With each day that passes this month, ice fishing season is one step closer to an end. March boasts more daylight and warmer temperatures, and since I truly enjoy fishing outside if weather allows, this is my favorite month for solid water angling. Despite the favorable conditions, many sportsmen have had enough winter fishing, so some of the most productive waterways are often nearly deserted.

March is an excellent time to introduce youngsters and novice ice anglers to the sport, but don’t spend a lot of time thinking about it, there’s just more than two weeks left to fish.

Hand lining for smelt in a comfy fish shanty has always been a favorite pastime, so much so that even when I set out traps, I leave a line free so I can do some inside or outside jigging. Conditions this month are comfortable enough on most days to allow anglers to sit outdoors, enjoy some fresh air and sunshine, and actually take an active part in the ice fishing process. Drilling holes, baiting and setting out tipups, and playing the wait-and-watch game is acceptable when it’s cold and miserable, but whenever possible I want to employ and enjoy hands-on fishing tactics.

Since much of March is perfect weather for jigging or hand lining, Maine sportsmen who haven’t tried this style of ice fishing need to investigate these techniques and savor some great hands-on action. It’s not quite as good as presenting a dry fly or working a lure, but it’s far better than staring at various pieces of red material hoping one will pop up. The first step is to compare and contrast the two basic styles of jigging, then beg, borrow or buy the right equipment and do some first-hand training at a favorite lake.

Hand lining

Hand lining is the style of presenting a dead bait, cut bait, or lure using only finger, hand, and arm movements to impart a fish-attracting motion to the offering. Lines for this type of fishing are generally some style of coarse ice fishing line since it can be seen, felt, and manipulated more easily than monofilament. Finish up each hand line with a 4- to 8-foot leader, appropriate size hook for the quarry in quest, and occasionally a sinker about the size of a pencil eraser when using bait.

In a fishing shanty, hand lines used for smelt are often suspended from nails or short pieces of wire protruding from a beam over the fishing hole. These hanging lines are occasionally twitched to draw attention to the bait, but for the most part remain at one depth. This type of fishing isn’t hand lining in the true sense of the word.

Inside or outside, hand lining entails near constant movement of the line, and to do this properly, it’s difficult to tend more than one line. An angler sits right beside the ice hole, bends forward and extends an arm so the fishing line hangs directly down the water chute without touching the sides. Placing the elbows on top of the knees offers a comfortable position, gives the forearm and hand support, and allows the sport to look directly down into the hole.

Each hand liner has a different theory on holding the line so as to impart the best motion while exerting the least energy hour after hour. Some hold the line between thumb and forefinger, others take a couple of loose twists around one finger, and a few interlace the line in and out between all four fingers. There are dozens of other acceptable but less popular line- anchoring techniques that still prove effective, and after a few outings each angler settles on an already popular style or develops his own.

Gripping the line must be comfortable as well as allowing free, easy movement up, down, and in all directions with just the hand or occasionally with the arm. Sometimes both hands are used to bring the bait clear to the surface. Just as important as ease of line handling is to hold the line in such a manner that the slightest nibble will be felt, and the hook can be set quickly with a short, deft hand flick. On the other hand, so to speak, occasionally a big- game fish will strike in a rush and keep on going, so hand-lining sportsmen must have a firm enough grip to prevent the line from being pulled free, preventing a firm hook set.

Many ice anglers store and carry hand lines on a special holder to prevent tangling during storage and transport. Some line holders are commercially available, but I make my own from an 8- to 12-inch piece of lath, V-notched at each end. Such a rig will often prevent losing a line down the hole when you drop it, not if, when, because sooner or later your frigid fingers will forsake you. Some hardliners even use the line holder as a stiff mini rod to manipulate the bait, but that’s actually a different form of jigging, which we’re to discuss next.

Jigging

Jigging is the presentation of a bait or lure through an ice hole using a solid style of pole and attached line, or a rod and reel combination. Old-style wooden or fiberglass jigging sticks with a length of line wound around the handle or butt section and fished by half hitching a certain length of line at the tip have given way to more modern outfits. Current trends lean toward 18- to 20-inch lightweight, sensitive fiberglass resin or graphite rods with a set of quality guides and a smooth-actioned spinning reel with adjustable drag system.

