It’s no secret I am a transplant from the sunny shores of Florida. If someone else asks me why I’ve moved from Florida to Northern Illinois, I think my head will explode. “Wait, what you’re from Florida, what in the hell are you doing here?” This has been the toughest winter most have experienced in their lives. I have never seen anything like it. The ice even at the end of March is still 2 foot thick on some lakes. I have my first tournament of the season in 20 days. I hope it thaws. So, we are cooped up all winter. The boat is stored away. And Wired2fish and YouTube have become our outlets for fishing. Lot’s of websites are made, a lot of money is spent on tackle from online ordering at 3 am, and a lot of bickering and insanity come out on the local fishing forums. I’ve really seen the face of lunacy this year online from the fishermen I know.
Winter is tough up here. I decided to test the ice this year, and I have some opinions about the experience.
#1 It’s a lot of work.
Take everything you think you will need: Auger with razor sharp blades; Shanty; Tip-ups; 3 or 4 jigging rods; A bucket; A fish finder and load it into a sled. Dress in 4 layers of heavy clothing making the walk to the middle of the lake seem like you’re on the Moon… and don’t forget the cleats…. those actually come into play… I have the bruises to prove it.
Now you are all ready to go. Drag that sled through the woods uphill both ways sweating like crazy under your protective clothing and haul that thing to your spot. Now it’s time to drill some holes. Set the shanty up in high winds and begin testing holes for fish. I was already ready to leave at this step. Time to set up tip ups, then the jigging begins. When it’s time to leave the hole, load the sled up and haul all that crap back to the car that is a mile away. I ice fished 7 times this year and each of those trips exhausted me.
#2 It’s dangerous to ice fish.
I’m 300 pounds so I had some apprehension about even walking on the ice. There is the risk of breaking through and dying of hypothermia. I heard colorful stories this year of people slicing their calves and shins of the auger blades. I read some stories in the news about ice fishermen who venture out by themselves only to be found days later frozen to the ice. Why would anyone risk that? It’s lunacy.
#3 The fish do taste best through ice.
I had some of the best tasting panfish through the ice this year. Apparently cold water does something to the flavor of the panfish. Each specimen I pulled from a hole and kept tasted well. I don’t know why that is? Maybe it was all the work it took to harvest them. The labor of the process makes the fish taste better.
#4 The process in itself is monotonous.
Jigging while watching the Vexilar is maddening and fun, but mostly maddening for me. I felt like it was a fishing video game and the reward was small panfish. I was hoping to pull a 6 pound bass out of one of the 40 holes I drilled this winter but it never happened. It got pretty boring out there at times. Normally I would drink beer to supplement my boredom but in the situations I placed myself in it would have been too dangerous.
#5 It’s cold out there.
The clothing I had to purchase to stay warm and really be protected was expensive to collect. I had to do it piece by piece. You need good thermals. You’re going to need waterproof and slip resistant ice boots, with cleats. A good pair of waterproof snow pants is also a must have. Without good gloves you won’t last very long on the ice, everything is exponentially harder to do when your hands are frozen. My jacket performed fantastic for me this year but it was not cheap. It seems the cheaper you go on gear and ice garments, the worse off you are.
Despite these trials and tribulations, I enjoyed some of my time out on the ice. It was a good way to keep from climbing the clock tower and doing something stupid. I met a different breed of anglers this year. Ice fishermen are wired a differently than most people. Some are slightly crazy and I now understand why. It’s all in the process. I did not buy any actual fishing gear for ice fishing and don’t plan to, but the folks I’ve met and become friends with have enough of it for me to borrow. I’d bet you a dollar I’ll be back on the ice next year. Weird.
Brian Pentecost
Online Contributor
Brian Pentecost, 35, a native Floridian, has had some stellar successes in the Midwest, but these exploits did not come easy. It took about 2 full years of re-education and learning new techniques for him to figure out the Midwest bite. Since 2013 he has been fishing competitively and attempting to conquer the many waterways of Illinois and Wisconsin. Brian uses hand crafted lures and smaller boutique craftsmen to create lures and soft plastics that mimic nature in the best possible ways. We look forward to see what Brian will do during his double tournament series and personal fishing exploits this year. You can visit Brian on Facebook at his FishingForFishy page.
