished and a 20" cut was hooked and lost at the hole. I thought for sure this day may be "EPIC" as my teenager would call it. But it was not to be fish catching wise. The bite died and the fish scattered. we caught a few complimentary bows with the exception of one nice cut.

Last year I won an underwater camera and did not see much exciting about it. Today I thought I would give it a try in hopes that it would entertain the kids and WOW, what a job it did at that. Dropped it to the bottom and could see a couple of nice size cuts cruising back and forth along a 2' shelf right underneath us. For my daughter and I fishing became hunting. She was determined to hook one of those cuts and put an end to this day. For a good 30 minutes we tried different jigs with various toppings fishing 6" off the bottom. The cuts would give it a look, turn and wave bye bye with the middle fin. So I decided to break tradition and lay it on the bottom. The big cut swam over, hovered above our jig and slurped it up without a twitch in my line 20' above. Then spit it out and swam away flashing that middle fin again. Now that was fun to watch on the camera. So I gave it a little jig and dared that fish to try that again. Sure enough, returned and gave it one more slurp. This time I watched the monitor and when the jig vanished the rode came up. Makes me wonder how many times a big cut has had my jig in it's mouth and I never had a clue. After that the fish vanished and the crawdads came out for some entertainment. Even landed one with an assist from the camera. Total fish landed for the day was 1 large cut and 5 small bows and a couple small cuts. Not an "Epic" day but at least I don't smell of skunk. Learned a new trick with the underwater camera. Great! one more thing I need to pack every trip now. Weather was awesome and we left at 2:00 with the temp at 40 degrees. Kids all had a blast cooking cup-o-noodles on the ice, sledding, hunting for fish, and playing with one poor crawdad.

The Coach
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[Roghet]

Great report! Sorry that the fish weren't more plentiful though... I just can't help but wonder if the numbers of folks hitting SC during the Xmas break has sent many fish to other areas, maybe attending yoga classes trying to recenter themselves to be in a feeding mood, leaving only the defiant ones that like to communicate with their middle fin.

That's cool to hear about the camera. I've only seen one used once, and the owner spent a lot of time setting it up, shielding the screen from the sun so it was visible, and trying to twist the chord so it was pointing at the lure, etc. And when the fish came by it was only for a split second... IOW: not that useful on that particular day with few fish coming by where the camera happened to be.

I'm glad to hear a situation that a camera was as useful as it was. I'd love to see one in action like that. It doesn't surprise me a bit that fish would have our lures in their mouths and we don't even know it.

I'm curious, did you use that sponge float as a bite detector? If a fish picked a lure up rather than pulling it, I wonder if that's a situation where a different type of detector - like with the so called "spring bobber/piano wire" type would serve better? It would detect a lift, when a float might not. But I usually have tandem lures keeping the line tight. If your lure is sitting on the bottom with slack in the line, perhaps a camera may be the most effective with that situation. Interesting...

But then, I wonder about a lot of things, as those that criticize me for thinking too much would attest! [:p]
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[starkinkade2]

were you the group fishing monday by the rocks?
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[starkinkade2]

but thats how it has been for us lately. get there at 8 and within three hours we have 25+ fish and then it just shuts off at soldier creek. just cant find what they want or where they go. but sounds like a good day
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[The_Coach]

We were fishing on the west side.
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[KC5]

For Me, I have used a camera for years, it has added a whole new dimension to ice fishing, It is a very good educational tool as well, I always fish inside my tent so I can see the camera well, on many occasions I experiment with presentation, jigging speed, color, scent, ect. You can see the fish react and learn what actually triggers them to bite, Every time you hit the water it will be different, We often wonder why one guy can sit there and catch fish after fish and everyone else is coming up dry, You can document it on a camera. I am constantly switching up lures, colors, and flavor, Rainbows react different that Cuts, Mack are stubborn as can be, Splake are aggressive feeders, and Strawberry Cuts seem to be opportunists, One day I counted 37 times where a fish sucked in my jig and I never felt it. The bad part is you try to out guess them and jerk the pole often to early because the fish suck in the jig.

Cuts have a tendency to suck in the jig and "taste" it. Were rainbows charge it and bite and run. You will feel rainbow bites more often than cuts.

I was a Scofeild one day and a Monster came into my camera, I enticed him and enticed him, after about 3 minutes he kind of crused off then all the sudden he turned and attacked my jig. I hooked him and new it was a great fish. I fought him long and hard for about 10 minutes and even got him to the hole, but one flip of the head the ice cut my line and off he went. He was a great fish and I'll be dogged about 5 minutes later he was right back on his bed where my camera was, the jig hanging out of his mouth.

Those kind of experiences have really changed the way I fish, Its not just about catching for me any more, its about the learning and education I get from watching the mysterious underwater world.
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