YPFINATIC
Registered: 01/19/08
Posts: 68
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Reply with quote | #16 |
Quote: Originally Posted by polarbearwell....the perch werebigger than the eyes
NICE.....thanks for sharing.
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fishing4u2
Registered: 02/03/07
Posts: 252
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Reply with quote | #17 |
Last year I recall we had a real bumper crop of juvenile walleye turning up in DCL. As we all look forward to first ice, I wonder how well that apparently strong year class is actually getting along as they approach maturity/harvestable size. Any ideas/opinions?
'4u2
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Nick
Registered: 10/22/09
Posts: 23
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Reply with quote | #18 |
That's where I started to back in the late 60s.The place was loaded with small Crappies mostly(6-8 in.).I must have caught 150 one day.I became so excited about the torrid bite that I just left my gloves off and they got pretty frost burnt.We only get 2-3 weeks of good ice here so t just isn't worth getting all the good equiptment for it.
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Nick
Registered: 10/22/09
Posts: 23
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Reply with quote | #19 |
4u ..Those walleyes should be getting bigger by the year and in 2-3yrs. you should have some great fishing for them.
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YPFINATIC
Registered: 01/19/08
Posts: 68
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Reply with quote | #20 |
Quote: Originally Posted by NickThat's where I started to back in the late 60s.The place was loaded with small Crappies mostly(6-8 in.).I must have caught 150 one day.I became so excited about the torrid bite that I just left my gloves off and they got pretty frost burnt.We only get 2-3 weeks of good ice here so t just isn't worth getting all the good equiptment for it.
"Ice Fishing In Dixie". That was the title of the article, as I recall, in Outdoor Life Magazine authored by the late Bill Burton . I was 16, just got my license and I was pumped. So with possession of the family car armed with modified broomsticks, shad darts, bobbers and bits of red yarn, as BB had suggested it was off to Broad Creek with my buddy one Saturday in 1970.
It took a while that day, but the first time I saw that bobber slowly sink...... I was hooked.
Fond memories for sure, but I also recall how worthless those rubber boots from Sunny's Surplus were on the ice, even with 3 pairs of cotton socks!
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Nick
Registered: 10/22/09
Posts: 23
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Reply with quote | #21 |
That's about the year I started to fish there.I have lived on the water since 1977.I live on what is called the Joppatown Tidal Quarry on Rumsey Island.If I want,I can put out some tip ups,sit in the Florida Room and watch for a bite.We have LM Bass,Crappie & Yellow Perch during the short lived ice season.
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fishing4u2
Registered: 02/03/07
Posts: 252
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Reply with quote | #22 |
YPFinatic,
On your first trip to Broad Creek, what did you use to cut/chop your holes in the ice? I had my bosses spud bar to use on my maiden voyage there, and the ice towards the back of the cove was only about 4" thick so it was no problem. My boss (who weighed a considerable amount) kept sending me farther afield for prospecting, but when he refused to follow me around the bend where there were no others fishing it occurred to me that maybe I shouldn''t be blazing new trails either. When I think of all the risky escapades I took part in, its a wonder I'm around to be able to tell the tales.
However, on subsequent trips to small lakes and ponds in Howard County I had to provide my own gear and tools. I'll never forget my first solo venture trying to get through maybe 11" of hard stuff, with almost the same depth of snow cover overlying the ice, not to mention a gale wind, with nothing but an ordinary hatchet. Definitely not the right tool for the job, but I simply would not be denied!
The diameter of the top of what eventually became a funnel was something to behold, and I was nearly plum worn out before finally punching through to liquid. I was so proud, but then it got worse! Naturally the ice quarry filled up with lake water before I could manage to enlarge the opening. It didn't take very long to find out how splashy and ineffective working in the wet was!! Plus the darn hatchet head was getting a thick glaze going.
Then when it occured to me how if I hadn't given every fish within a dozen yards a concussion already, I'd certainly spooked off any that might have been willing to feed before I showed up. This meant I'd have to start all over somewhere else, and be very, very careful not to punch through prematurely when excavating my next funnel. I did eventually manage to get a hook in the water. As I recall, I didn't get so much as a nibble that day.
That experience makes me wonder how Native Americans or Eskimos ever managed to ice fish. I suppose that way up north one could find and use a breathing hole maintained by seals, but it would have to be discouraging (when hauling up your catch) to be feeding the seals as often as yourself, I imagine. Or perhaps it was a game of 'trading up' if you got a crack at a fish marauding seal?
Does anyone know what methods were used in the distant past (B.C. before say, Cabela's?) I think I may have read somewhere about the use of fire-hardened wooden spears, but am not sure how well that sort of implement would work. Perhaps they somehow used fire more directly? Then you get to thinking about what was used for footwear and other clothing while on the ice. These had to be some very hardy souls indeed. Or desparate. Or both.
