Pro ice fishing angler from Minnesota tells the locals how it's done

Pro ice fishing angler from Minnesota tells the locals how it's done
Brian “Bro” Brosdahl has been ice fishing since he was 4 years old.

“I’m from Max, Minnesota. Population 101. My father took me out fishing. I just couldn’t sit inside the house,” he said recently while giving a seminar at Bass Pro Shops at the Fingerlakes Mall.

Brosdahl, 45, is a professional ice fisherman and ice fishing guide. He co-designed the Frabill “Bro’s Series rod and reel combos,” Northland Fishing Tackle’s “Bro’s Bug Collection” lures and other ice fishing products. He has been featured on a number of outdoors television programs and contributes to dozens of outdoors magazines.

In recent weeks, he’s been at Bass Pro Shops and Gander Mountain stores across the Northeast and in Canada, giving talks on ice fishing and pitching his brand of baits and ice fishing tackle.

“I just love ice fishing,” he said. “You can go out to places you can’t go out to the summertime. And during the wintertime, fish tend to school up. They’re more vulnerable. They’re spread out through a weedbed. They’re out in the open where you can get them.”


Above all, Brosdahl is about being safe.

He stresses that anglers should be careful about stepping onto unfamiliar ice, or onto ice when they don’t know how thick it is. He highly recommends wearing some kind of personal flotation device, having a long rope and always having hand-held spikes tied around your wrists.

“When you fall through the ice, it’s like going through a trap door. It’s fast,” he said.

The following are excerpts from his talk at the local Bass Pro Shops:

Why do fish — when you’re ice fishing — bite better in the early morning than any other part of the day?
It’s simple. During the night, all the bugs and insects and blood worms come off the bottom to eat, and the fish feed on them. As they start to settle down in the morning as the sun comes up, the fish scramble to grab what they can.

Keep in mind, perch (and other panfish) can’t see much at night. When the bugs and blood worms start settling back into the mud, the panfish go after them. The bite usually settles down at about 8, 9 or 10 a.m., depending on the lake. It ramps up again later in the day (when the bait starts coming out again).

You mentioned that perch during the wintertime are usually found “on the flats.” What do you mean?
During the warmer months, when the weedbeds are green and healthy, the perch are generally found there. That’s where the scuds (the small, freshwater shrimp) and other food is.

As the weeds die off, the perch will drop into the flats because that’s where the insects are. Every lake is different, though.

Generally, if you find a spot where the sand meets the mud you’ll find perch. They get crabs and minnows on the sandy bottom, and the insects in the mud. Perch like to have food all around them.

What kind of pole do you use while ice fishing? Does it vary, depending on the fish you’re targeting?
Absolutely. When I was kid, I was the first among the folks around me to use a rod and reel before anyone told me it was right or wrong. I used to take a broken tip and a reel. I just thought it was silly to have line all over the ice. I’ve since designed several different kinds of rods for ice fishing.

If you’re fishing for perch, bluegills and crappy, you should use a light fishing rod and use light bait. You go to a stiffer rod, but not real heavy, when you’re fishing for (larger fish). My blue gill rod is light and is very sensitive. I have an orange bead on the tip so I can see it. You jig (your bait) nice and easy. When the tip stops, you set the hook.

My poles are designed with ergonomics in mind. The rod and cork are slightly curved for easy handling. Look for a pole that has good cork on it and is warm to the touch. And finally, the pole should bend at the tip, not lower (in the body of the pole).

I like using 2- to 3-pound test line. For me, 3-pound is the magic line. It’s strong enough to play the big fish and use bigger lures, and light enough for bluegills. I like monofilament. It doesn’t freeze.

Finally, I like reels with wide spools. Narrow spools tend to kink your line.
Talk about jigging for panfish. Many people jig their bait too much. Fish don’t have sneakers. They can’t chase it fast enough and you don’t want to be ripping it all over the place.

Start off by lowering your bait/lure just slightly in the hole and see what it takes to move your bait. It doesn’t take much. Just simply shake it. When you get going with certain plastics, you won’t even be able to tell that you’re jigging. Now lower your bait to the bottom and bring it up slightly. Recreate that same action and you’re in style.

Talk about when to jerk when you get a bite.
Bluegills will suck your bait in and spit it out relatively fast. They don’t have teeth. They have crushers in their throat that they use to crush food. Perch and crappies both have fleshy mouths. You rip (your pole with a forceful jerk) and you’ll lose them. Just pull.

How many maggots do you put on a jig or lure?
A lot of people only put one or two on. That’s not the way to go. Really jam them on there. That way, when a fish grabs your line it won’t single out and grab one or two maggots. It’ll grab the whole bunch and take off.
Any particular bait you’d like to highlight?
Bloodworms are very awesome and important to our ecosystem. They’re on a fish’s mind, instinctively. They’re red, sometimes a little greenish in color. They look like a (little) piece of spaghetti. You open up crappies, a walleye or a perch and their stomachs are usually full of them

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