Lakers - How to trigger bites?

[waterbound]

I've tried ice-fishing for lakers a couple times now but I've only had one bite but marked plenty of fish. I read through the inland laker tactics thread and I don't remember seeing anything about how to trigger fish that will just look, but I might missed it. Anyway my question is how do you turn the sniffers into biters? Thanks in advance.

[walleye365]

you got keep playin the cat and mouse game with them. im sure some of them would chase your bait i let them chase a few times and usally they will smack it if there not i will get them to chase then stop it mid way up and it suprises them maybe and usally they smack it kind of a reaction strike. but they are smart thats why there so fun keep it up and you will start getting more strikes. dont give up and the laker gods will pay it forward. theres alot better laker fisherman then me that will chime in when they see this.

[Redlantern]

Waterbound, I read the east central forum quite a bit. Sounds like you only try fishing Grindstone, am I right? If so, go further north to laker country. I think you'll find greater success by being in the right area. Just my .02

[waterbound]

So far I've only fished Big Trout in the Brainerd area and Grindstone. I'd love to make a trip further north but I don't know that I'll have the opportunity to take the car up north for a couple days this season (I'm not the only one that needs to use it).

[Jim Almquist]

This is from Steve Foss from the Inland Lake Trout Gear & Tactics and its how I trigger a bite when they only look. I have only tried it on the Northern Mn. lakes but I have to believe it would work on all Laker lakes.

Steve Foss

" For lakers, jig aggressively. So aggressively that any walleye in the area will be sent running away. Lakers love to chase. I like the jigging rap especially for its erratic action, and I've worked out a technique on lakers that come in all hot but just won't hit. Reel the rap up fast, watch the laker dash up on your vex but don't wait for him to get to the lure. While he's sprinting up, drop that lure back down so it's 10 feet below him, and he'll drop back down for it. Before he gets quite down to it, sprint it right back up and wait for him to get nearly to it then drop it back down past him. We're talking about 40 to 70 FOW, so you crank it up above him 20 feet, even, and drop it back below him 10 or 20 feet. Keep doing this and it can drive that laker crazy. After a few cycles of this, when I crank it up hard and he dashes up to get it, I just hold it still and let him come, and lots of times that'll do the trick. "

[walleye365]

waterbound let me know when your next trip to BT will be maybe we can chase some lakers.

[knoppers]

This is from Steve Foss from the Inland Lake Trout Gear & Tactics and its how I trigger a bite when they only look. I have only tried it on the Northern Mn. lakes but I have to believe it would work on all Laker lakes.

Steve Foss

" For lakers, jig aggressively. So aggressively that any walleye in the area will be sent running away. Lakers love to chase. I like the jigging rap especially for its erratic action, and I've worked out a technique on lakers that come in all hot but just won't hit. Reel the rap up fast, watch the laker dash up on your vex but don't wait for him to get to the lure. While he's sprinting up, drop that lure back down so it's 10 feet below him, and he'll drop back down for it. Before he gets quite down to it, sprint it right back up and wait for him to get nearly to it then drop it back down past him. We're talking about 40 to 70 FOW, so you crank it up above him 20 feet, even, and drop it back below him 10 or 20 feet. Keep doing this and it can drive that laker crazy. After a few cycles of this, when I crank it up hard and he dashes up to get it, I just hold it still and let him come, and lots of times that'll do the trick. "

thats exactly what we do, sometimes you have to real as fast as you can, to get that laker going. we have watched lakers come off the bottom in over 100 feet, to chase a bait as we cranked it up very fast, and they can catch up to it. its a blast.

[waterbound]

Thanks for the advice, hopefully I'll get one and worst case I'll be doing just as well as I have before...but it beats working!

Walleye365 I don't have any trips planned up to Big Trout but if I make it out that way I'll let you know!

[Steve Foss]

You need to use a heavy lure or the triggering technique jimalm quoted above won't work very well. A Jigging Rap is ideal for that because it dives really fast. It doesn't work every time. Maybe 15-20 percent of the time once you get the technique within your comfort zone.

[walleye365]

sounds good waterbound

[jim carpenter]

sniffers into biters - cat and mouse method works. think of how little interest the old cat pays to the mouse on the end of the stick when it is not moving... shake the mouse on the end of the string - wake up the cat and it will chase the mouse. not unusual at all to move lake trout 25 feet up and down through the water column prior to biting. good luck.