higgins smelt

[barnacle bill]

smelt are being caught on higgins at the west boat launch. good numbers being caught, late afternoon into the nite is best, spikes waxies are the bait of choice or small perch shiners. under water lites are a must for nite fishing. ice is 5-6" in 65' of water. smelt are in 35'-70' of water from top to bottom. see ya out their. b.b.

[Ruler]

Sounds like you got into some good action BB. I have a couple of questions though.

I've never fished for smelt through the ice. What type of rig does one use; plain hook, tear drop, tiny jig, etc? Use a spinning reel for water that deep I'd assume? What are these underwater lights you mentioned? I have a coleman lantern, but it most definitely does not work when wet. (As I learned when the waves picked up when dipping off AuGres last year. :rolleyes: ;) )

I appreciate any advice you can provide.

[barnacle bill]

ruler, sorry took solong to reply, be busy. the underwater lights are by optronics and put out 300,000 candlle power. takes a 12 volt battery. i use a light jig pole & spinning reel combo 6LB trilene and a hali jig tipped with a wax. good smelt action now. start biting at dark. should be biting dyring the day time soon. hopes this helps. b.b.

[Ruler]

Thanks for the info Bill. Does anybody up there rent those underwater lights? I'd imagine they're kinda expensive and specific for this purpose. (I've been unemployed for a while now, so the cash is a bit tight. :( ) If not, would fishing near a group of people with them work?

Thanks again.

[barnacle bill]

ruler, underwater lights work best. but if you have coleman lanterns drill a seperate hole for it or a group of lanterns. those underwater lights retail for about 19.99. b.b.

[FishingJoe]

As clear as the ice is up there, your lantern will work just fine. the idea is to get some light in the water, and a good lantern on top will serve that purpose - it will just take a little longer for the fish to find you. The end is - don't NOT go just because you don't have that specific piece of equipment!!!:cool:

[mickdrosco]

24 hours of rain has pounded the ice here. The North end of the lake will definitely be useless, at least until a very cold spell. The South end will be questionable.

[SPORTSMAN]

Ruler,
I use a car headlight for smelt, crappie etc. It is very inexspensive:) :)

[mickdrosco]

Ruler,
And I use a 50 watt DC lightbulb made for RVs. (hardware store) It is screwed into an all weather socket, attached to an old piece of plastic plumbing pipe and sealed with silicone. As a battery I steal the one out of my lawn tractor. Very inexpensive as well, and I've been using it for years. Smelt fishing is not a yuppie activity sponsored by polo.com :)