Ice Fishing Tip of the Day

[davetclown]

[center][#ff0000]<*@}))))))X< Ice Fishing Tip number 56[/#ff0000][/center]


You are sitting on your duff waiting impatiently for the ice to decide on what it is going to do.

There are a few things to help pass the time that will make your trips safer and more efficient.

On a 3x5 make your self a checklist.

Then you will want to laminate it. And get an erasable marker to make your checks. Make a spare card, one that stays permanently to your bucket or sled. This way if you go through at least we know who we will be looking for when we have to go diving for you.

Check every item twice to see if it is worn or nice.

Replace anything worn. every one knows worn items are not safe. sharpen all tools because every one knows the there is nothing more dangerous than a dull tool.

Make sure you still fit your Santa suit and it dose not have to be let out from all them fish dinners.

Check to make sure your cell phone batteries will hold up to the cold. as batteries get week the tend to loose there charge faster.
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[davetclown]

[center][#ff0000]<*@}))))))X< Ice Fishing Tip number 57[/#ff0000][/center]
[size 1][/size]
[size 1][/size]
[size 1]ICE ON ROD GUIDES[/size]

[size 1]ONE OF THE BIGGEST PAINS IS BREAKING THE ICE OFF THE ROD GUIDES .
JUST WHIP OUT YOUR CHAP-STICK , PINCH OFF A SMALL PIECE AND RUB IT ON THE ROD GUIDES . PROBLEM SOLVED ! [/size]


Tip provided by [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?username=lonehunter;"]lonehunter[size 1] [/size][/url]
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[lonehunter]

[center][#ff0000]<*@}))))))X< Ice Fishing Tip number #58[/#ff0000][/center]


I SAW SOME GUYS DOING SOMETHING I THOUGHT WAS A LITTLE SILLY UNTILL I REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT IT . THEY WERE PUTTING STICKS STANDING UP IN THE SNOW AS THEY WENT ALONG , THIS WOULD BE OF SOME HELP IN WHITE OUT CONDITIONS , YA JUST NEVER KNOW WHEN THESE THINGS WILL SNEAK UP ON YOU .
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[davetclown]

with out a doubt, in 20 feet during wite out conditions you can get turnd around as much as 30 degrees. in an acre as much as 60 degreesand, and at 50 yards as much as 180 degrees. especscialy when you get varing winds and you are trying to use the wind to hold your barrings.

for any one who dose not beleive this, the should take the test them selves.

find a community foot ball feild, stand in the middle of the goal post and attempt to walk to the other goal post compleatly blind folded on a colm over cast day.

be sure to take some one with you to keep you out of harms way. I have ran this particular excercize numorus times with the 4-H both leaders, and youths. and this is a great camp event. you will be amaized where you will end up.

here is another excersize, place a flag where you are ice fishing. take one look at your place of destination, then only look at the the ground in front of your feet untill you reach shore. trun around and look back at your path and see just how badly you varied off and just how fast you started heading in the wrong direction.

the results of these test will only be a fraction of what can happen during fog and white out conditions.

great tip AL... thanks, that is one for the books for sure...
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[lonehunter]

it would be a real good thing to do in fog conditions , last year a guy went thru on one of the lakes during a heavy fog , his screams for help were heard everywhere but nobody could pinpoint his direction in time . trail markers might have saved him .
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[lonehunter]

[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/bigfish_gifts.htm"]http://www.bigfishtackle.com/bigfish_gifts.htm[/url]

at $1.95 each , ya just cant beat the BFT hook safe for your ice rods and tip-ups .

on your tip ups your treble hook dosen't have to be removed using your frosen fingers at the end of the day .

on your ice rods theres no more getting your favorite jig cought in your clothes or gloves going on and off the ice . they even clip on to your guides for tangle free rods .
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[davetclown]

lol, do as I say and not as I do...

well I got in a hurry to get off the lake today and did not put my hook safes on my jigs, and sure enouff, I hooked my self in the back of my coat and ripped a one inch hole in it befor the line broke. I could not get off the jacket nor could I set the bucket down with out ripping the coat.

that is the last time for me. this year I have hooked myself (gloves, sleaves, hat and now coat) enough is enough, that is the last time I go with out using my hook safe.
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[davetclown]

[size 1]a digital bynocular camera

I am seriously concidering accuring one. I can see a benifit of putting one in my arsonal.

the bynocs' I have are a special from meijers from several weeks back. they were on sale for 8 fish backs. 10x25 colapsable I could not pass them up. regular 14 fish backs well worth the price in my book...

