The most productive way to catch burbot in winter is with girders. It is quite difficult to deceive it with spoons, so it is preferable to catch it in places where there are a lot of such fish. But with the help of a girder and live bait, you can catch burbot in almost any body of water. He will not refuse prey, so the bite will be much better than with a plastic bait. Catching burbot in winter is an incredibly exciting and interesting process that can bring many trophies to those fishermen who choose the right hunting tactics, place and live bait.
Trays for burbot: device
For hunting this predator, ordinary pike rigs, which are a stand with a built-in reel and a bite alarm, are also suitable. It must be installed in such a way that the flag straightens during a bite, thereby giving a signal that the hunt has begun. Another popular type of girders, which is known as “postavushka”. The design itself is very simple, but incredibly effective and practical. You can easily make them yourself. To do this, the following elements are needed: 1. A wooden stick, the length of which is longer than the hole. 25-30 cm is quite enough. 2. Rogatina, which will be used as a reel; the main fishing line is wound on it. 3. Cord or wire. A wooden stick is placed under the hole and all the gear rests on it. The slingshot is lowered into the water with its forked end down, and tied to a stick with a cord by the thicker end. Advice! You shouldn’t take fishing line for this, it simply won’t withstand the weight and tension, because such a trap is set at night and the hole freezes over. In the morning you have to punch it, and this can cause the line to break. Therefore, it is worth taking stronger material. At the end of the spear, you should make a hole for fixing the fishing line, and reel in at least 10-12 m. The amount of fishing line depends on the depth of lowering the bait, but it is worth taking with a small margin. When the bait is fixed and lowered into the water to the required depth, the line must be fixed at the end. When the burbot captures the prey and moves away, the fishing line unwinds to its full length. When the predator swallows the treat and self-hooking occurs. The prey will not be able to go far, since the stick that lies across the hole will not allow it.
Gear device
Zherlitsa is the general name for winter live bait gear. It is designed for catching predatory fish from under the ice. It is a reel or reel with fishing line. To register bites, a bright-colored flag is used, which, after contact of a predator with the bait, “shoots”, signaling this.
There are different designs of vents. The choice of pattern depends on the fishing conditions, the subjective preferences of the fisherman and his capabilities, and the fishing region. With a skillful approach, any option works, showing stable results throughout the “hard” water season.
Equipment for vents
It is not difficult to properly equip a burbot perch. To do this, you need a piece of fishing line with a hook to deliver live bait to the fishing point and a sinker to fix it at the bottom. The branch is made from monofilament or fluorocarbon fishing line with a thickness of 0.3–0.5 mm with a breaking load slightly less than the strength of the main thread.
If there is a high probability of a pike biting in the fishing area, then it is advisable to use a leash made of steel string or a woven metal outlet to prevent the equipment from being cut off when the toothy beast grabs.
Use a large double or single hook. Burbot swallows bait deeply, so using a tee is not necessary. It is unlikely that the fish will escape while playing, but pulling it out of the predator’s stomach will not be easy.
The shape and weight of the weight are selected according to the fishing conditions. In the current, use flat or conical weights with a mass sufficient to hold the bait under the hole. On a standing body of water, the bait must be equipped in such a way as to prevent the equipment from sinking to the bottom and to prevent the live bait from moving it from its place.
We recommend reading: The most catchy wobblers for asp
What to use as bait
To catch burbot on a girder, you need fresh and lively bait. To do this, they use small bottom fish, which are the natural food source of the predator in the reservoir. Has proven itself well:
- goby;
- gudgeon;
- ruff;
- perch;
- loach;
- pinching
If they are absent, a silver bream or white bream will do. Roach, bleak, redfish and other fish that live in shallow water and in the upper horizons are not suitable for fishing for burbot. As a last resort, it is allowed to use fallen live bait, sliced fish fillets, fresh frozen shrimp or a piece of liver.
