Ice fishing is one of the greatest activities to enjoy during the winter season. But to truly enjoy this excellent pastime, you’ll need to know the best time to ice fish.
You’ll often hear that certain times, such as early in the morning or late at night, are the best ones for a good catch.
However, the best time for ice fishing varies according to other factors as well, such as the type of fish and the state of the weather.
In today’s article, we’ll walk you through a brief guide about the best times to ice fish, so you can enjoy a full icebox on your way home!
The Best Times for Ice Fishing
Ideally, the most experienced ice anglers out there would have enough time to go ice fishing for the entire day from the before sunrise all the way to beyond sunset.
However, not all of us can afford this time or have enough patience to sit there all day waiting for the perfect opportunity.
If you want to make the most out of your ice fishing session, you’ll need to pick some of the most fruitful times of the day where a lot of fish are set out for feeding.
Since most experts believe that the time of sunrise and sunset are the best for ice fishing, let’s have a brief look at both of them.
After Sunrise
The first couple of hours after sunrise are called the golden hours among ice anglers. These are the times where you should expect the most fishing opportunities and the largest trophy catches to come by.
However, waking up exactly at sunrise can cost you to miss some potential opportunities for excellent catches.
For that reason, you should always wake up around 30 to 60 minutes before sunrise, so you can have time to get your gear ready and your holes drilled.
In fact, you might even want to do some preplanning and spot picking earlier because the morning bite is significantly short in winter.
Even the most perfectly picked spot for drilling would yield no fish if you drill it while the fish are already out and spooked.
Around Sunset
Another excellent time to pick for ice fishing is the evening bite, which is exactly around the time where the sun goes down.
This time of the day can actually be an added bonus if you’ve been there since sunrise because most fish tend to pass by the same holes you’ve drilled in the morning.
If you have the entire day for yourself, make sure you bring along some water, food, and proper lighting to keep the fishing going.
What’s great about this fishing opportunity is that it can extend for a bit longer than the one in during sunrise.
You should usually expect it to last for about an hour before sunset and might extend for a couple more into the night, especially for walleyed pikes and crappies.
Remember that, due to the limitations of light, you won’t be able to find the best spots during the night, so you also have to prepare your spots and drill your holes a bit earlier. Also, you should know that not all fish species are remarkably active at night.
What Makes Sunrise and Sunset Times the Best Ones?
It’s all about feeding. Fish usually become very active during their feeding times. During the night, the marine invertebrates and zooplankton that fish feed upon become more active.
As the light at the bottom level decreases, these creatures rise to the top of the water, causing the fish to come out and hunt for them.
Similarly, during the sunrise, they sink back to the bottom, which causes another period of activity among fish, hence the expression “feeding frenzy”!
What About Other Times of the Day?
Ideally, the early morning times before sunrise and then again after the sunset are the most productive times of the day when it comes to ice fishing.
However, this doesn’t mean that other times of the day aren’t fruitful. You can always try your luck during the day but you shouldn’t expect anything out of the ordinary.
This happens simply because the prime times for fish feeding are usually early in the morning and again into the night.
Is Fishing at Night Worth it?
If you can’t afford enough time to go ice fishing during the day, don’t underestimate going at night!
In fact, the night is one of the best times to go fishing. Some species such as crappies and walleyed pikes are very active and come out to feed during the night, so you can catch a lot of those!
There are some other species, such as trout, smelt, and catfish, that can be also found at night but to a lesser extent and depending on your area condition, so you have to give it a try!
Ideal Ice Fishing Times for Various Species
As you know, different fish species become more active at various times during the day.
While sunrise and sunset are common times for the majority of the species that you can ice fish, things vary slightly when it comes to each individual species.
Let’s have a look at the ideal ice fishing time for different fish species.
- Trout: they’re available throughout the early morning and at night, but they’re exceptionally active just before sunrise and sunset and least active during the night.
- Crappie: they prefer midday to midnight when the water is warmest in the winter, especially after sunset and towards the night.
- Walleyed Pike: they’re generally available throughout the day and night. However, they’re most triggered by the dim light setting of the hour surrounding sunrise and sunset.
- Perch: one of the easiest fish to catch because they’re generally available all day and night but they also abide by the sunset and sunrise abundance rules.
Wrap Up
With that said, you now know the best time to ice fish. As you can see, it’s always most productive to go early at sunrise or around sunset for the most catch.
Remember to study the spots beforehand and find the best spots for punching holes earlier to make the most out of that feeding frenzy time!