Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 8
not be over one, but there's one just a few feet
away. If you have an area with "two stalks per
pin cushion," drill holes until you find this hot
stand, and make it work for you. There have
been trips when I have sat over one hot hole
practically all day.
Weed edges next to scattered and thick
beds will attract circulating bruisers at times
of high feed. I usually have my weed edge
holes predrilled waiting for these periods. My
friends and I regularly test the weed edges,
but the best bruiser action usually occurs in
late afternoon. When the weed edges get hot,
everyone should migrate to the border. Then,
it's a matter of jumping around to intercept
the traveling schools.
The level you're fishing is another key
variable. Bruisers spend much of their time
feeding a few inches from the bottom, and
my offerings are usually 6 to 12 inches above
the lake floor. When the spirit moves them,
bruisers start rising in the water column.
Then, it's not unusual to find them-
particularly the Pumpkinseed clan-just
a few inches beneath the ice sheet. Many
times, I have changed a slow bite into a hot
bite by raising my bait to about 1 or 2 feet
below the ice sheet.
Electronics play an important role in
modern ice fishing. Being able to watch a
Bluegill move towards my bait on a flasher's
circular dial and seeing the line get ever
broader, indicating the bruiser is coming on
strong, is a great help. This is particularly true
when the bite is slow, and they are stealing
bait. You set the hook on sonar sight as
much as the actual strike. This forewarning
accounts for a lot of caught fish. When the
bite is constant and the Bluegills are coming
on strong, sonar can be a distraction. I would
rather react to the feel than the apparition.
Finally, the new microplastics shaped
like weird undersea creatures are a boon to
bruiser Bluegill fishing. Team them up with
ice jigs during hot times and switch back
to lead jigs for slower falls and less action
during the slow times. If live bait is placed
on top, many of the new finesse shapes lose
their slinky attraction. Test your offering at
the hole to see what it does. On many types
of bait, less rod choreography produces a
more subtle movement.
Bruiser Bluegills don't come easy, but they
are worth the effort.
8
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater * January/February 2015
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015
Contents
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - Cover1
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - Cover2
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 3
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 4
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - Contents
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 6
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 7
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 8
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 9
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 10
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 11
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 12
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 13
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 14
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 15
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 16
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 17
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 18
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 19
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 20
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 21
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 22
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 23
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 24
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 25
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 26
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 27
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 28
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 29
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 30
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 31
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 32
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 33
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 28
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 34
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 35
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 36
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 37
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 38
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 39
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 40
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 41
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 42
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 43
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 44
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 45
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 46
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 47
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 48
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 49
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 50
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 51
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 52
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 53
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 54
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 55
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 56
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 57
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 58
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 59
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 60
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 61
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - 62
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - Cover3
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - January/February 2015 - Cover4
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