What to use to catch burbot in winter
Many different products can be used as bait for girders. But, since the burbot is a predator, it is better to pay attention to animal bait. You can use: • live bait; • pieces of fish; • crawling out; • frozen fish. It is best, of course, to use live bait, because it is more attractive and desirable. Live bait is considered the best for hunting burbot. Spoons or wobblers can be used, but they will be effective only in those reservoirs where there are a lot of burbot. You can try to fish with a worm, but a lot of other fish will also bite, constantly distracting you. Frozen fish cannot be attracted by movement, but only by aroma. Therefore, it is best to use live bait - it is a win-win option. To fish for burbot, use any fish that can be caught in the reservoir where fishing will take place. He is partial to the following fish: • gudgeon; • ruff; • chebak; • perch.
Equipment for burbot girders - standard supplies, pokes, flags
To catch burbot in winter, you can use different types of live bait gear. They differ in the composition of elements. However, the operating principle of such devices is the same. Most often, fishermen use supplies, pokes, and anti-freeze girders. It is also permissible to use flag bets and bells.
Standard vent
Kolobashka
When hunting for burbot, girders with a bite alarm are mainly used. They have a plastic platform and a small spool. In the daytime, such devices can be used on pike or pike perch, and at night - on burbot.
Girdles with a bite alarm are also suitable for night fishing for burbot from the ice.
The equipment for burbot fishing poles is almost no different from how it is done when fishing for pike. The main difference lies in the leash. To protect the fishing line from the sharp teeth of the pike, you should use a hard metal leash. At the same time, for catching burbot, the leash is made of fishing line.
A rigid leash is used only if there is a chance of catching a pike. For burbot, girders and supplies are used, which are based on the following:
- line reserve – 15-20 meters;
- fishing line thickness – 0.4-1 mm;
- sinker weight – up to 100-150 grams;
- Leash length – 0.5 meters.
Equipment options for fishing poles for winter fishing
Hooks can be different. Depending on the preferences of the fisherman, either doubles or tees are used.
Threading live bait onto a double is a common option when catching burbot on girders and stands.
Since fish often do not give up a deep-swallowed hook, pulling it into the stomach, it is recommended to prepare several leashes.
Where and when to catch burbot in winter
It’s not for nothing that winter is considered the best time for catching burbot. In summer and autumn it is quite difficult to catch it, but with the onset of cold weather this predator becomes more active. Fishing for burbot in winter has become incredibly popular among beginners and even professionals. Severe cold does not bother him; the stronger the frost, the greater the chance of catching prey. This fish has always loved cold and bad weather. Therefore, fishing will be especially successful in severe frost and windy weather. Burbot is nocturnal and prefers to sleep during the day. You can catch it quite rarely during the day; bites are regular at night and late in the evening. Although everything depends on weather conditions, sometimes it can please fishermen with a regular bite all day long. Fishing with girders is more effective, because they are placed at night when the predator goes hunting. Important! You can observe regular bursts of activity at certain times, it will be the same for all reservoirs. Increased zhor is noticeable twice a day: • from 21:00 to 1:00; • from 3:00 to 5:00. At this time, the predator begins to actively look for food, so fishing becomes very interesting and effective. The bite begins in late autumn and continues throughout the winter, until the start of the warm season. In February, burbot stops feeding as it awaits spawning, but the period of stagnation lasts no more than a few weeks. It is better to place girders near burbot sites, but if the reservoir is unfamiliar, you will have to proceed by trial and error. This is much more difficult, but quite possible. First you need to examine the reservoir and place several traps at a distance of 15-20 m from one another. The greater the number of traps, the higher the chance of finding a site and catching a lot of prey. When the girder is triggered, it means that a parking area or burbot trail has been discovered. In any case, the fishing result will not disappoint. You need to fish tightly exactly the place where the girder worked. It is worth looking for a predator: • in places where there are differences in depth; • near deep holes; • near gently sloping shores or beaches; • near deep-sea dumps.
The right bait for burbot
The success of fishing also depends on the choice of live bait for catching burbot. Who is better to hook?
- Loach is the favorite food item of burbot, which it always takes willingly. But you still need to be able to catch this fish. Loach cannot be caught with a fishing rod in winter. It can be collected using lift traps lowered to the bottom. Air bubbles must be supplied to such a lift, for example, using a compressor. This will attract the loach, which can then be raised to the surface by pulling the trap out of the water.
