Suspended Rainbow Trout Deep Water (Video)

[Brandonkop]

https://youtu.be/g4uY3f1Ywa8?feature=shared

Join my dad and I today as we venture out on a new lake in Alberta's Lakeland Area that is Stocked by the Alberta Environment and Parks. Neither of us had ever fished this lake before, but with the help of the online resources available we were able to search for Stocked Lakes in close proximity to try. After a little google research we landed on this particular lake and got up early one morning to get out there and give it a try.

We started out the day heading to the largest shallow weedy shoal to try our luck at first light. We fished the 3 foot depth down to 11 feet and only saw one fish all morning. This was dismal and not what I expected at all. The fish are usually feeding in the shallow weedy shoals at first and last light during the ice covered season.

After struggling during the morning and drilling some 30 dry holes, my dad went drilling across the lake. He started fishing them from shallow to deep. When he got into the middle he said he saw a mark half way down and when you intercepted it with his Slender Spoon the fish took the bait. After a great fight he had a healthy fat 18 inch rainbow on the ice.

I spent some more time in the shallows as I had seen one fish. I was really shocked they didn't come in to feed.

After failing in shallow around noon I moved out to the deeper water and started drilling towards the center of the lake and deeper water.

While dropping down one hole I noticed a flash on my Marcum just a few feet under the ice. So I brought the lure back up under the ice and boom. I hooked a big rainbow that came off right under the ice.

I started to replicate this type of fishing right under the ice and fish kept coming through in the afternoon. We set up some Jaw Jackers with Circle Tackle Tungsten Jigs and Blob flies. The trout started to hit the Jaw Jackers and the action became great right under the ice.

The fish were suspended right under the ice in deep water over 20 to 30 feet deep. They were eating minnows and bugs that were right at the top of the water column. These fish are often hard to find because they avoid being seen on your sonar and if you drop your hook to the bottom you will never know they are swimming right under the ice. Keep that in mind when fishing for trout.



Best of luck out there ice fishing.

[1bluZebec]

Loved the vid Brandon. You and your dad ended the day very well with some very nice fish Landed. Your explanation and description of your day was great aswell. Love your content and love learning alittle here and there from you. Great job man thanks alot for the share!! Have a great weekend

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[AlbertanGP]

Live imaging is money for finding those fish.

Unlike most other trout species, I will very rarely go shallower than 6 fow for rainbows. I know some are in shallow at first light, but they quickly move deeper in the lakes I frequent. So I just start deeper, deal with maybe fewer fish at first light, and wait. They'll be in 10 fow in the dark as well. Besides, I hate any fishing where I set the hook and the fish is on the ice. Probably what I hate most about fishing in Alberta.

Good video BTW.

[Brandonkop]

Originally Posted by 1bluZebec

Loved the vid Brandon. You and your dad ended the day very well with some very nice fish Landed. Your explanation and description of your day was great aswell. Love your content and love learning a little here and there from you. Great job man thanks alot for the share!! Have a great weekend

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Thanks for watching and the comment. I've been skunked two evenings in a row trying for Bass and Crappie here in Abbotsford last couple days. We have ice and snow temporarily after the cold snap.

Originally Posted by AlbertanGP

Live imaging is money for finding those fish.

Unlike most other trout species, I will very rarely go shallower than 6 fow for rainbows. I know some are in shallow at first light, but they quickly move deeper in the lakes I frequent. So I just start deeper, deal with maybe fewer fish at first light, and wait. They'll be in 10 fow in the dark as well. Besides, I hate any fishing where I set the hook and the fish is on the ice. Probably what I hate most about fishing in Alberta.

Good video BTW.

I don't ever wait for fish. I just keep searching and following the fish if I can. So I usually start shallow and move deeper then move shallower as light fades. Most lakes I fish in BC the fish really do come into shallow water on shoals in a few feet of water. But I'll catch them where ever they are.

Yeah I have watched many videos with the front facing sonar and maybe some day I'll get one. They are pricey units though and quite large. I move so much that it seems I am not the style of fisherman who would sit long enough to make it worth while. Which sounds like what you like to do is set up and wait for them. Maybe they'll make it more mobile one of these days and then I might get in on it.

