Jigging through the ice is a multi-faceted art. Sure, when fishing lightly pressured waters and ideal conditions, success isn’t difficult to achieve.

However, when trying to coax well-fed or negative fish from popular, heavily pressured waters during less-than-perfect conditions, even after following all of the protocols, jigging through the ice can become strikingly complex.  Success in such situations demands determination, a cool head and resolute thinking. We must get serious, meet the challenge with calculated precision and proceed with an efficient, well-thought-out, step-by-step strategic approach.

Easier said than done, yes, but consistent success is best gained by those who have preplanned courses of action strategically outlined, and hit the ice fully prepared to execute as conditions dictate. Attentively choosing the best locations, diligently preparing for anticipated situations by carefully selecting a variety of well-planned presentations, each meticulously laid out, rigged and ready to go provides a good start. But, at some point you will inevitably find yourself staring at a sonar or underwater camera screen, watching despondent fish repeatedly rejecting one attempt after another.

That is when advanced tactics and techniques come into play, and among them is a category of ploys that I call reaction strikes.

Move or Sit?

Jigging sequences can be broken down into four segments: initial attraction, draw, response and trigger. Reaction strikes fall within the trigger variable.

When fish are drawn in, perhaps responsive but not striking, we’re initially faced with a tactical decision. Some anglers will simply reel up and leave the tenacious fish behind, opting to move in search of more active ones. Or they’ll rest them, perhaps planning to return and try them again later.

Others, however, remain to face the challenge, and this is where reaction strike techniques are honed. By spending time assessing each situation, being open to clues and hunches, it is possible to heighten perceptions, learn to better see and interpret details,  and ultimately develop a keen, intuitive sense for making positive things happen during tough fishing periods.

Depending whether fish are schooled, cruising in small pods or solitary, they may display generalized tendencies, but individuals often react somewhat differently. Aligning techniques becomes multi-dimensional, and now, advanced jigging techniques truly shine. The trick is watching for hints, sometimes very subtle, then having the ability to read them and appropriately respond to induce reactionary, instinctive or impulsive triggers.

Case in point: One recent trip, I joined several friends on a Canadian lake supporting a tremendous lake trout population. Soon after setting up we began marking fish — solid, wide, bright red marks indicating our targets. They were not just sluggish marks leisurely floating through the cones of our sonar.

Those fish would charge our baits, causing our hearts to race in anticipation of vicious, rod-jarring strikes — but that was not what was happening. Far from it. While active, they were not reckless wilderness fish willing to unwittingly strike anything that moved.

We were not all fishing the same way, either. Ted was working a classic Five O’ Diamonds spoon tipped with a minnow head. Ron was ripping a favorite rattle bait. Paul was aggressively working a blade bait, while I methodically circled a bare-bones, flavor-enhanced tube jig. Although initially rushing each of our chosen presentations, most of these seemingly intense chases ended in disappointingly half-hearted short strikes, or fish simply turning and swimming away at the last minute.

It happened repeatedly. From location to location, hole to hole. Same results. After four hours of working a half-dozen spots, we had one small lake trout to show for our efforts. We were getting frazzled, fully aware we needed to do something different.

But What?

My response was to reach into my tackle box and pull out the largest, fattest, glittering tube in my possession and thread it over a heavy jig head. The water was deep, but gin clear, so there was no question that those fish would see this large profile monstrosity. And based on the situation, I was pretty sure they would come up to check it out. The key was finding a way to trigger a strike.

On my first drop, the tube was down about 15 feet in 60 feet of water when sure enough, a ghostly mark suddenly transformed from a thin, flickering green into a steady dark yellow-orange. Then it materialized into an increasingly thick, solid red mark rocketing toward my hollow chunk of glittering plastic.

This time, instead of working the bait up trying to get the fish to chase and commit, I did the exact opposite. I stopped, opened the bail and let the loathsome blob fall like a rock. The fish turned, aggressively slurped the tube on its way down, and the fight was on.

Two ice holes later, another fish appeared, just deeper. This time, upon sight of the approaching fish, I fought my desire to repeat the same sudden drop, and instead immediately began retrieving the tube as fast as I could reel, racing the lure upward away from the fish. The move worked, quickly confirming that a determined lake trout can out-run a feverishly revolving, 5.2:1 gear ratio spinning reel.

This gained immediate attention and energized a flurry of activity.

Although a larger spoon was needed, an abrupt drop proved effective for Ted, while a rapid rise worked for Ron with his rattle bait. Paul’s blade did not prove as productive, but switching to a large, obnoxiously colored lipless crankbait and applying a combination of rapid rises and plummeting plunges, he soon had his rod bending, too. We ended up enjoying a memorable day, icing well more than two dozen trout that afternoon.

Success in such situations demands an ability to be open-minded, adjust, and rather than allowing moody fish time to study your bait, often involves doing something sudden or unusual. That might mean presenting an obnoxiously adorned lure, integrating erratic motions to trigger an instinctive “get it before it’s gone” reaction — or perhaps a sudden surprising complete cease of motion. All of these being attempts to initiate an impulsive strike driven by curiosity, anger, annoyance or simply the abruptness itself.