- Ruff is also an excellent bait for burbot, although it is somewhat inferior to loach. But its advantage is that it is much easier to catch in winter. The ruff is famous for its vitality and will be attractive to a predator for a long time after being hooked.
- Sculpin goby, gudgeon, perch - these fish also form an important part of the burbot's diet and will be good bait.
- Any other fish - roach, crucian carp, minnow, and so on. These live baits are suitable if none of the ones from the list above are available.
Important! Live bait is the best bait for catching burbot using girders. But using live fish brings a lot of trouble. Therefore, many people use instead dead fry, fish or meat cuts, meat by-products (such as liver), shrimp and other baits of animal origin. These baits also bring good catches of burbot.
How to place the girders
When a place has been chosen, you can start setting up girders and fishing it. Near deep holes, you need to place it a little higher upstream, 5-8 m. Ice holes should be made at a distance of several meters from each other. When the ice is thick, it is easier to cut a hole with an ice auger. The diameter is approximately 30 by 30 cm, which is quite enough to pull out an individual weighing several kilograms. It is worth tying several leashes to the girder itself: one is tied to the sinker, and the second is a little further. If the live bait stops actively moving, the current will touch the upper leash and force it to move. Also, this will allow you to catch several fish at once, if you're lucky. Advice! It is better to knit a leash from a strong fishing line 0.6 mm in diameter, with a small loop at the end. The length of the lower leash is 60 cm, and the upper one is 10-15 cm shorter. It is very important to put on your live bait correctly to avoid damaging it. To do this, a loop of the leash is passed into his mouth and pulled out through the gills. Overlapping, through the eye, doubles are threaded, which are attached to the lower fin of the baitfish. This method allows the bait to move actively and live much longer, attracting a predator with its movements.
Catching burbot using girders (video)
At the end of the article, I would like to give advice received from an experienced fisherman: it is better to look for burbot sites in winter, by fishing with girders, since the surface of the water is covered with ice, and you can try fishing in dozens of different places. Basically, fishermen find all the places rich in burbot in winter. And if a biting place is discovered, you can look for burbot there not only in winter, but also in late autumn and spring, and even on cold, windy nights of summer. We recommend learning how to catch and preserve live bait.
Fishing technique
The tackle must be carefully lowered to the selected depth, and the hole itself must be covered with plywood and covered with snow if it remains overnight. You must remember to leave landmarks so that you can find the fishing spot in the morning. If a fisherman stays on a pond all night, then the girder needs to be checked every few hours. You should not rely entirely on the bite alarm; it may not work, or the burbot will not actively twitch. Therefore, in order not to miss the prey, you need to check all the traps, and not just those that worked. The main feature of this predator is that even when catching prey, it does not swim away from other predators, but remains in place until it eats it all. When playing, it rarely resists, so pulling it out of the water will not be difficult. The hook that the burbot swallowed is quite difficult to pull out on the spot, unless you cut it out of the belly. Therefore, you need to take spare ones with you. Hunting for burbot in winter is a very profitable and interesting activity. It is caught in many different ways, but the bait remains in all competition. This is the easiest and surest way to get the desired trophy without unnecessary hassle. For fishing to end successfully, you need to choose the right place, set up the tackle near a deep hole, put on live bait and know how to wait.
How to find a place to catch burbot in winter
From year to year, the places for catching burbot do not change; the traps should always be placed in areas with a current and closer to the stone ridges. It’s easy to find a promising place for catching burbot except on a familiar body of water where you’ve already been lucky enough to catch this predator. On an unfamiliar body of water, identifying an area that can be classified as promising can be quickly determined only with the help of a winter echo sounder, which will indicate not only the depth, but also provide information regarding the bottom topography and the strength of the underwater current.
The most promising areas for catching burbot in winter are areas near capes, exits from bays in areas with a rocky bottom and a strong reverse current. This predator does not like muddy bottoms and likes hard rocky bottoms; this point is important to take into account. The favorite place for burbot is an area with a sharp change in depth.