Most guys fish for trout like you suggest when I fish in BC. They set up in one depth in a tent and I don't see them move out of the tent all day. I'll try several spots on the lake and various depths. More often than not when I talk to those guys who set up and sit, if they have a slow day, I've still caught some fish moving around. I just can't sit still though, inpatient fisherman.

[SNAPFisher]

Another great video and thanks for taking the time to post how you tie the blob. Not exactly a hard one to tie for sure and I've always kind of avoided it...and for no real good reason.

I'm sure you would love live imaging. Shortens the searching time and is great to watch fish reaction. But it is bulky and generally heavy, even with lithium.

But I always have mine now walking out or not.

[58thecat]

Far from a pro here but man first light near a beaver house in 3 fow these rainbows and I mean big ones 30 inches and over seem to hang in those areas then as the day goes on I move out to 15 fow but work my way back as the sun gets low.....if I can avoid it I don’t like to hunker down but rather like to move and yup I get antsy too so I try different things just to cure the curiosity bug

I will often talk to myself to get an experts opinion too


Gotta watch your vid now


Keep’em coming.

[58thecat]

Just watched your vid.....funny a month ago or so I was sitting watching fish come and go on my fish finder and seen them, felt them hit my barrel swivel...got me thinking....my set up was 20lbs braid to a barrel swivel then 20 lbs floro leader to a small teardrop jig baited with a small piece of shrimp. So I tied off another 6 inch floro leader to that barrel swivel and put on a fly....double trouble was the answer
My jig would be about a foot or less off the bottom and two feet up was the fly....used the same on the homemade jaw jacker and it was the ticket.

Pays to experiment that's why I say bring what ya got or watch others catch.

[Brandonkop]

Originally Posted by 58thecat

Just watched your vid.....funny a month ago or so I was sitting watching fish come and go on my fish finder and seen them, felt them hit my barrel swivel...got me thinking....my set up was 20lbs braid to a barrel swivel then 20 lbs floro leader to a small teardrop jig baited with a small piece of shrimp. So I tied off another 6 inch floro leader to that barrel swivel and put on a fly....double trouble was the answer

My jig would be about a foot or less off the bottom and two feet up was the fly....used the same on the homemade jaw jacker and it was the ticket.



Pays to experiment that's why I say bring what ya got or watch others catch.

Wow 20 pound test... what kind of fish were you going after? Do you think the fish could be a bit line shy? I usually use 6 pound fluorocarbon leader. Seems to do the trick and I'm not worried about them being as concerned with the line.

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[58thecat]

Yeah that was my first thoughts too but after watching guys line break off at the hole using 6-8lns test mono I thought what the heck and went the route I did.
The diameter of the 20lbs braid is on par with 6-8lbs mono and the 24 inch 20lbs floro leader was invisible to my aging eyes in the water….maybe I catch the older fish with equal eyesight to me
Those bigger bows sure peel off line and fight hard against the ice hole so figured if I was lucky to get a true pig 30 plus inches and over 5lbs I better be prepared.
I seen three to date that were just beasts in which the one fella iced it just as his mono line broke…phew!
The fly above the baited jig made a huge difference too in which a few came over to see what I was doing, eating cooked shrimp, baiting and catching….lol


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[Rickster123]

Originally Posted by Brandonkop

Thanks for watching and the comment. I've been skunked two evenings in a row trying for Bass and Crappie here in Abbotsford last couple days. We have ice and snow temporarily after the cold snap.



I don't ever wait for fish. I just keep searching and following the fish if I can. So I usually start shallow and move deeper then move shallower as light fades. Most lakes I fish in BC the fish really do come into shallow water on shoals in a few feet of water. But I'll catch them where ever they are.

Yeah I have watched many videos with the front facing sonar and maybe some day I'll get one. They are pricey units though and quite large. I move so much that it seems I am not the style of fisherman who would sit long enough to make it worth while. Which sounds like what you like to do is set up and wait for them. Maybe they'll make it more mobile one of these days and then I might get in on it.

Most guys fish for trout like you suggest when I fish in BC. They set up in one depth in a tent and I don't see them move out of the tent all day. I'll try several spots on the lake and various depths. More often than not when I talk to those guys who set up and sit, if they have a slow day, I've still caught some fish moving around. I just can't sit still though, inpatient fisherman.

