Bluegill Posted January 28, 2009 Report Share Posted January 28, 2009 Hello Today I caught a nice Brookie, 14 inches trough the ice on Northern Ontario near Elliot Lake. I was surprised to catch this trout in shallow water, 7 feet, on the sunny northshore of the lake. Last time I tried to catch Brookies on the south end of the same lake in deeper water, 15 feet, but with no success. Is that a general rule at this time that Brookies qre in shallow water under the ice near the shore? The Brookies I caught last time were full of black water bugs. Does anybody know where do theses bugs live now? Under the ice or at the bottom? Tnx for all kind answers in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassAsin Posted January 29, 2009 Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 (edited) predominently specks at this time of year are in 18" of water to about 7-8 feet. you may catch the odd one in 15 feet or so but as a general rule come winter time they head for the shallows, try fishing around some down trees or logs if you can they like to prey on bait around them and as for the black water beatles and other bugs they are often found on bottom, also specks can be full of frogs sometimes digging them out of the mud in the winter. hope this is a good enough answer for ya Matt! Edited January 29, 2009 by BassAsin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solopaddler Posted January 29, 2009 Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 Your avatar says your from Germany. Are you visiting? Regarding your questions, the spot you described catching your trout is literally a textbook example of where to fish. The most active fish are definitely shallow, usually less than 10' deep. Their winter hangouts are very similar to their spring/fall softwater haunts. Look for visible structure like large trees fallen into the lake or beaver houses and drill your holes right next to them. As far as the bugs go they were most likely a beetle of some sort. Brook trout are opportunistic and will eat pretty much whatever's available. Personally my best success through the ice has been jigging flashy spoons 1/4oz or less tipped with a small minnow. The fish are in the shallows for a reason....to feed, and they're usually aggressive. You're allowed 2 lines so it never hurts to fish a live minnow on a set line in your other hole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sinker Posted January 29, 2009 Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 Specks can be anywhere in the winter. The water temp is the same throughout the whole water column, so they can litterally be anywhere. Those black water bugs your talking about will often be right under the ice. I've caught some of my best specks in iches of water under the ice. Sometimes I'll even stir up the bottom with a stick to get their attention. They're curious little buggers!!!! Sinker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegill Posted January 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 Your avatar says your from Germany. Are you visiting? Yes, I'm visitor from Germany. Thank you and all the other angler friends who answered me. I think you all gave me very helpful answers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThisPlaceSucks Posted January 29, 2009 Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 brook trout will vary from day to day. i have caught brookies in winter in as little as 3 f.o.w. and as deep as 20 in winter. when they are feeding on aquatic invertebrates they will often be found shallow however... i can recall a day where the only time you caught a fish was just after you drilled the hole because it was stirring up the bottom in the shallow water. we ended up just sticking the auger down the hole to stir it up in pre-existing holes once we figured it out. likely the bugs you speak of were benthic inverts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TDunn Posted January 29, 2009 Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 black bugs= fresh water shrimp or wigglers (infant shad/may flies) most likely keep trying man, the elliot lake area is dynamite..... TDunn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegill Posted January 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 black bugs= fresh water shrimp or wigglers (infant shad/may flies) most likelykeep trying man, the elliot lake area is dynamite..... TDunn It looks like Corixa, please look here: http://images.google.de/images?hl=de&q...sa=N&tab=wi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThisPlaceSucks Posted January 29, 2009 Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 water striders? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegill Posted January 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 water striders? No, I don't think so. There were about 20 beetles in the trouts stomag. Corixa punctata Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sinker Posted January 29, 2009 Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 Those are water boatman. The will travel on the surface of the ice, under the water....if you can make sense of that. I've caught lots of brookies with those in thier bellies......fish shallow, and stir the bottom with a stick. Just try it and see what happens!! Sinker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegill Posted January 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 ....fish shallow, and stir the bottom with a stick. Just try it and see what happens!! Thanks a lot Sinker. Hope I can try it tomorrow! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegill Posted January 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 here you can see the trouts food http://www.troutnut.com/download/type-vide...tman-Rowing.wmv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioFisherman Posted January 29, 2009 Report Share Posted January 29, 2009 LOL ya waterboatmen, here in Ohio I get them in my swimming pool. My wife won`t let me add fish though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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