Ice Fishing Rod Tips

Ultra-Light Rods

The ultra-light rod category is designed for people who have no intention of fishing for anything larger than a panfish. This opens up ice fishing for a slew of different fish, such as smelt, perch, white bass, black crappie, bluegill, sunfish and more. These rods, which are often very thin at the tips and taper back to a stiff backbone, are designs to allow for easy jigging of small lures like a Swedish pimple. The rod's small size and ultra-light response allows anglers an easy way to feel when fish hit their line. The drawback to this rod is that it isn't going to be very capable of bringing a larger fish to the hole if one decides to take the bait.

Light Rods

Light rods are usually very common when it comes to ice fishing supplies. These rods are very versatile and are often used by anglers who will be hitting lakes with multiple sizes of fish in them. These rods are capable of jigging, running spinner baits and bobber rigs. Everything from small smelt to average-size walleye can be brought in with one of these. The disadvantage of a light rod is that it's not as actionable as an ultra-light, making it hard to detect smaller fish hits at times. It also cannot handle the largest of walleye or northern pike.

Heavy Rods

These heavy action rods are designed to take on big fish. They are strong from the tip to the grip and feature the ability to bring in some of the biggest fish in the water. Heavy rods are used for jigging for large fish, as well as rigs on or off bobbers. Heavy rods can be used to catch small fish, though their hits are nearly undetectable without either holding onto the fishing line or using a light bobber. In addition, there isn't much flexibility in the rod, giving the jigs a stiff appearance, which may not be as enticing to a fish that has been avoiding lures all winter.