As winter hopefully starts to exit the building in the north, it’s time to start shifting gears into open water fishing. With most species being lethargic with the water being so cold, there is one species that loves the cold: the yellow perch. It’s a small, rambunctious fish that makes excellent table fare, fights extremely well, and is for sure to beat those long winter blues. It’s not bass fishing, but spring perch fishing a blast and puts a bend in the rod after a long long winter.
The game is similar to fall perch fishing, but a few things are extremely different. It’s the small, subtle nuances that can turn a good day of fishing into a great day. It can be challenging to get on spring perch in certain lakes, but when you find them, all hell breaks loose.
How to Find Spring Perch
Spring Perch Fishing Depth
“Depending upon the type of weather we have in the winter, with this winter being dreadful to say the least, these perch are going to have two things on their mind, spawning and finding warmer water,” says Craig Sleeman, a National Walleye Tour pro. “Depending on the lake, perch could be sitting in the total opposite ends of the water depth spectrum.”
On many lakes, you will see perch hugging the bottom in deep water holding on to whatever structure they can find to stay warm. Sometimes, that could be the deepest part of the lake, but you are generally looking for warmer water in the 40-foot-plus range.
On the other end of the spectrum, many of these fish could be coming up from the depths to think about spawning. When it comes to the yellow perch spawn, it consists of them traveling to main lake shallow flats to string their eggs along any piece of bottom they can find. Depending upon the lake and the water clarity, these striped critters can range from 15 feet to as shallow as 5 feet.
Idea Water Temperature for Spring Perch
Once the ice out comes, the water temperature usually remains in the mid to upper 30s for an extended period of time. This is when you’ll want to focus your efforts on that deeper section of water. They will be active enough to take a swing at your baits, but keeping as close to the bottom will be critical in getting multiple bites.
“Once that water reaches 42 degrees, that’s the magic temperature when the perch fishing goes from great to fantastic,” says Bass Pro Shops regional pro staff member Roy Bilby.
In that 40-degree range, perch will start to roam the shallows looking for whatever piece of structure they can to lay their eggs on. In many cases, it’s not just a few individual females, it’s hundreds upon hundreds of striped deliciousness roaming around and feeding on whatever they can.
Tactics and Tackle
Tackle
When it comes to chasing yellow perch, the right tackle you use is what makes the difference between a 10-fish day and a 100-fish day. Many people think any ultralight rod will work just fine, and that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Having a rod with the right balance and sensitivity is key to detecting those ultralight bites in the spring.
Remember, not every perch bite will be that signature multiple taps. It honestly might feel like nothing. Some of the biggest perch I’ve ever caught in the spring have been the lightest strikes. You need the right rod, reel, and line combination to do that.
I’m in love with the new G. Loomis GCX Lite Series spinning rod, specifically the 780S SR model. It’s a 6’6” light-action rod with a fast tip. Once you match it up with a 1,000- or 2,000-size spinning reel, the balance point is right in the reel seat, so you can feel every little bite.
Sleeman loves to use a Douglas Rods XMatrix 6103XF spinning rod for all of his perch applications. “That model just has the perfect amount of backbone and sensitivity for every perch fishing application,” he said, adding that he prefers a larger reel in the 2,500 range to hold a little more line for getting a longer cast.
When it comes to line, everyone should be on the same page here: light braid to a light leader is the best way to feel those light strikes.
Sleeman runs a 6-pound Sufix Revolve braid with a 4- to 6-pound Defiant Shock Leader and says it’s a match made in heaven for light biting perch. Bilby, on the other hand, loves running SpiderWire Stealth Braid in 6-pound-test with a 4-pound Berkley Trilene XL leader. Monofilament isn’t as brittle as fluorocarbon in the cold and that results in fewer break-offs.
Baits and Tactics
This time of year, when perch are not suspended off the bottom foraging on baitfish, you want to focus on keeping your presentations close to the bottom.
“I love to throw a swimbait for perch this time of year, but I want to upsize my baits in order to weed out the smaller males and focus on catching the bigger females,” Sleeman said.
By upsizing, he means going to a 3- or even 4-inch paddletail swimbait, like a Keitech Fat Swing Impact or an Easy Shiner. Both have incredible action and can be fished with a wide array of jigheads, depending on how deep you are fishing.
Sleeman said he also likes to throw a Anglers Choice Plastics Intact Grub hopped or dragged slowly along the bottom. This imitates some of the invertebrates and crayfish perch are feeding on that are buried in the bottom.
Bilby is a fan of Bass Pro Shops’ large variety of house-branded crappie-style plastics for perch fishing.
“When I first started fishing with the Bass Pro Shops Squirmin’ Shad many years ago, it changed the way I perch fish for the better!” he said.
The Squirmin’ Shad comes in a variety of sizes and colors, but the 2- and 3-inch sizes are what the fish want in that area. Use the same techniques mentioned above: a long cast and a nice slow retrieve back to the boat.
Water to Table
As Sleeman puts it, “Take all of your bass gear and downsize it in the spring. You’ll have the best success as bass gear is very light and technique specific.”
It is essentially just smallmouth fishing on a much smaller scale. It’s such a fun way to fish early in the year when the bass bite hasn’t quite gotten going.
As well as it being a fun thing to do for anglers of all ages, the main reason people target spring perch is to fill the freezer. Their delicious, white, flaky meat is some of the best of any freshwater fish. Besides the usual beer batter fried fish like everybody does, Bilby has found an amazing way to make these critters even more tasty with a dish he calls “Poor Man’s Shrimp.”
He takes his perch fillets, soaks them, and then cuts them into small strips. He then boils those strips for about a minute and then transfers them to an ice bath to cool. Pull them out to dry a little and then serve them up with your favorite cocktail sauce. Let me tell you, it tastes just like a shrimp cocktail.
All in all, yellow perch are an amazing little fish we have here in the north and you should try and get after some come ice out. You’ll be glad you did!