A few inexpensive rod and reel combos use plastic reels with finger adjustable lug nut or star tension drags, and these outfits are fine for youngsters and novice jiggers after moderate-size fish. Low-end starter outfits can be found at many sporting goods stores, department stores, and pharmacy chains with lines, sinkers, hooks, and even a couple of lures for $5 to $10. If there’s any chance of hooking into a game fish of 2 pounds or better, invest $20 to $25 and purchase a top-rate jigging rod and reel. More expensive outfits will perform no matter how cold the weather and water conditions and withstand the rigors of feisty fish and backpack transportation.

Another asset of mini spinning outfits for ice fishermen is the chance to use monofilament or fluorocarbon line, which fish are far less likely to see and become spooky and line shy. Thin, clear lines allow the quarry to concentrate on the bait or lure.

Due to its small diameter, two to three times as much monofilament can be stored on a spool as Dacron or nylon ice fishing line of the same strength. Despite the short length of a jigging rod and its diminutive reel, the flex and drag combination can handle surprisingly large fish, and it’s far more challenging and exciting than a hand line or solid rod. It’s almost like real fishing!

Any style of mini rod and reel will make line control and bait or lure manipulation simpler and less tiring than hand lining. A reel makes lowering and raising the line quick and easy and the flexible rod tip contributes to jigging tactics with little exerted hand or arm effort. The 18- to 24-inch pole length allows an angler to sit back and relax a bit while fishing, rather than having to lean over the hole constantly.

Another plus to using a jigging rod occurs when a big fish hits the bait on the run and the rod tip flexes to relieve tension, yet the reel snubs the line to set the hook. The rod can’t be pulled from your hand by a heavy surprise strike as easily as a hand line is pulled from the fingers. A properly adjusted drag system and flexible rod are great assets during a fight with a healthy game fish. There’s more exciting participation and much less likelihood of losing the fish than with other rigs.

Baits and techniques

For jigging or hand lining, selecting the most productive baits or lures often depends on the specific lake and quarry, but in the end the choice is often personal preference. Experienced ice anglers take a variety of offerings along, picking and trying various options until the fish provide an answer for the day’s best bait. Dead minnows, cut bait, and even worms, in conjunction with a silver or pearl spinner, are often dependable. Occasionally a sport will hook up a live minnow or smelt with the certain knowledge that nothing attracts game fish better than a lively bait fish. Sometimes the added jigging movement and the regular changes in depth markedly increases the effectiveness of live bait.

In the way of hardware, the variety is expansive. Most veteran jiggers opt for lures 3 inches or less in size, and my personal proven favorites are closer to 2 inches. Stock your winter lure box with beaded Mepp’s spinners, red and white Dardevles, silver Super Dupers, and gold and silver Al’s goldfish for traditional lures.

Mooselook wobblers and Swedish Pimples in several colors are sure bets for all species and account for some large fish. A world-record 8.4-pound brook trout was taken through the ice of Long Lake a few years back on a Swedish Pimple being jigged by Omer Lebel of Van Buren on only his second-ever ice fishing outing.

Jigging techniques are as varied as the ice drillers who work the lines, and the only steadfast rule is that movement is good and erratic motion is better. One common tactic is to lower the line and bait a foot at a time, pausing for 15 seconds of short, jerky up-and-down jigs at each stop. Do this all the way to the bottom, then repeat as the line is retrieved. Use 3-foot intervals the next try and lift the lure or bait a couple of feet and let it free fall back down, then let out another yard of line.

Another effective jigging method is to slowly let out line until the lure hits bottom, then retrieve it hand over hand to the surface and allow it to free fall and spiral back down. Try the free-fall trick a couple of times, then slowly, with constant twitching, reel the line in, change lures, and repeat. Some lures are specifically shaped to gyrate, twist, and even glide sideways a couple of feet during free fall, and with holographic coating they really attract fish.

There’s no such thing as bad jigging methods, so you can even invent your own style, but be advised that slow is always better than fast. Take full advantage of the last few weeks of ice fishing season, and often the most comfortable weather of the winter. Fish outside and try hand lining or a jigging rod to really be an active ice angler instead of a flag watcher. Fishing wasn’t meant to be a spectator sport.

Outdoor feature writer Bill Graves can be reached via e-mail at bgravesoutdoors@ainop.com