Alright people, I have definitely had some adventures lately. Sad to say I haven't done as much ice fishing as I would have liked, but none the less I have been able to get out on the ice a few times. One of the things that kept me off the ice a few weeks was vehicle problems... On my way home from ice fishing a few weeks ago, my rear left tire decided it didn't want to tied down any more and popped off at 65 miles per hour! With the sparks flying and my nerves rushing, I luckily pulled off to the side of the road and watched my tire plummet down to the bottom of a canyon! Long story short, I was glad I did a lot more praying than cussing in this situation and I am glad that things didn't end worse than they did!
Between vehicle problems and the busyness of the holidays I counted myself lucky to get out when I did, and luckily I had decent success every time I've been fishing so far. I can honestly say that my success would not be as high if I didn't have the JawJackers! While other people next to me are getting skunked and not catching fish, I have all my JawJackers spread out trying to locate fish and up my odds of getting one to bite. On one of my trips this year I was fishing with 5 other people which meant we could have 25 rods out... We weren't having success so we started drilling more holes and putting out every rod we had. Luckily through this process we started catching fish. The interesting part about it was that every fish we caught was on the JawJacker and was out of the same exact hole! That day we ended up catching 18 fish while the group next to us walked away with 2.
Here is a video of me ice fishing Henry's Lake in Idaho!
I've said it again and again but every time I go ice fishing next to someone who doesn't use the JawJackers, I am reminded of why I have become such a strong believer in them. Don't get me wrong, you still need to know where to fish and what to use for bait, but the JawJacker increases your chances of changing fish every time you use them! I have caught some amazing fish through the ice and couldn't imagine fishing without the JawJacker. Just like last year I want to share this joy with someone else by giving away a free JawJacker. In partner with the JawJacker Twitter account @JawJackerFishin we are giving away a free JawJacker to one lucky follower so here is how you can get entered! a Rafflecopter giveaway
Remember that you can tweet about this giveaway every day to get two more entries for your chance to win this JawJacker!
If any of you follow me or my blog, you know that this time of year is one of my favorites. I always enjoy freezing my butt off on a frozen lake trying to catch fish! I know that standing over top of a hole in the ice, in freezing cold weather, hoping that a fish bites the other end of my fishing line may not sound fun to some people, but there are a few things that make ice fishing much more enjoyable that I want to share with you.
My #1
First and foremost, the JawJacker! This contraption has made a sport I love into a new and exciting event every time I go fishing. Here in Idaho we can use up to 5 rods per person which can quickly turn into a lot when fishing in a group. I always like to have my rod I use for jigging, but with my other 4 rods I always have them in a JawJacker. The JawJacker not only acts as a safe rod holder so I don't lose my rod down the hole (Which has happened a time or two before I owned the JawJackers), but the JawJacker also increases my success rate and literally keeps me active the whole time I'm fishing. If the JawJacker is legal to use in your state I strongly recommend you picking one up for one of your extra ice fishing rods! You wont be disappointed I can guarantee it! Here is a video of one reason I use the JawJacker:
#2
Three years ago I really started to get back into ice fishing. Out of everyone who came fishing with me, my favorite person to take out on the ice has been and always will be my wife. As much as she loves me, she didn't necessarily share my same passion for ice fishing seems how she isn't a huge fan of the cold weather. Luckily for me, she gave me the ultimatum and said that if I wanted her to come fishing with me, I would have to buy an ice fishing shelter to keep her warm. I picked up the Eskimo Quick Fish 6 which I have been completely satisfied with. This fishing shelter is a quick set up and take down as well as provides plenty of room for me and a few friends to fish in comfortably. The only time I've had a problem with it was when I took on of my friends ice fishing and he decided to pick up my ice auger inside my shelter... Long story short, he accidentally brushed the auger blade against the side wall of the shelter and left a 6 inch slit in the shelter wall. We got the slit fixed up and it has been great ever since.
My Eskimo Quick Fish 6 and JawJacker
#3
The last thing I will mention in this post that I feel is such a game changer for me is having a custom ice fishing rod! I have bought all sorts of different rods and tried lots of different companies. I have found a small hand full that I really feel do the job well while I have also found a huge amount which I feel are a complete waste of money. I am currently in the process of having another custom ice fishing rod made from Cal Piccolo which I will be sure to write about later this year! The thing I like about having a custom rod is a little bit of the superstition factor, as well as the concept of being comfortable with your gear. The more you are comfortable with your gear, the better you and that gear will perform the way its supposed to. Plus if anyone has seen the movie Grumpy Old Men, you will understand that ice fishermen have their lucky ice fishing rods... and my custom rod is just that!
This brief list of ice fishing gear makes my ice fishing trips a lot more than just sitting over a hole in the ice waiting for a fish to bite... I wish that I could say since I've had this year I've never had a bad day of ice fishing, but I can honestly say that since I've had this gear it has made the bad days of ice fishing into better ones!