I use them to watch my tip up. and have had a great amount of use watching to see who of my fishing buddies are coming out on the lake. aside from that I have had tremendous enjoyment watching the wild life. hawks vultures cyote squrils twitter birds swans and many others.

this item is not on the top my list of ice fishing equipment but well worth the effort to bring them out. [/size]
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[davetclown]

[center][#ff0000]<*@}))))))X< Ice Fishing Tip number #59[/#ff0000][/center] [center][/center] [center][/center] [center]The Banjo Bobber[/center] [center]

Well its time to break out the old banjo, guitar or fittle and time to start putting away all your ice fishing gear.

But it is also time to start thinking ice on for next season. All them clever ideas you had while on the ice, now is the time to build them while the memory is still fresh in mind.

I came across a man here last week who saved all his broken guitar strings. Like most of us anglers we seldom throw any thing away, he showed us his bobber on his rod, he was getting strikes and showing them when the rest of us were still looking for a strike.

Well the truth of the matter is as the well-seasoned pan fisherman will attest, at times they can strike so light that they don’t show the slightest of hits. and some times they will hit and actually rise on the bite leaving the anglers clueless.

During the summer months while twanging on the ol' twanger thang you just cant help breaking a string or two. He takes the lightest gage string and clips them to length and uses a electrical wire casing to slide over after folding and placing a loop in the fold.

I offered to buy one from him, but he handed me one to use as a pattern.

Here is what the end product looks like. [/center] [center]


[/center] [center]takes the lightest steel string and clips them to length and uses a #18 or #20 gage electrical wire casing to slide over after folding and placing a loop in the fold.
[/center] [center]he then would tape it to the end of his rod.

like I mentioned earlier, I use liquid electirc tape, so I do have to hold it in place for a few minutes to allow the tape to hold but I get a perminant mount.[/center] [center] [/center] [center][/center] [center]the attachment below show it mounted to my rod tip.[/center] [center] [/center] [center][/center] [center]Like I said you can buy one, or you can make a better one with higher sencitivity and quality.[/center] [center][/center] [center]the longer you make them the greater sencitivity you will acheive. personaly the lenth I have tells me when a one inch gill is lipping my jig.[/center]
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[davetclown]

[center][#ff0000]<*@}))))))X< Ice Fishing Tip #60[/#ff0000][/center]



Well its the end of ice fishing season, but all is not lost because in the coming of the end of this season comes the end of the skiing season.

Now is the time to start your scavenging for next ice season. Hit your local ski lodge and the garage sales for broken and old skis.

These make perfect runners for your homemade sled projects. When you are looking for the rainy day summer project to spend with the kids this one is ideal, you can build his and little ones ice sleds.

You can turn this in to a multiple rainy day project by starting with sketches and crayon prints that both of you can sit and develop. Together decide just what is important for your angling pleasure. Do you need swivel bucket seats? Do you need a built in ice fishing toolbox. Do you need a secrete compartment to hide your fish from other anglers? Do you need a sled that is pulled by a Siberian husky? Do you need a place for a heater? Do you want one that turns in to a dome for windy days?

If you were going to build your custom sled, what would you include in the blue prints?

How about torpedo rod cases? Or swivel rod holders that can spin to match the different hole angles. Or how about a cup holder for that coffee or hot chocolate that doubles as a beer holder when out fishing with your falling down buddies?
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[DrownedDesertRat]

Sounds like a winner to me Dave! But I'd rather be out in the rain fishing. During thunderstorms we're usually playing cards or board games since we don't have a garage to work in.
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[girlsgofishing]

I find ice-fishing time consuming (don't forget the augering), damn cold, and then if you catch something, it tastes oily. I don't know if I'm the only one who doesn't like the taste of a winter fish. [crazy] Winter fish taste like chum.

[url "http://www.girlsgofishing.com"][/url]

[url "http://www.girlsgofishing.com"]http://www.girlsgofishing.com[/url]
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[lonehunter]

i'm going to redesign my sled . [cool]

box was too low and drug in the deeper snow . [unsure]

box was too narow to get comfortable in , needs to be a bit wider .[unsure]

gotta make a compartment to hold the gear in too .

heck , i'm just going to build a fold down shanty , i get too darned cold after an all day trip [].
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[davetclown]

[size 3]It sounds like to me you had a bad fishing experience. [/size]

