If you are looking to have the best ice fishing lure selection it’s a good idea to own an assortment of different baits like ice jigs. A wide selection of lures gives you more options for fine tuning according to fish activity and foraging as well as and other factors.
Let’s talk about popular ice fishing lures for catching walleye, perch, crappie, northern pike, brook trout and other species.
Lures can be divided into four main categories:
* Gliding Jigs * Lipless Crankbaits * Spoons * Ice Jigs
Gliding Jigs
The best walleye ice fishing lure is probably the Rapala Jigging Rap which falls in the category of Gliding Jigs. These jigs have a horizontal, bait-fish profile with a natural swimming action. Along with walleye, gliding jigs also catch perch, crappie, northern pike, whitefish and trout.
As far as “jigging” is concerned lifting a gliding jig one to two feet produces a tantalizing swim to attract fish. Equally effective is imparting a short, hard rod snap, which makes a lure dart up and off to the side with an evasive action.
“Jigging” or the motion of moving your lure up and down and in such a way a gliding jig falls is part of its appeal. When allowed to fall on semi slack line, its motion is slow and circular and this action mimics a wounded bait-fish. Once a gliding jig pulls the line tight, it then swims in from the side and comes to rest directly under the ice hole and that is when fish will strike.
Lipless Crankbaits
Lipless Crankbaits are one of the hottest lures used when icefishing. Vertically jigging a rattling, lipless crankbait upwards sends out vibrations before fluttering downwards and certain models fall with an enticing side to side action.
Rapala’s Rippin’ Rap and Ultra Light Rippin’ Rap with their visual and sonic display of a rattling, lipless crankbait, help cover the water and attract fish from a great distance. These qualities are why these hard baits have a reputation for appealing to aggressive fish and triggering strikes.
However, the reality is inactive fish can sometimes be deterred by noisy lures and aggressive jigging moves so you have to change up your techniques. In certain instances, jigging with short hops and light shakes may be enough to make fish bite.
Other times using a non-rattling lipless crankbait, like a Rapala Slab Rap is the better approach. This lure has a subtle presentation and a slimmer bait fish profile than the taller Rippin’ Rap. Designed with the weight being forward in the bait, the Slab Rap can be lightly jigged to produce a rocking action excellent at triggering lethargic fish.
Spoons
A preferred choice for anglers are jigging spoons and have found to be one of the best whitefish ice fishing lures after spreaders, The flashy, flutter and tumbling action makes them irresistible to walleye, perch, crappie, burbot, pike and whitefish just to name a few fish species. Many different types of spoons are available. Three of the most popular styles for ice fishing are straight, slab and high action spoons.
Ice Jigs
The simplest definition of a jig is that it is a weighted hook and then when you add a live bait or a soft plastic it then becomes a ice fishing lure. The VMC Moon Eye Jig Head is one good choice for ice fishing and comes with various weights for everything from panfish to muskey and some are available rigged with plastic. The 1/16-ounce VMC Nymph and Wingding are two examples for panfish. The 1/4-ounce Storm Searchbait Shad 360GT is a choice for northern pike and lake trout.
