topwater ice fishing

[iabass8]

http://www.thrillon.com/tag/seanwitnl-icefishing-2-0-credits-simon-travassac?i=1&ref=23&order=best

 

 

[scaleface]

First time I saw it  , I thought some one was shooting bass through the ice . 

[Paul Roberts]

Now that's unique. Bet that hurt!

Appears to have been shot in France.

[slonezp]

Bass won't be doing that in the 12" we have on our lakes right now

[flyingmonkie]

Proof that bass are still active in cold water!

 

(If you still needed proof)

["hamma"]

Just proves my theory that bass will hit "topwaters" anytime,...lol

[Paul Roberts]

2 hours ago, "hamma" said:

Just proves my theory that bass will hit "topwaters" anytime,...lol

No, they won't. Been there done that.

 

I suspect that those were fed fish, trained to a certain location and expectation. Bet that bonk on the nose surprised them too.

[everythingthatswims]

How do we know they are bass? Seems like something a pike would do in my opinion.

[CrustyMono]

last year i had no clue how to fish, i was throwing a frog on 1" of ice in a kayak. The next week i caught my first ever pickerel when 99%  of the lake was frozen, except a 2' by 12' section by the dam realease

["hamma"]

  Ummm, Did you ever try a floating rapala just after ice out? Slightly twitching it on the surface as in a dying forage? Over cover this can, and has, produced huge bass. And it has worked over drops in late fall as well. Maybe you have not tried it, or have, and it didn't work for ya. But, its worked for me.

  Then yet, in my younger years I was a bit crazy and would break ice at the ramp to get out to open water so I could fish. Not many others were out there then, and a perch patterned original floating rapala was one of the 3 lures tied on before I even got to the ramp.

 It may not be a pop-r, spook, or frog, but a "topwater" technique just the same.

[scaleface]

15 minutes ago, "hamma" said:

  Ummm, Did you ever try a floating rapala just after ice out? Slightly twitching it on the surface as in a dying forage? Over cover this can, and has, produced huge bass. And it has worked over drops in late fall as well. Maybe you have not tried it, or have, and it didn't work for ya. But, its worked for me.

  

It has worked once for me . Not a rapala but a Bomber Long A . I have tried it since but to no avail .

[Bluebasser86]

I'd be really surprised if that wasn't a pike. Too bad it completely missed the bait and then took of.

[Paul Roberts]

16 hours ago, everythingthatswims said:

How do we know they are bass? Seems like something a pike would do in my opinion.

We don't, although they look too short and maneuverable to be pike. They could also be large Euro perch but I don't know those critters well enough to know whether they could be so aggressive. I looked the guy up, Simon Travassac, -and he's got a lot of bass shots on his page. Didn't know France had bass. 

 

2 hours ago, "hamma" said:

  Ummm, Did you ever try a floating rapala just after ice out? Slightly twitching it on the surface as in a dying forage? Over cover this can, and has, produced huge bass. And it has worked over drops in late fall as well. Maybe you have not tried it, or have, and it didn't work for ya. But, its worked for me.

  Then yet, in my younger years I was a bit crazy and would break ice at the ramp to get out to open water so I could fish. Not many others were out there then, and a perch patterned original floating rapala was one of the 3 lures tied on before I even got to the ramp.

 It may not be a pop-r, spook, or frog, but a "topwater" technique just the same.

The Rapala original is the first topwater I pull out in spring, but never at ice-out -yet.

 

BTW, my comment wasn't a challenge in any way, just that, although we hear of exceptions, there are probabilities. I was thinking that I'd love to throw topwaters year round. Sure would simplify things.

[J Francho]

2 hours ago, "hamma" said:

Ummm, Did you ever try a floating rapala just after ice out? Slightly twitching it on the surface as in a dying forage? Over cover this can, and has, produced huge bass. And it has worked over drops in late fall as well. Maybe you have not tried it, or have, and it didn't work for ya. But, its worked for me.

 

Not a floater, but an X-Rap, and there was still ice on the pond I was fishing.  It was getting crushed as soon as it hit the water.  Didn't need to crank it down to depth, and twitch-pause, like the usual jerk bait retrieve.  I wished I had brought a popper that day - but who fishes a popper in mid March?!?

[MassYak85]

4 hours ago, "hamma" said:

  Ummm, Did you ever try a floating rapala just after ice out? Slightly twitching it on the surface as in a dying forage? Over cover this can, and has, produced huge bass. And it has worked over drops in late fall as well. Maybe you have not tried it, or have, and it didn't work for ya. But, its worked for me.

  Then yet, in my younger years I was a bit crazy and would break ice at the ramp to get out to open water so I could fish. Not many others were out there then, and a perch patterned original floating rapala was one of the 3 lures tied on before I even got to the ramp.

 It may not be a pop-r, spook, or frog, but a "topwater" technique just the same.

Discovered this technique by accident late fall this year. Backlashed a wiggle wart and it was sitting there for like 20 seconds before I got the slack back and "twitched it". 5lber crushed it the instant it started to move. 

[Jon P.]

I've thrown a modified dropshot rig through holes in the ice the second that it begins melting but I've never caught fish through the ice

["hamma"]

Looked Like the angler was using a tube for that video, maybe that should be on the "versatile Baits" thread as a tube is quite versatile as it is.,...But THRU the ice? thats a new one,.... lol

 The video may be of "trained" fish, could be photoshopped, I hope we all know that "everything" we see on the internet is subject to scrutiny, and in many cases fake altogether,.But is sure looked real to me.

 I wouldnt put it past a bass to do such though. They are predators, and I've seen some crazy stuff while fishing for them. Like attacking baby ducks, bass that have a huge fish already half way down its throat and still hitting a full sized spook, I once saw one jump right out of the water to strike at a chick-a-dee on a bushes branch close to the water,. A snake swimming on the surface of the swamp,...and not a small snake either, a full grown 4 to 5 footer harassed all the way to shore! by a bass no bigger than a 1 lbr! for almost 50 yards!,....etc.,...

 Our quarry seems to take shots at whatever they can,. Its no wonder the helicopter lure and such are out there and actually selling. Not to spit at that lure, just an observation of the tenacity of bass. 

 I too, would love a "consistent topwater" bite. Its so much fun!

 

  No worries Paul,.. I didnt take exception. Just an attempt to clarify

[JT Bagwell]

On ‎1‎/‎10‎/‎2017 at 7:13 AM, Bluebasser86 said:

I'd be really surprised if that wasn't a pike. Too bad it completely missed the bait and then took of.

 

I saw this video several weeks back, except it was much clearer. If I remember right, there were 2 or 3 small bass

that were visible swimming away after the one hit the ice.