[size 3]See if any of these fit...[/size] [ol] [li]You cut in to a Cisco and smelt a strong cent and felt the oil on your hands. === Cisco are strong smelling and are naturally oily and do smell like chum. Preparing these require special care and different cooking techniques.[/li] [li][size 3]You cut in to a blue gills and saw a colored film on top the water after the fish set in a bowl of water.=== I admit this dose make me wonder with concern. There is a reason for this, during the summer months fish get fat build up in their flesh. a fishes fat is build up of oil instead of fat you would normally see in a chicken pork or beef. if your catch was caught doing first ice you may have caught a batch of gills still retaining its summer fat. this oil is highly desirable and is sold on the market as vitamin "E" Your doctor will tell you that it is always healthier to get your vitamins from natural sources (diet) if the oil is heavier than you would like to see you can always add a couple shakes of salt to the water when soaking your fish. Oil is lighter than water and when adding salt to the water it makes the water denser and will cause the majority of the oil to separate from the fish and float to the top. a couple rinses will remove the rest.[/size][/li] [li][size 3]You cut in to a blue gill and you were presented with a skanky aroma. this is not natural, blue gill are sweet in flavor and even sweeter when caught in cold waters. what you may have unknowingly done is fished in a body of water that had stagnated during the summer. This will leave a nasty sent in the gills flesh even in the winter. these fish will require more soaking in salt water over night before preparing. you can get rid of most of the smell this way. and after soaking in salt water you still smell a hint of the chum smell lay your fish in a clean bowl and cover with milk. The oil from the milk will draw out the rest of the oil in the fish. After one catch like this I would consider, prefer actually to fish in cleaner waters.[/size][/li] [li][size 3]You attempted to drill a hole and it took for ever and way to much effort to get through the ice. there is a simple solution for this. the newer hand drilled augers called Laser augers are lightning fast compared to the augers of old. They have blades that are curved and will make the experience less dramatic. I still use the old cup auger because It provides to me a much needed cardiac vascular exercise for my arms. The laser auger can cut 10 holes to my one when the blades are sharp. If the blades are dull (not razor sharp) the drilling process can become an unbearable tiresome time consuming labor. The newer power augers are the berries when it comes to opening up the hard waters to access your fish. They are lighter than the augers of 20 years ago, about half the weight; the auger bits as well have made strides in the effort needed to open holes. You can blast through the ice in seconds and cut as many as 50 holes an hour depending of the depth of the ice.[/size][/li] [li][size 3]You went out on the ice fishing and the time seemed to drag on and on and on. Chances are good that you are still vary young and have not yet developed the patients of still fishing. this takes a bit of self discipline. This is common in anglers under the age of 35. Most anglers do not learn to appreciate the leisure of sitting on the ice working a jig. If this is not learned at an early age (5-10 years) it is harder to develop and appreciate. For me I love the crisp clean air, it cleans the lungs. And if I had my choice of sitting at home in front of day time tv and setting on the ice catching no fish, the ice will win hands down. The sceneries are ponderous and you get to see a great deal more nature than you would if you were to walk through the woods. I often take my binoculars on the ice just to watch the birds and other animals walking in the near by trees. A solution to this lack of conditioning is to get together with a good group of anglers. Share your fish stories; the company you keep on the ice can make all the difference in the world when it comes to ice fishing. Time also drags when you are uncomfortable on the ice. if you are cold or cant sit comfortably you will have a hard time enjoying your time on the ice. Dressing properly is vary important and taking a bucket or sled that is the right height for you is a must. you should not sweat in your cloths on the ice, if you do you will get cold fast, with proper clothing and layering you can be as comfortable on the open ice at 10 degrees as you are sitting in your living room. (No it wont beat the lazy boy chair) [/size][/li] [li][size 3]When you say ice fishing is time consuming there is no doubt about it you are absolutely right. I spent hundreds of hours ice fishing a year, countless hours during the summer scooping out my winter fishing holes. Gathering gear I want to use and in many cases making my own. Some works and some don’t but that is half the fun. This past winter we had in my area only 6 weeks of safe ice and I spent well over 300 hours setting on the ice. many hours alone many hours with old friends and many hours making new friends. My season was short this year, but I enjoyed every moment of it, even when I Went through the ice it sure beat hibernating in the ice.[/size][/li][/ol]

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[davetclown]

[center][#ff0000]<*@}))))))X< Ice Fishing Tip number #61[/#ff0000][/center]


Wider runners are the key to keeping your sled on top of the snow instead of plowing through the snow. Adding a swivel seat similar to your boat will make the event much more pleasurable.

Here is an example of a sled you may find to your liking. I myself like to travel much lighter. But on a trip away from home I will pack the sled, you just never know what kind of fishing you are going to get your self in to...

If you are going to build a dome you may want to consider a fish trap or clam. They make some nice models that weigh far less than the little sled in this picture. You can get one two and four man models and might I add if I were planning to stay in Michigan I would invest in one.

