Fishing for lakers

[slough shark]

Hey me and my wife are heading out to cold lake for 4 or 5 days and we plan on doing a fair bit of ice fishing out there. Now I have only fished for lakers at spray lakes where they really don't get very big at all (14 -16 inches is a good one out there). Do you guys have any tips or techniques for lakers through the ice (hopefully bigger lakers)? right now all I would be trying is jigs plain or jighead with a minnow or a small smelt and jigging then pausing, I would be thinking close to the bottom.

[iliketrout]

You have to work the water column with lakers. Yes they can be found at the bottom but in my experience at Spray Lake this year, I've caught way more fish suspended in the water column. If you have a flasher or fish finder, it will be a lot easier to find them, and if you don't have one, my advice would be to not limit yourself to fishing just off bottom. Try one presentation just off bottom and work the water column with the other one until you key in to a specific depth they are at for that day.

[conan]

White cold lake special jig at wholesale sports bounced off the btm in 90 ft of water works at cold lake

[fish farmer]

just an FYI, last day to ice fish cold lake is this saturday, March 31. But as others have mentioned, having a flasher makes it that much easier, however it can be done without one. Bucktails, white tube jigs, airplane jigs are all the ticket, mainly in the lighter colours (whites), some dont use any bait, some use minnows, sardines, herring. personally I use the smaller herrings and lots of time no bait at all. I also use some berkly gulp herring attractant. Lakers will hit the hook as it falls 90% of the time. So keep your jig moving and watch your line on the down fall if it stops moving before you get to the bottom, set the hook. Ive never been a fan of the 'Cold lake special". Dont think too big either, 3.5 or 4 inch tube jigs is all you need, 3/8's up to 3/4 ounce is plenty. Personally I like to use 20 pound braid mainline with an 8 foot 14 pound fluorocarbon leader. I guarantee any laker you catch at cold lake with be at least twice as big as the ones youve been catching at Spray.

[Buck9]

I've been using a 2 ounce white glow jig with a double white mister twister. Caught me a couple 18lbers last weekend. Using minnows with a stinger. Caught them in 70-135ft of water, but always off bottom, had flasher, but did not see many suspended. Lots of fun hopefully I can get out once more before season end. Good luck