Our situation involved a king-of-the-domain predator — one intimately aggressive by nature. Rainbow and cutthroat trout might respond similarly, as may other often inherently hard-striking winter species such as pike, splake, whitefish and white bass.

With such inherently aggressive species, oversized, brightly colored lures ornately dressed with tufts of sparkling marabou, flashy, faceted beads, clicking rattles and/or sparkling flicker blades jigged with irregular or sporadic, sudden rises, drops or pauses will often provoke a trigger. Just be sure to maintain some contact with your bait so if an aggressive fish suddenly takes your bait and continues rising while you’re jigging up, or inhales that bait as it’s falling and continues on the same downward track — you won’t miss any opportunities.

Reactionary tactics can be used to trigger more typically reserved species, too, but must be uniquely tempered to meet the situation.

Walleyes

Consider another potentially large, yet often fussy target: walleyes. During a recent outing on Michigan’s Little Bay de Noc, I found they would engage and follow a gently shimmering Jigging Rapala up 5 or 6 feet deep, then lazily turn and drift away. I had already turned things down by switching from a No. 9 to a lighter, smaller No. 5. Then moved it just enough with each lift so the minnow-head-tipped center hook would wiggle enticingly, trying to tempt those apprehensive fish into committing. But, to no avail.

Any fast or sudden movements spooked them, but slowly raising or lowering the bait with faint twitches, modest, continuous shimmies or subtle “pounding” movements seemed to gain their attention. So, I began gently easing the lure downward with slight shaking motions interspersed with occasional, slight pops and pauses as it drifted lower and eventually settled to bottom.

Once there, wriggling it just enough to create a slight disturbance maintained interest. Although this game took some time, one otherwise apathetic fish finally reacted by sucking the lure directly off of the bottom. This technique proved effective the remainder of the day, proving that even passive fish just hanging around can be triggered into striking.

Another productive bottom-hugging reactionary technique involves using stand-up jigs tipped with lip or tail-hooked minnows. Again, after being lowered slowly and allowed to settle on the bottom, a gentle rocking motion often taunts response. Then followed by a simple pause, this often triggers takes.

If not, try gradually raising your bait a foot or so, then abruptly stop, and after pausing momentarily to see if any interested fish appear or engage, allow the presentation to settle back down again before gingerly quivering it directly on the bottom. Although this technique may garner little more than a nearly undetectable tap — this pestering little presence often generates enough subtle harassment to instigate a trigger.

Reactive techniques can also be used to trigger downright finicky fish. But they must be meticulously adjusted to match each scenario.

Perch and Panfish

With yellow perch, for instance, a spoon with the base hook replaced by a short, thin monofilament dropper tipped with a maggot-graced micro jig is a prime example. When jigged, the spoon not only attracts, but appears to play off the perch’s innate competitive instincts, causing individual fish to identify the spoon as another fish chasing the smaller bait. This triggers them to impulsively react by thrashing forward to steal a meal from the imagined competitor.

Even more particular species, like sunfish and bluegills, will respond to modified reactionary techniques. Sudden movement will almost certainly spook them, but easing a bait away gradually enough so that the fish “thinks” a feeding opportunity is being missed, often causes them to react instinctively and strike before the morsel can escape.

In such instances, a small tungsten jig tipped with a thin plastic tail is a great option. Gently floated gracefully down under free-falling, yet calculated guidance, interspersed with sporadic pauses, comprises a nearly flawless way to trigger reaction strikes. This provides an opportunity for a fish to simply turn, drop, then subconsciously take advantage of this “vulnerable” bait by impulsively inhaling the meal as it settles within easy reach.

Visual Cues

When using these finely tempered reactionary techniques, take note: An underwater camera is a helpful, if not essential tool, because these painstakingly soft takes can be difficult to detect. With a camera, I’ve witnessed finicky perch grasp a minnow in their lips by just the tip of the tail. Then they sit in place for quite some time before taking the minnow a little farther in, sometimes an incremental series of two, three or four such actions occur before they actually get to the hook. Even more often, I’ve watched as negative bluegills inhale and reject a maggot-tipped micro jig in a split fraction of a second.  

A camera allows you to watch such things happening in real time, then better time your hook sets. This eliminates the “short strikes” often experienced while using sonar when, as fish are seen approaching on the screen, normal protocol involves turning attention to the rod tip to watch for a bite. Such hits usually register as slight twitches or hesitations, causing an immediate reaction, one invariably resulting in the hook being set too soon and fish being missed.

Sure, through trial and error you may eventually develop an awareness of what is occurring and react accordingly, but this squanders precious time and often results in reduced catches. With an underwater camera, you can witness exactly what is happening and when your lure suddenly disappears, respond appropriately.

So the next time that you encounter a tough winter bite — no matter how challenging the situation might be or lock-jawed the fish may seem — try some of these strategies while experimenting with variations of your own.

Such refinements will bring increased success, and ultimately make you a better ice angler.

— Tom Gruenwald is a fisheries biologist, an angling writer and author of four books on ice fishing. Look for him on his television program, “Tom Gruenwald Outdoors.”