By Mike Fitzgerald, Contributor at Wild Nexus

Without a doubt, late winter is my favourite time to get on the ice and pursue Jumbo Perch on the hard water. For the prospecting ice angler, this time of year has a lot going on that they should find of particular interest, and without fail, all of my biggest perch of the year will be caught during the prelude to spring. Around my home waters, a fifteen inch perch is likely, and fish pushing sixteen do exist. 

But there are also risks in the conditions during late winter that can cut an ice fishing season short, and we’ll talk a little bit about those, too. With that being said, this often is the most productive time to consistently catch massive perch that dreams are made of. 

There are many biological changes happening with the biggest jumbo perch because almost all of those that fit the definition are females, and because they will be approaching their spawning season (Yellow Perch spawn in spring, and if the water temperature is right, this can sometimes occur while the lake is still frozen), their movements will be dictated by this as we move through into March and April. 

Regardless, as winter wanes, the fishing is still great, so let’s get right into the “where’s” and the “how’s”. 

Staying On Top Of Fish

If you found big numbers of jumbo perch during those dog days of mid-winter, those locations will still be a really good place to keep targeting them, but like most fun, all good things must come to an end. Eventually, these fish will need to move back toward the shallows for their spawning season, and an ice angler should be doing the diligence to identify these spawning grounds ahead of this seasonal shift. 

Perch spawn overtop of whatever aquatic vegetation, and it doesn’t take the big girls very long to leave those mid-winter locations and wind up right back in those locations where we found them in the early days of the hard water season. If one day you find that the fish have vacated their basin holding spots, head toward where you started the season and work backward, cutting holes and covering various depths until you locate them again. Believe me, they will not have gone very far. 

As these fish move and the days become longer, they begin to break away from the big schools and resort back to the pods of fish, though these will often still be much larger than the little wolf packs that they tend to be in the early days of winter. I play this situation based on what the fish do from one day to another – if the situation dictates that I need to cut twenty holes, I’ll do it. If I auger three and immediately find good numbers of jumbos, I’ll stay put – and so being ready to adapt to any given situation will do a lot of good. If you’re able to run a second ice rod, this is the time to do it (please check your regional regulations first). 

How To Catch Them

Prespawn Jumbo Perch are notoriously aggressive. The fish know that they will spend an excessive amount of calories during the spawn and tend to feed a little heavier right before they move into the shallows. Make no mistake about it, these big fish will hit a bait with reckless abandon when they’re all fired up. At this time of year, I like to fish a little more aggressively, utilizing the same ice rod outfits as I would the rest of the hard water season, but changing my technique. 

Unless the fish react negatively, I’ll use 4-6lb monofilament and a flashy jigging spoon, moving it through the lower water column with stronger jigging motions than I might otherwise deem necessary. This calls aggressive fish in first, and because I’m not overly interested in messing around with smaller fish, my jigging spoon will usually be between two and a half or three inches in length. Horizontal jigs will still work, so make sure to have a few on hand. 

Tipping with live bait will be the icing on the cake, and a thick minnow head is often enough to get the feeding frenzy going. This is also a great time of year to see just how frenzied jumbos will get because if you lose your minnow, chances are the fish will still strike the jigging spoon if you drop it back down. They can literally be that aggressive. 

Exercise Safety

This is late winter, and the weather can be anything but predictable. Ice conditions change as the surface is exposed to more sunlight regularly and begins to weaken, which warrants the use of extreme caution. Bring a spud, wear a survival suit if you’re unsure of the ice conditions. I’ve found myself stranded twice after a pressure crack that I could walk right over top of on my way out to a good perch spot had opened up several feet wide, only for me to discover this on my way back. If you’re unsure of ice conditions, err on the side of caution, and if you can, always fish with a partner at this time of year. We all want to make it back home alive and, preferably, dry.