Many crappie fishermen hang up their rods during the cold winter months, winterize their boats and sit back patiently waiting for spring. On the other hand, a lot of successful fishermen continue to fish for crappie all winter long, and for good reason: finding crappie in the winter can be easier than it is in the spring and summer.

Catching fish through the ice doesn't require a lot of fancy equipment. A short fishing rod and reel, a few hooks and a package of worms are about all you need.

Ice fishing gear

Jigs and jigging spoons are great lures to use when fishing through the ice. Tipping the hook of the lure with a piece of meal worm or another bait will make the lure even more attractive to fish.

In fact, if you just want to give ice fishing a try, you don't even need an ice auger.

Drew Cushing, warm water sport fisheries coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources, says you'll usually find plenty of predrilled holes on the ice fishing waters you visit. "If anglers drilled the holes just a day or two before," he says, "they'll have only an inch or two of ice in them. Just break that thin ice, and you're in business."

What can you do to improve results using readymade and homemade baits? Certain ingredients make all the difference! The best winter carp baits react with water and fish senses to a hugely advanced degree. Winter baits really have to be at the peak of efficiency of all aspects of bait performance. So what can you exploit to make your readymade and homemade boilies and other baits catch you more fish? Read on to find out!

Most anglers on the bank appear not to be aware of how water temperature affects how water actually moves and dissipates dissolved substances. In the colder denser water of winter and spring baits need help to actually function best! One vital aspect of this is making baits become solution massively more efficiently.

An ice fishing house is a simple structure that can be created by just about anyone with basic tools and a willingness to actually do it. Generally an ice fishing house is just a simple six by ten structure with holes in the floor but it can also be as complex and as luxurious as you want it to be. With a little bit of planning, the right materials and tools for the job you can make and plan your own custom design for and ice fishing hut.

Catching crappies through the ice can a be tough venture at times. Here's ten crappie ice fishing tips that will help put the odds in your favor.

1. Wintertime crappies most often relate to sharp drop offs, suspend in deep water flats, and submerged wood in deep water. It is not uncommon to find crappies suspended in 35′ of water if available. Because these fish can be anywhere from five feet all the way to the bottom a fish finder such as a Vexilar is a must.

2. When catching a crappie remember that crappies are a schooling fish so once you catch one, more fish are likely in the area. So take your time and try a few different jigs or bait and vary the depth of your presentation if you don't have a flasher.

3. Crappies rarely approach bait in a downward approach, meaning your better off presenting your bait above the fish versus below. I have witnessed this countless times when watching crappies approach my jig on my Vexilar FL-8.

In general, the cooking time for fish is 10 minutes for every inch of thickness - whether you bake, poach, broil, or grill. To test for doneness, slip the point of a sharp knife into the thickest part of the fish and pull aside. If flakes begin to separate, the fish is probably done. Remove fish from heat and let it stand 3 to 4 minutes to finish cooking.

Baking
Rinse fish and pat dry with a paper towel. Whole fish may be stuffed with rice and vegetables. Place whole, boned fish in a baking pan. Brush with butter and oil and season with salt and pepper, or cover with a piquant sauce. Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C) until a knife slice in the thickest part reveals the flesh to be opaque but still moist.

When most people think of bass fishing the last thing that comes to mind are bass fishing rigs. Instead things like plastic worms, the "jig and pig", crank baits, and top water fishing come to mind. While all of these things should come to mind when you think about bass fishing, bass fishing rigs such as the two being discussed in this article should come to mind as well.

Below you will find two very effective bass fishing rigs, both of which can help any bass fisherman experience much more fishing success. The first rig, called the gang hook rig, is the best way to present live worms and other live bait as bait when fishing for bass. The second rig, called the casting bubble rig, is a way for spin fishermen to fish with an artificial fly in a very effective manner. The bottom line is that both of these rigs should be seriously considered, and should be a part of any serious bass fisherman's repertoire.

Spinnerbaits are easy to use and they find fish quickly. The two traditional types are the inline spinnerbait and the safety pin style spinnerbait. The inline has a spinner blade in direct line with a weighted body and a treble hook that is usually tied with hair. The spinner acts as a fish attractor and is usually highly polished or finished in a fluorescent paint.

The hook hair portion of the lure serves as the body, and they are dyed in dull colors that simulate natural food items. Some fishermen attach soft plastic body dressings to spinner baits which add color and increase the action of the lure. Examples include the Panther Martin and the Rooster Tail.

Safety pin style spinnerbaits have a blade or blades directly over a single hook and are usually dressed with a silicone or rubber skirt. The fish to target with spinnerbaits include all bass species, trout and crappie.

The hybrid striped bass, or "wiper" is an artificial cross between a striped bass (Morone saxatilis) and a white bass (Morone chrysops). Hybridization of these two species does not occur naturally. Therefore, hybrid striped bass must be cultured in a fish hatchery situation. Hybrid bass can be distinguished from white bass by its two tooth patches on the tongue, as opposed to only one tooth patch on the white bass. As they grow older, hybrid bass become thicker and deeper-bodied, giving them a distinctive short and stocky appearance.

Anglers have a special affinity for northern pike. This most accommodating of fish bites readily during the daylight hours, sparing those in pursuit of fishing thrills the agony of rising before dawn. Northern pike while similar are far less wary than muskellunge: on average, it takes about eight hours of fishing to hook a northern, while anglers must log nearly 100 hours on the water to get a glimpse of a muskellunge.