What a difference a year makes; last December Aroostook enjoyed a rare green Christmas, while this year a major snowstorm hit and stayed the first week of November.
Northern Maine has also seen night after night of single-digit temperatures. Many ice fishermen have been drilling holes and catching fish for two or three weeks on legal lakes with at least 4 inches of ice, and a few even set out ice shanties as early as mid- December.
Many “hard-water” anglers get on nearby lakes as soon as a safe depth of ice forms each winter because that’s when smelt jigging is usually fast and furious. Despite being Maine’s smallest gamefish, these silver slivers are tasty table fare and provide great action on a hand line. The daily limit is 2 quarts, and if the 7- to 10- inch Jack smelt are biting, it’s possible to catch a limit in a couple of hours. I’ve experienced actions so fast that keeping just two lines in the water was a challenge.
While hand lines of 8- to 12- pound monofilament are the most common tackle, a fair number of sports are switching to short, lightweight jigging rods with a micro spinning reel. One size 8 or 10 hook with a non-lead, split-shot sinker the size of a pencil eraser attached a foot above the hook is the common setup.
If I’m only using two lines inside my fishing shanty, each will have three hooks about 18 to 24 inches apart. This rig not only offers more baits, but covers a far wider range of depth in case the smelt are feeding at various levels.
While many fishermen are skeptical, over the decades my use of red or gold hooks has outperformed the normal black color. Also, there’s no better bait for catching smelt then chunks of fresh-caught smelt. Raw bacon, raw shrimp and even a piece of Vienna sausage make good starting baits, but I immediately filet and thinly slice the sides of the first fresh smelt caught. Inserting the hook through the meat and skin will help keep the bait piece on the hook to catch multiple fish.
I suspend my hand lines from a nail in the ceiling of the shanty or attached to a horizontal, 4-inch length of coat hanger wire to offer some bounce to the line. Half hitching a wooden kitchen match to the line a foot above the water helps signal a strike by bobbing or twitching as the smelt bites the bait. The match also makes a good grab point to set the hook. Pulling each line up halfway or more every 5 minutes and allowing them to drift back down will often attract nearby fish.
Anglers using a jigging rod often tie a silver, gold or pearl spinner near the bait as an attractor and bob the rod tip regularly. Much of my smelting action has peaked at dusk or into the night, and having some sort of light shining down into the fishing hole has proven a very effective smelt magnet. Changing to a piece of fresh bait every half-hour is another trick to put the aroma of food in the water and pick up the action.
A lot of ice drillers set out one less tip-up for larger game fish and use a rod or hand line to keep busy jigging for smelt during daytime outings. Most veteran smelters prefer night fishing and the comfort of a snug, warm any-weather cabin for their smelt ventures. Many own portable huts, while others set out a shanty on a favorite lake for the entire season. A few folks like variety and less work so they visit spots where they can rent a cabin by the hour or day.
Unlike the stark, barren fishing huts of decades ago, many modern smelt shanties boast gas stoves for heat and cooking, radios and even TVs, as well as top-rated fish finders, all powered by LP gas or generator. Comfortable seats, a fold-down table for eating or playing cards and shelves and cabinets for food and fishing gear outfit these mobile mini-homes on ice. Comfort is king inside, no matter what the temperature and weather is outdoors, day or night.
St. Agatha and Van Buren coves on Long Lake in far northern Aroostook often offer safe ice by mid-December and dependable smelting throughout January. In central Aroostook, Portage and Scopan lakes seldom disappoint early season handliners. My personal favorite for well over 50 years is Pleasant Pond in Island Falls. Not only is the smelt jigging first rate, but from food to indoor bowling and outdoor fun options in several venues, Birch Point Lodge and the Edwards family have it all.
As we creep into the new year, most legal ice fishing lakes are open for all species, so variety and tip-up action for larger fish peaks the excitement of each ice-drilling venture. Still, I do enjoy the comforts and conveniences of a snug ice shanty and watching out a window for a flag to fly over standing outdoors, shivering and shaking all day. Being able to stay inside seeking tasty chrome smelt while I watch my tip-ups only increases the pleasure of each outing.
Early season is the most consistent smelt fishing, dusk and dawn are prime times and single-digit temps every night are forming thicker ice day by day.
Get out there and have some fun with some big action with Maine’s littlest game fish. If you’ve never enjoyed a fresh fried smelt sandwich, caught and cooked inside a smelt fishing shanty, you’ve missed a real Pine Tree State treat.
