Perch perfect
If you enjoy tackling yellow perch through the ice, you’ll love chasing them during the spring and summer even more
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#3 TACKLE
Perch are small fish, so small lures are a must—when you think you’ve selected a bait that’s just right, dig deeper in your tacklebox and find an even smaller one. I prefer lures in the 1/16- to 1/32-ounce size, and sometimes even smaller. And your single or treblehooks should range from size 6 down to size 10. Perch are sight feeders, so good colour choices include silver, gold, brass, chartreuse, hot pink, yellow, green and orange, or a combination of any of those.
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It’s also beneficial to downsize the rest of your tackle in order to effectively fish these light baits. Opt for a 5½- to 6½-foot ultralight or light spinning rod, with a very sensitive tip and firm backbone. The sensitive tip is a must to help you detect the lightest of strikes, while the firm backbone will help you set the hook and land the fish. Also choose a reel that’s small enough to properly balance the light rod, and spool it with four- or six-pound-test line. To increase hooksets when using small hooks, I prefer fluorocarbon, which is highly sensitive and has very little line stretch.