Help with pannies

[Ralph Wiggum]

I'm pretty new to icefishing, this really being only my second season. I did alright last year later in the winter finding crappies and sunnies in deeper holes, but I'm not exactly sure what type of things I should be looking for at this time in the season.

Can some of you exerts give me some advice on locations, times, tactics, etc. to help me ice some early winter panfish?

I'll be spending some time next weekend on a 500 acre lake the drops to about 20 feet, with a big hump up to 10 feet in the middle along with a big hole that drops to 40 feet. There's also a few reed beds. Where should I start my search (if you'd like to see a map of the lake, e-mail me).

Thanks for all the help!

[fisherdog19]

Right now you could focus on finding pockets in what is left of the weeds in 6-14 fow depending on how deep the weeds grow. I would also look for mud, because it holds the little critters that crappies feed on. The critters tend to come out when the sun goes down. Also, if that hump is close to a shoreline break, I would try the deep water saddle between the shoreline and the hump, they tend to be good funnel areas. If you can find a mud flat in 10-15 fow that is close to a sharp break, it would be another good funnel area that fish from deep water would use to get to the flat and feed. Just some thoughts.