As I was preparing to write this week’s column, a message that came from a friend who lives near Lake Winnipesauke made the impact of this mild winter clear. He sent an image of Alton Bay, one of the most popular ice fishing spots on the big lake, that showed open water on Jan. 17! Indeed, there have been similar conditions in the past but clearly the frequency of these drastically warmer spells has dramatically increased.
Locally, the many ice fishing fanatics are frustrated as the ice has been marginal at best and they are “chomping at the bit” to get out on the “hard water.” There is a clear trend among outdoors people to get more involved in ice fishing as a way to get outdoors in the winter months. With significant improvements in gear and clothing, the sport is surging in the Northeast. Ice fishing has long been hugely popular in the upper Midwest and this writer remembers that during my time working for Ducks Unlimited, between 1988 and 1992, those in the home office at Long Grove, Illinois would drive five hours or more Friday afternoon to their favorite lake in Wisconsin to fish all weekend and then drive back home Sunday night. Jigging for panfish, perch and crappie was what most of them loved while there were a few who pursued walleyes and northern pike.
There is a lot of new gear and today’s ice fisherman has certainly evolved from the old stick tip-ups and using a chisel to chop five holes in the two-foot-thick ice. It was exhausting and the hole started out a foot wide and ended up very narrow! The wind was always blowing your line off the tip-up or freezing the line and/or the hole. The gloves of the time were useless, and the wind whistled through your clothes and chilled you to the bone. But frozen fingers and all, you went out and had a great time!
A friend and passionate ice fisherman gave me a catalog from a leading ice fishing supply company and WOW, do they have a lot of neat stuff to buy! Reed’s bills itself as “Your Year-Round Ice Headquarters” and it is hard to argue after thumbing the pages! The real hot items are electric augers and flashers and those were both added to the Roche inventory last year. The Ion lithium electric auger is a joy as it silently drills hole after hole and the charge easily lasts all day. The augers have evolved from hand augers to loud, unreliable gas drills and now the electrics, which also include augers that are paired with contractor-grade hand drills. The flashers, I am told, are the key to finding suspended schools of perch, crappie (AKA calico bass), and bluegills. You can see fish and your lure, and the flasher images foretell a strike. The Vexilar Genz Pack that I purchased last year is one of the most popular units and should increase a fisherman’s chances significantly. You do not have to fish a hole with no fish, and you can keep prospecting with your electric auger until you find a school of hungry fish.
That cutting wind that was mentioned previously does not have to be a reason to stay on the couch. In the catalog, there are dozens of choices of “pop up” shelters to fit every budget. You can buy a simple one-man unit that will protect you from the wind and keep your heat inside and they easily break down to be very portable. If you are looking for something bigger or more luxurious, you are in luck! Reed’s catalog includes 10 pages of portable shelters that come with their own sled to easily pull them from spot to spot. They comfortably fish up to six people and truly have “all the comforts of home” They are designed by ice fishermen for ice fishermen. Once you have your “home away from home,” you can add hole safety covers, catch covers, rod holders, cup holders (of course!) chairs and lighting.
Next, of course, you will be upgrading your tackle, because that is what fishermen (and women) do. The new lineup of tip-ups is a huge upgrade and offer as many features as you want to pay for. Jigging rods and reels are approaching warm weather fishing rods in advanced technology and price! Loomis, one of the big names in fly rods, offers ice fishing rods for $199 and Shimano’s best ice fishing reel is $229.99. There are tons of specialized rods and reels for much more moderate prices and you can find one for every budget. Lures are relatively cheap but, like all fishermen, you will want a tackle box full of every size and color, right!
Warm clothes are also in the catalog, but most sportsmen already have cold weather clothes for late season hunting but maybe a special pair of cold weather waterproof gloves might be a good addition, as would real serious insulated boots. So now you know exactly what to do with your stimulus check! Hopefully, this warm spell will pass and real winter weather will freeze things up and make it safe for everyone to get out on the ice with their new gear!