It's playoff time - for perch

The major league playoffs have started and do you know what that means?

Joe Buck.

But, even more importantly and certainly more enjoyable, the road to the World Series signals the start of the fall perch fishing season.

This is the time of year we hear that fish are “packing on the protein” or “strapping on the feed bag” to last all winter.

Is that true?

Dr. Gary Grossman, aka “Dr. Trout,” recently wrote in American Angler (Sept/Oct 2015), “From a biological perspective, trout feeding is determined by the availability of prey, the cost of obtaining that prey, and physiology stress.

“There is little evidence trout will ignore valuable prey in spring and summer and ‘decide’ to stock up only before winter.”

And I ask, Why would perch act differently from trout?

Fish are cold-blooded, so their metabolism does slow down in response to lower water temperatures.

Plus, as we ice fishermen are aware, most fish continue to feed, albeit expending less energy than in warmer months, throughout the winter.

Regardless of reason, the feeding activities of yellow perch do seem to pick up in October — or maybe they are just more accessible in shallow water.

The secret to catching fall perch is simple — find the perch and sit on ‘em.

A small piece of worm or strip of belly meat on a yellow leadhead jig with a yellow tube body or twister-type tail is the basic terminal rig.

Using a bobber, suspend the bait about 6 inches off the bottom of the lake and cast the rig over weedbeds.

Raise the rod tip to pull the bobber several feet, then drop the rod tip to allow the jig to fall.

Expect a bite when the jig is dropping.

Pretty simple fishing, really. But the rewards are awesome.

Nothing beats fresh perch tacos while watching playoff baseball games!