How to Use a Fish Finder in Ice Fishing
Fish finders use sonar to locate fish below the surface of the water. While these devices are usually used in open water, you can also use a fish finder when you are ice fishing to determine if you have found a good location in which to fish.
- Verify that the batteries work in your fish finder before heading out to ice fish. Stow a few extra sets of batteries in your gear in case the batteries run low during your fishing trip.
- Go to your favorite ice fishing spot and prepare the area to fish. Cut a hole large enough for both your fishing gear and the fish finder's transmitter and line.
- Turn on the fish finder and insert the transmitter into the hole in the ice. The fish finder should return a reading letting you know the depth of the water under the ice.
- Lower your fishing gear into the ice hole.
- Adjust the sensitivity according to your fish finder's instruction manual. You should be able to see your fishing gear on the display. If you see static on the fish finder's screen, adjust the noise setting according to your fish finder's instruction manual. Fish should appear on the screen once your fish finder is adjusted properly. If you do not see any movement on the screen, this indicates that there are not any fish in the area.
- Move to another location and cut another ice hole to try again if your first location did not yield any fish.