Mustfish, what color Gulp minnow do you use, if I may ask?
My two favorite baits for white perch are just a simple 1/4 oz Hopkins spoon and a 1/16oz jighead with a 2.5" Gulp minnow. I also like a double hook rig with a 1/8 oz drop shot weight and Gulp minnows on the two hooks. Yesterday I had three dozen minnows and caught all my fish on the Gulps. They wouldn't eat the minnows. On Gaston this time of year perch are in the deeper main lake basin and deep creek channels. Yesterday I was catching them in 50 plus feet of water. But wherever the shad schools go the perch will follow.
Jim
US Navy Gunner's mate 1984-1990
The gulps i use are in the bag at Wal-Mart. They're dark grayish on top with a white belly. Supposed to look like a regular minnow i guess.
Lowball, if you need fish to donate to a challenged family, I have striper filets I’d be willing to donate. PM me if interested.
Chris
Sent from my iPhone using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app
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Often they are there, they just don't want to eat. Winter is can be more hit or miss than other times of the year. Harris can be especially frustrating, it seems Harris is a bit of a drive for you, you could very well get to Harris and experience the exact same problem. If you do go to Harris, look around for where the majority of other boats are set up and find a similar spot (similar depth, verify bait and fish on your electronics). I'm not saying go fish on top of anyone but the other boats tend to hint at the right depth and locations to start looking.
Also, minnows are more fail safe than lures. If they are biting, lures work great, but if they aren't in a great mood, minnows will get you more bites especially in winter. If conditions are calm, I like to fish a double hook rig with as light of a split shot as I can get a way with. It takes forever to drop the bait to the bottom but it's worth the effort, they will bite on this rig when all else fails. I think the minnows just float around near the bottom, look natural, and also look stunned which attracts the bite.
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ppowell
Yep, Harris would be a bit of drive, but I am determined to continue trying catch some white perch! Having been frustrated at Falls, Harris is a possibility. I have been using minnows. Thanks for the suggestion to use a light weight...minnows floating around more naturally makes some sense.
I troll with 4 rods and 1 1/2 oz. bottom bouncing weight and 2 hooks spaced about a foot apart above. Once I find a school I spot lock on them. Sometimes you can sit there and load boat others you have to keep moving around in the area. I troll between .7 to 1 mph.
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