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Home > Take Me Fishing Blog > December 2020 > Ice Fishing: Essential Gear for Hard Water Season
If you’re ready to give hard water fishing a try this season, it’ll be helpful to have a list of the ice fishing essential gear items you’ll need to get started. While it might seem as if you’d need quite a bit of specialized ice fishing equipment, you really don’t need much to start catching fish through the ice this winter.
Before you plan go fishing on a frozen lake or pond, you’ll want to be sure to read early season ice fishing tips on safety first. Once you have read up on the ice fishing safety basics, then you can get your ice fishing gear basics prepped.
Here are ten ice fishing essential gear items to help you start catching species like perch, bluegill and walleye through the ice:
In addition to this gear list, remember to dress for the conditions in order to stay safe and warm on the ice. You’ll need to buy the right ice fishing clothing, such as an ice fishing flotation suit or bibs, along with a pair of insulated waterproof boots, gloves, and a warm hat.
Cold weather doesn’t mean you have to stop fishing. You can still get out and catch plenty of fish through the ice as long as you are prepared with this list of ice fishing essential gear items.
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Debbie Hanson is an award-winning outdoor writer, women’s sport fishing advocate, IGFA world record holder, and freshwater guide living in Southwest Florida. Hanson’s written work has appeared in publications such as Florida Game & Fish Magazine, BoatUS Magazine, and USA Today Hunt & Fish. To learn more about her work, visit shefishes2.com or follow her on Instagram @shefishes2.
The largemouth bass is the most popular freshwater game fish in the U.S. Learn more about how you can identify a largemouth bass, where to catch it and what bait and lures to use.
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