Hardwater Fishing - What's a tip-up?

When hunting season is over, I look forward to our cold winter months ahead. The colder the better! Cold days help our lakes freeze quicker and ice fishing season starts sooner.

Ice fishing season creates amazing opportunities to catch big game fish like pike, trout, and burbot. You are able to access areas of the lake that you wouldn't normally have easy access to unless you have a boat.

I normally use tubes and spoons as my primary lures, but this year I decided to try out bait on treble hooks with tip-ups, and jigging raps/rattlers, like the one below.

In Alberta we can have two fishing lines in the water at the same time which helps increase your chances of hooking fish! Although you can hook a monster on a small lure, I have mostly caught bigger fish by using a bigger lure. If you think it's too big, try it, you will be surprised.

What are Tip-Ups?

There are several styles of tip-ups, I prefer the ones that cover the entire hole to prevent your hole from freezing over. The line and spool sit under water which is why it is very effective when fishing at extreme freezing temperatures -30. You can jig a lure in a warm tent while your tip-up sits on a different area of the lake. I used a basic setup of two treble hooks size 2 using smelt. This method is very effective late season as you are trying to mimic dead bait. 

I do have another type of tip-up where you can attach your rod. This style of tip-up is great for warmer days where your hole won't freeze over. It is very fun to fight a big fish with a rod.

If I had to pick one, I would go with the hole covered tip-up as it is more versatile and it will not require you to have extra rods.

I have found that jigging a loud flashy lure near my tip-up brings great success! Rattling and flashy lures can bring in preditors from afar and if your lure does not seal the deal, the stinky smelt will.

Have fun and be safe!