Ice Fishing Rookie Skunked Again on a High-Rated Solunar Day—Need Advice

[waterfrontdinning]

Hi everyone, I’m new to the forum and just started ice fishing this winter.

Today, I was ice fishing at Miner’s Bay on Gull Lake and rented a hut there. By the way, the hut was very clean and in great condition compared to the other three huts I’ve rented elsewhere. I deliberately chose today because, according to the solunar calendar, fish activity was predicted to be very high (96 out of 100 on the app). I’ve fished on a 15-rating day twice and got nothing, and on a 55-rating day, I caught 3 or 4 small perch. So, I had very high hopes for today—until I got skunked again. To add to the sting, my neighboring hut caught two arm-length lake trout. It hurts a little, not gonna lie.

This was my first time targeting walleye and lake trout. The hut operator helped me set up a dead stick with live minnows, which I relied on throughout the day. I got a few bites but wasn’t able to set the hook. I was fishing in about 40 to 50 feet of water. I also knew the barometric pressure had recently risen (mostly clear skies), which might have played a role.

I’m feeling a bit confused and would love to know what went wrong. Any advice or insights would be greatly appreciated!

Edited 8 hours ago by waterfrontdinning