Surely these are the good old days of ice fishing, right?
'4u2
'4u2
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BomberMan
Registered: 12/20/06
Posts: 169
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Reply with quote | #23 |
B.C....before Cabelas? I shudder at the thought. What primitive times they were. I've cut holes with: ice spud, crow bar, axe, chain saw, crosscut saw, ice skates (that last one was a story in itself).
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Nick
Registered: 10/22/09
Posts: 23
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Reply with quote | #24 |
Spud Bar...10-14in. thick....I was in my early 20s and thought it was fun then.
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fishing4u2
Registered: 02/03/07
Posts: 252
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Reply with quote | #25 |
Bomberman,
Good to hear from you. Playing devil's advocate, one of the things future generations will probably not so readily get to experience in the age of mass merchandizing and big box stores (BPS, Cabelas, Gander Mtn, etc) is the genuine mom&pop style, hole-in-the-wall bait and tackle shop. Same deal for old-fashioned hardware stores, which also have an authenticity far different from a Lowes or Home Depot or whatever. That's a pity, I think.
Am I the only one who wants to hear the B'man tell his ice-skate story? Surely not.
And on that x-cut saw deal, were you the lucky guy holding on the end above, or the less fortunate one holding on below the ice? Just wondering.
'4u2
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YPFINATIC
Registered: 01/19/08
Posts: 68
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Reply with quote | #26 |
Nick,
Nice digs there at Rumsey Island . I launch at Dundee/Mariner Pt and have some panfish spots I like to hit back there. I have heard about some ice fishing in the canals years ago, but not lately.
I haven't been on tidal ice for at least 20 years......supposed to be real cold this winter!!
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Mikeguard01
Registered: 02/06/08
Posts: 103
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Reply with quote | #27 |
Nick, I fish that area every winter for crappie from the shore. I didn't fish the hard water in that spot last year went to Martins Lagoon instead. A couple of my buddies gave it a go but didn't do well. Fishing that tidal water makes me nervous with the ice constantly cracking. Mike
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Nick
Registered: 10/22/09
Posts: 23
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Reply with quote | #28 |
Nice perch.We get some nice ones during winter in the Susky..no ice there.
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Nick
Registered: 10/22/09
Posts: 23
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Reply with quote | #29 |
Mike i've been catching a few crappie & yellow perch there in my kayak.The Striper fishing s still good in te rivers.
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BomberMan
Registered: 12/20/06
Posts: 169
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Reply with quote | #30 |
Quote: Originally Posted by fishing4u2
Bomberman,
Good to hear from you. Playing devil's advocate, one of the things future generations will probably not so readily get to experience in the age of mass merchandizing and big box stores (BPS, Cabelas, Gander Mtn, etc) is the genuine mom&pop style, hole-in-the-wall bait and tackle shop. Same deal for old-fashioned hardware stores, which also have an authenticity far different from a Lowes or Home Depot or whatever. That's a pity, I think.
Am I the only one who wants to hear the B'man tell his ice-skate story? Surely not.
And on that x-cut saw deal, were you the lucky guy holding on the end above, or the less fortunate one holding on below the ice? Just wondering.
'4u2
I have to agree the demise of the Mom & Pop places is a loss to all of us, but esp. our kids who never got to experience buying fishing tackle, bicycle parts, and a cold drink all at one spot.
OK... you asked for it...the ice skate story....
My father loved to fish for Northern Pike and would make trips to Canada every year to get his fix. During the winter months we would try to time the first ice on the only lake (Meadow Grounds Lake) within driving distance that held the toothy critters. The usual routine was for Dad to drill the holes and my brother and I would set the tip-ups, baited with frozen smelt from the A&P, and then we would ice skate around waiting for the flags to fly. On this particular day, Dad was still rigging up a tip-up and I had my skates on already so I began skating around just kind of scoping out the area. I noticed that I could see bubbles under the ice and then spotted a Bluegill in a shallow area. As I bent over to try to see it better my feet went out from under me and I landed hard...the back of my skate hitting first....and sticking in the ice. It took me a minute to figure out what was happening and then I realized that I was skating on less than 1 inch of ice and the skate had popped through. Not really realizing the dangers involved (stupid kid), I proceeded to sit there and chop a hole with my skate, then went and put a tip-up in it. My Dad finally gets the gear in order and comes out to see what things are like and I told him he didn't need the auger, we could just use our skates. He just about came unglued and wouldn't let me go back to get the tip-up. I was really mad that we weren't going to fish but we got back in the truck and drove home. To this day he reminds me that I still owe him a tip-up.
As for the X-Cut saw, it was a single-buck so luckily, I stayed above the ice, but it was not fun. Man, I love my gas auger!
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