Laker tips and techniques

As you have probably already heard, there is lots of chatter on the numerous fishing boards about the phenomenal lake trout fishing that is occurring this winter. I was out with my dad this weekend to take in some of the laker fishing available to us. We ended up with countless lakers in the 6 to 10lb class and a day out on the lake with my dad that will not be forgotten. I have shared my standard set up below for those of you planning on targeting lakers this winter. We are predominatly fishing 70 to 115 feet of water. Get yourself close to a shoal, point, or drop off to start. The area closest to the steepest drop on a zone is usually going to be the most productive. The best tip i can give anyone is this, if your not marking fish within 5 to 10 minutes of dropping your transducer down the hole, keep moving. This means a graph or flasher is going to be vital to your success. I currently use a humminbird ice 597ci hd for most of my ice fishing adventures. This unit also has GPS so I can easily mark my most productive zones to return to in the future. A 28 to 32 inch ice rod in medium action paired with a shimano Sahara 1000FE spinning reel has been the right combination for us. We have our reels rigged with 15lb braided line tied to an 8lb fluorocarbon leader. Our most productive baits of choice this year have been natural coloured swim baits and tube jigs rigged on 3/8 oz lead head jigs. Barry