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[bulldawg53115]

Did you use a power auger & get gas & oil mixture on your fingers? Maybe that would also explain the oil syndrome?
Just a thought.
I personally love to ice fish. These days I have to pay the price for clothing that is better designed for the cold, because of arthritis. But, i get out there as much as possible. I finally told my brother 2 years ago though, that I was done fishing in -10 degrees with a wind chill of -35. I'm just getting too old for that! My hands can't take it anymore.[:/]
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[davetclown]

I wear a two peice insulated camo with a couple "T" shirts and a sweat shirt under and sweat pants under a pair of jeans.

so for the most part I am comfortable just sitting there. I seldom stay out in temps below 10 degrees any more my self. and never go out below ten degees when the wind speed is more than 7-8 miles in any direction, not with out a shelter any ways.
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[lonehunter]

NOW THATS ONE FUNCTIONAL DESIGN ! I LIKE IT !

DURING THE WEEK I'M OFF THE ICE USUALLY AT A LITTLE AFTER DUSK . ON THE WEEKENDS , DEPENDING ON THE WIND I'LL STAY OUT WELL INTO THE BEWITCHING HOUR .

PEACE AND QUIET , AWSOME CELISTIAL SHOW , AND A REPUTATION AS EITHER A DIE HARD FISHERMAN OR A NUTCASE .

SOMETIMES I GOTTA WONDER MYSELF .[crazy]
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[BottleCapLureGuy]

[#ff0000][/#ff0000][center]<*@}))))))X< Ice Fishing Tip number #63[/center]



Important Note!

Ice does not freeze evenly on rivers and lakes. Conditions such as underground springs, water current, schooling fish, water depth, temperature fluctuations and wind will all affect ice thickness. Snow cover has insulating properties and it's thickness will affect the thickness of ice and the weight of the snow will adversely affect the weight bearing capacity of ice. Ice thickness will often vary greatly on any given body of water, frequently within a very short distance.


Ice Fishing Safety
Many outdoorsmen are increasing their time in the field by participating in the sport of ice fishing. This allows individuals to get out year round. However, as with any outdoor excursion, ice fishing is not without risk. Employ common sense and good judgment! Protective gear is available to help prevent frostbite. Outdoors apparel specifically made for frigid conditions is available in sporting goods stores. Innovative socks and boots that help prevent frostbite if used properly are good investments. Some things to remember:
1. Never wear cotton socks as a first layer. Cotton absorbs moisture and increases the risk of frostbite. Your first sock layer should be made of nylon or rayon. Next, cotton may be used but wool is preferred. Wool pulls moisture away from the feet, thus your skin stays drier. Many lightweight boots now come with a layer of Thinsulate, which come in levels of 1,000 to 1,500. Inch for inch, there is no other insulation that keeps you warmer. Thinsulate insulation provides twice the warmth of other synthetic insulation, and one and one-half times the warmth of down. Nothing keeps you warmer.
2. When otherwise properly garbed, 75%-80% of all heat loss from the body occurs from an uncovered head. Subsequently, a warm hat that covers the ears is extremely beneficial in maintaining body heat. Survive Outdoors endorses Head Soks. Made of a variety of materials including wool, the Head Sok is designed to be pulled down over the head and tucked in at the neck, thereby reducing heat loss from the neck area. The Head Sok, accompanied with a hat, provides the necessary warmth for your head.
3. Mittens are much warmer than gloves. Most outdoorsmen know this by now. Mittens decrease the chance of frostbitten fingers. Somewhat cumbersome when working with rods, mittens are available with removable fingers for the short time you may need fine motor skills.

Is the ice thick enough?
At what thickness is ice considered safe is a common debate amongst outdoorsmen. General rules of thumb:
1. Two inches of solid ice is permissible for one person on foot, three inches for a group in single file;
2. A snowmobile is safe on three inches;
3. A single passenger automobile seven inches;
4. A 2-1/2 ton truck eight inches;
5. A 3-1/2 ton truck nine inches;
6. A 7-8 ton truck ten inches.

Other factors to consider:
1. Ice structure, and outdoor temperature. For example, an ice sheet forms on water, but if the water level drops after the initial ice sheet forms, it may be left unsupported near the shore. This occurrence is detectable by hearing a hollow sound when probing with an ice chisel. This is NOT a safe area to fish.
2. It is also important to note that when the temperature stays above freezing greater than 24 hours, ice begins to lose strength. At that point, the rules of thumb given above will no longer represent safe conditions.
3. Distinguish between ice and snow. Snow on top of ice may obscure the actual thickness of the ice. [left]
As stated in previous articles, if you have a gut feeling or concern that the ice might be too thin, STAY OFF THE ICE. Your desire to ice fish is not worth the risk of ice fishing on possibly dangerous ice. Use common sense and good judgment. Good luck ice fishing![/left] [left] [/left] [left] [/left]
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[BEARCLAW]

[center][#ff0000]<*@}))))))X< Ice Fishing Tip number #64[/#ff0000][/center]


Never and I mean NEVER apply sunscreen with the hand you bait your jig/hook with.
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