I think impatient fisherman is an oxymoron
Rick

[58thecat]

One thing I did notice when watching trout through the aqua view was when the ice was 6 inches or so when the trout came in they would fart around making strikes at the bait and any movement on the ice surface they bolted and didn’t come back for a bit. As the ice thickened and got snow covered they were less spooky so something to consider when moving around on the ice.

Another thing I noticed was they travelled around in relatively same size groups and if a bigger fish did come in the smaller ones bolted.

I showed a fella out on the ice how they acted, we had similar set ups but he was with a group that were close to each other running to their dead sticks etc

This hurt them as they were spooking the fish and I was 50 yards away catching.

If I didn’t see this through the camera I would have never known this.

I had the camera up high looking down at first but later moved it down for more of a straight on look and it seemed to have no effect on them at all.


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[Brandonkop]

Originally Posted by 58thecat

One thing I did notice when watching trout through the aqua view was when the ice was 6 inches or so when the trout came in they would fart around making strikes at the bait and any movement on the ice surface they bolted and didn’t come back for a bit. As the ice thickened and got snow covered they were less spooky so something to consider when moving around on the ice.

Another thing I noticed was they travelled around in relatively same size groups and if a bigger fish did come in the smaller ones bolted.

I showed a fella out on the ice how they acted, we had similar set ups but he was with a group that were close to each other running to their dead sticks etc

This hurt them as they were spooking the fish and I was 50 yards away catching.

If I didn’t see this through the camera I would have never known this.

I had the camera up high looking down at first but later moved it down for more of a straight on look and it seemed to have no effect on them at all.


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Yeah I hear you when it comes to line breakage. I know some guys in BC use 15 to 20 pound as well. Those big bows can really rip.

Yeah I know they are pretty sensitive with thin clear ice. Seems once the snow covers the ice it muffles the sound transmission. I actually can see my shadow through the ice on a gopro I put under the ice. Even with snow cover and 14 inches of ice. Was fascinating. It's funny how you think it really affects the bite. I almost feel like the noise sometimes makes them move around more. I have caught fish so many times on my jaw jacker while drilling holes 20 feet away that I'm not 100% sold on the being quiet. As with anything I agree to catch the biggest fish best off to be quiet.

Fish are fascinating thanks for the insights.


Yes, and I am a very impatient fisherman. I don't think that is an oxymoron. I don't go fishing I go catching haha. I change things constantly, move constantly. If you ever see me out on the ice... you'd think what on earth is that guy trolling.

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[Frank_NK28]

Real nice video, one of your best.

[58thecat]

Thank god for us they have a short memory on what spooked them and have a internal drive to eat....makes us below average anglers feel goooooood!

[Brandonkop]

Originally Posted by Frank_NK28

Real nice video, one of your best.

Thanks for the kind words.

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[AlbertanGP]

Originally Posted by Brandonkop

I almost feel like the noise sometimes makes them move around more...As with anything I agree to catch the biggest fish best off to be quiet.

To your first point, ask yourself how often you've caught a fish when someone walks over to your hole and starts talking to you. It happens to me all the time with trout. It speaks partly to your comment on noise and partly to my theory that rainbows in stillwaters are nomadic and always on the move looking for food. That's why I don't chase them. Other than perhaps minor changes in depth through the day, I find they'll come to me. I fish for trout when I want a day off from running and gunning for structure-oriented gamefish.

To your second point, I agree 100%. Quiet is always better. That's why the Jaw Jacker will often out fish you.

[Brandonkop]

https://youtu.be/-Tl4GM5-hp8

Here we go again another video with a bunch of underwater shots.


My goal was to get some underwater video of these fish since I knew they were swimming right below the surface and that it should be easy to capture them swimming around. Also reacting to our movements on the ice and seeing our shadows from under the ice.

It is very interesting to see how they relate to the under ice environment and all the noises on top of the ice. These fish are suspended over water that is 25 to 30 feet deep. They were likely feeding on all the life just below the ice. This may also be due to decreased oxygen levels in the water column.

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