Weed flats, gradual weedy breaks, and sluggish paths to deep water can all equal loads of crappies or bluegills during certain times of the fishing season. But now (throughout March and into April) one of the most obvious type of “edge” that can collect a ton of fish are some of the steepest breaks in the lake. Especially the steepest breaks that connect late winter panfish spots directly to the spawning grounds they will be using to feed the minute the ice melts and then of course actual spawning once the water temps gain some ground.
Right now, when I’m heading out onto the ice in search of big quantities of late ice panfish I’m looking for the perfect combination of deep water late winter haunts and steep breaks adjacent to the areas where they will be spawning in 45-60 days from now! So to give a generic example--a shallow soft bottom spawning bay 1-6 ft. deep, cattails along the edge of the bay, some old/newly forming weeds on the bottom that sits next to 25-45 feet of water (or an obvious area where the crappies and bluegills spawn every Spring). The break (drop-off) that connects the two environments should roughly be plunging from the shallow shoulder of around 6-7 ft. down to the lake basin at about a 45 degree angle—give or take. The steeper the angle, the more confined/condensed the school(s) of fish will be. And that folks is what creates a good competitive bite and solid fishing action—competition among the fish themselves.
The fish are easy to locate as well using about any kind of electronics. Look for fish THROUGH the ice—do not drill any holes yet! These steep breaks tend to force many of the fish to suspend out over the deeper water while still remaining close to the break—and sometimes the fish are glued right to the break itself. When that happens I tend to prefer a transducer with a smaller degree of attack like a 9 degree transducer. By using a “skinny beam” you’re not reading down the side of the whole break at once—this helps reduce “blind spots” and the fish will pop at ya much better. Pick a depth and walk along the break and check for fish about every 10-15ft by shooting through the ice using the old water on the ice trick. The schools will be tight, so if you don’t check often enough you can easily walk right over a nice school of crappies or bluegills. Also, make sure there are not pods of fish suspended off the deep edge of the break over them as well. Once some fish are located, try to figure out the tolerance and size of the school by walking and checking around the initial found fish in a circle pattern. Use the original fish you found as the center pivot point. This will tell you how big the school is and exactly where the center of the school is. Time to drill a few holes.
Start by drilling holes just outside the perimeter of the school of fish—but around the schooling area. Drill the last few holes on top of the fish in the center of the school. The perimeter holes will be used as the school starts to possibly disperse due to noise and fishing activity. The perimeter holes can also tell you which way the fish are moving by taking note of where the first and last fish are being caught. This is where it’s handy to have 2-3 people with you. If you are alone, set up a few locators (electronics with “fish alarms”) in the vacant holes—use them as electronic tip-ups. Set the alarm, wait for a beep, fish the hole. It’s that simple. It’s one reason to keep your “outdated” fishing sonar systems.
We really don’t need to get into presentation. I leave the minnows at home and use tiny ice jigs tipped with waxies or plastics. The fish are feeding and are usually not picky. Just keep it simple and small. Heavily schooled crappies or bluegills into the ultra-late ice period are typically aggressive due to the nutrients the newly formed eggs need. Lotsa Fish! Lotsa Fun!
