Contributors How-To Steve Rowswell

Drop Shotting Through the Ice

by Steve Rowswell December 21, 2012

Drop Shotting has become one of the most popular techniques for Bass fisherman, but a lot of the time the drop shot gets put away when ice fishing season comes.  Over the last couple seasons, I’ve found that drop shotting for perch and other panfish through the ice can really get the bite going when fishing is tough.

When it comes to Perch fishing in the winter, I’ll generally have two rods rigged up.  One will have a chrome spoon like a Williams Wobbler, generally used for flashing.  This will draw fish in towards you and get them fired up if the bite starts to slow down.  The other rod will be a small drop shot rigged on very light line.  Using this technique eliminates the need for live bait and makes you much more efficient out on the hard water.

A couple of the top drop shot baits for perch are the X Zone Lures Mini Slammer and Pan Slammer.  The Mini Slammer is 3” drop shot bait that comes in a variety of colours and is great if you’re looking for getting bigger bites out of a school of perch.  The Pan Slammer is a 2” version of the same bait and gives you the versatility to get any Bluegill or Crappie mixed in with the Perch.  I always rig these up on a small Trokar Drop Shot hook and a 1/8 or 1/16 ounce round tungsten drop shot weight.  I generally like to keep the weight and hook about 8-10 inches apart but there’s times where they want it right on the bottom.

This is an ultralight technique so I like to use a small rod and extremely light line.  I use a 27” HT Fishing micro light rod and a small panfish size reel.  This combo is spooled up with 4lb Berkley Fireline Crystal which is tied directly to 4lb 100% Fluorocarbon.  Without the braided main line, there’s no way to feel the bait and give it the proper action with such a light set up.

Lake Couchiching is one of my favourite lakes for catching jumbo, 13-14 inch perch, but it also receives a lot of pressure during the winter.  Drop shotting through the ice has really given me a competitive edge over the rest of the fishermen over the last couple hard water seasons.

Tight Lines!