If you can find them you can catch them, plain and simple. Mid winter sunfish and crappies will usually bite as long as your bait is in the right neighborhood, and location then really is the "final answer" to hooking up with a nice bunch of panfish.

One of the hottest mid winter patterns to set up is no where near anything you might consider "classic" (at least when compared to open water), and could be as a basic as the middle of the lake. Basin areas in smaller lakes and flat areas in deeper bays off of bigger lakes is what we're talking about, and will depend on what's available.

By taking a hard look at a good map you should be able to come up with at least a couple of likely looking starting spots. Smaller lakes and basin areas will give you less to think about and will help to keep your time spent searching down to a minimum. Look for deeper (but not too deep) flats and basin areas near good shallow fish holding summer structure. Likely spots may be ten to twenty feet deep or so, and will depend on the makeup of the lake.

Ron Anlauf used a mid winter tactic for this nicebluegill

Once you've determined a starting spot or two the next order of business is to find them, and then see if there are any fish using the area. With an electronic depth finder you should be able to shoot through the ice (if it's not too busted up) and get a depth reading, and also see any fish that are holding off the bottom. Marcum's LX-i is made for doing just that and is a handy flashlight sized structure and fish locator. It has a digital readout that will display the depth followed by an audible alarm and flashing depth of anything holding off the bottom. Although it can do all of that, it really isn't designed to be fished with. That's where a depth finder with a multi-color display like the new LX-5 comes in. The LX-5 has an exceptionally crisp three color display that represents density and will let you see whether you're over hard or soft bottom, fish (including those that are holding close to the bottom), as well as the tiniest bait.

As good as electronics can be you won't always be able to see fish, at least not right away. Those that are holding tight to the bottom simply can't be seen and you'll have to drop down a bait and spend a little time fishing to find out if any are using the area. If there are any active fish around you should be able to entice them in and then off the bottom where they are easily seen. That means you're going to have to drill some holes and make some moves if you plan on locating fish. Portable ice shelters and gas powered augers are the rule, especially later in the winter when layers of ice really start to pile up. Even when you've found the mother load; panfish will often make micro moves this way and that and you need to be mobile to stay with the biters. The Fish Trap Pro ice shelter is perfect for making quick moves and can be set up and taken down in mere seconds, and is light enough to be easily moved on foot. If you've found some biting fish and they suddenly shut down a move ten feet this way, or maybe twenty feet that way, could get you back on the fish and can make a difference in how many you manage to put on the ice. When it's good (real good), you can sit on a spot all day and keep on catching, but that's not the norm. More often than not you'll have to make quite a few moves in the course of a day to keep getting you're pole bent.

Although crappies and sunnies all fall under the heading of panfish, there are definitely some differences that you need to be aware. For one; they each have their own feeding preferences and if you're using the perfect bait on the wrong fish you'll probably come home empty handed. For example; Crappies will take smaller minnows and larvae like maggies or waxies, but not always. While they'll usually take a minnow, they won't always go for the larvae. Sunnies are primarily bug eaters and will likely snub the minnows so you better have some of the baby bugs with if you want to have any chance of icing a few. The moral of the story is be prepared and bring along some of each so you can cover all of the bases.

Even though panfish will usually bite if you can find them, you'll do a lot better if you incorporate a good deal of finesse into your presentation. That means light line, like two and even one pound test, and itty bitty lures to hook the minnows and larvae on. Tiny baits like Northland Tackle's #10 Spider Ant or #8 Doodle Bug are excellent picks for working with small minnows and larvae. Their super fine and ultra sharp hooks will allow you to thread on a minnow with the least amount of trauma, and a maggie or waxie without ripping it apart and give your presentation the utmost appeal. High quality rods with super light tips are another component to finesse and there are plenty to choose from. Rods with detachable spring bobbers are the latest craze and can make a real difference in how many bites your able to detect, and ultimately how many you put the hooks to. See you on the ice.