How do I know where the weedline is?

[blackdog1101]

OK, rookie question here. How do I know where the weedline is? I'm really enjoying ice fishing this year, but I'm sure that lots of times I'm fishing over "dead" water. The hardest part I'm having with ice fishing is that with snow and ice everything looks the same.

[blue_healer_guy]

An underwater camera or go out in the fall and find what depth the weedline is.

[PerchJerker]

Or ask at a local bait shop.

If you're in thick weeds you can mark them on a flasher, although this is tougher to read if you're ice fishing in sparse weeds. Just yesterday I was fishing on a flat which is weedy in the summer, but with the camera down and spinning it in a full circle I could only see 1 weed, which was only 18" tall.

[hanson]

Becoming familiar with a lake year round (spring, summer, fall, winter) is going to be your best method to knowing where the weeds are in the winter, and how the fish relate to them.

I would say most guys who have great success on the ice know the lakes they are fishing very well in the summer as well. Learning where the weeds are, where the mud is, where the rock is, where the sand is, and transitions are so much easier to find in a boat. Remember these spots, GPS these spots, and then remember to check them out in the winter.

I realize that not everyone can hit every lake they plan to fish in the winter during the summer and thats OK, it'll just take a little more legwork when you hit the ice to get on the right areas.

Checking out a decent map would be a good place to start. Most HotSpots maps have weeds indicated on the map. You can head towards one of these areas and auger a line of holes from deeper water to shallow water until you intersect the weedline. Once you intersect the weeds, you can move laterally down the weedline. When you do find weeds, they show up very readily on a flasher. If you don't have a camera you can also drop a heavier lure down into the weeds and try and catch a couple of them. Pull them up and see what kind they are... are they brown or green? Green weeds are definitely key so if you don't happen into green ones, keep searching.

You might also find weeds while augering holes. Alot of times in shallow water, I'll pull up weeds with my auger. Another tip is to look around in areas where others have fished and see if there are any weeds laying on the ice, a lot of times there are when previous fisherman have been fishing in or near weeds.

And obviously, the depth the weedline is found at varies lake to lake depending on water clarity. If you can research the water clarity on the lake you are going to fish, it'll give you an idea whether you need to be in 6 feet of water or 18 feet of water.

[johnmn]

Nice write up on this subject Hanson. This will help me alot also. Thanks

[blackdog1101]

Chris, thank you for the excellent reply. That is very helpful. Up until recently I pretty much exclusively fished moving water, so lakes are still pretty new to me, and I've got a lot to learn. Thanks!!