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Warmth Puts Fishing On Ice Anglers Find Winter Not Frigid Enough For Their Sport

By Winda Benedetti windab@spokesman.com

For a certain group of die-hard outdoorsmen, this winter has been just too darn warm.

After all, the colder it is, the better the fishing. Ice fishing that is.

“Once you’re a fisherman, you don’t give it up,” not even for subfreezing weather, says J.D. Long of Sandpoint.

For these folks, bone-chilling temperatures are just what they need to pursue perch, trout and pike hungry for a mid-winter snack.

But with barely a lick of good solid ice on the region’s lakes, this winter has been a real dud so far.

That didn’t stop more than 100 people who dropped by the Kootenai County Fairgrounds Saturday for a few tips on how to catch those cold-water critters - and how to keep from turning into an ice cube doing it.

After all, the winter is still young.

“It’s a great cure for cabin fever,” said Ned Horner, an ice fisherman for 40 years and the regional fishery manager for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.

This is the first year Fish and Game has sponsored the ice fishing clinic. Three speakers offered insights on fishing techniques, safety and life underneath the frozen lake surface.

Ice fishing can be far more simple than regular fishing, Horner said. You don’t need a boat with a motor or a fancy fishing rod. A simple rod with a maggot on the hook, a bucket and something to hack through the ice will do.

“You’re out there and it’s real still and peaceful,” Ken Leight of Post Falls said Saturday. “There’s a real thrill hooking a fish under the ice and pulling it up not knowing what it’s going to be.”

Leight has ice fished with his wife for the past 10 or so years. He remembers one day the temperature hovered around zero as they caught five fish in less than an hour.

Of course, learning how to stay warm is all part of the sport.

Leight says keeping feet dry should be a priority.

“If your feet get cold there’s no way you’re going to stay warm no matter what you’re wearing,” he said.

Long, president of the Bonner County Sportsman Association, built himself a teepee-like enclosure that he wraps around and over him as he sits on a bucket by his ice hole. He puts a candle inside the bucket for extra warmth.

Jake Troutman and Mike Sportato, hardy souls at age 11, don’t mind the cold.

“I just like anything to do with fishing,” Troutman said. But they listened intently as the Fish and Game speakers talked about the dangers of ice fishing.

“Last year we went to Avondale right when it warmed up,” Sportato said. “We were walking along and the ice was cracking and water was seeping up.”

Horner talked to the crowd about the different types of ice and how to measure when it’s safe to walk out onto the lake.

Clear ice is very strong and 3 or 4 inches will be good enough to hold a person, he said. At least 8 inches is needed for a snowmobile. Eighteen inches is necessary for a vehicle, although Horner warns against ever driving onto a North Idaho lake.

White ice has air bubbles that can make it weaker. Honeycomb ice easily shatters into crystals and is the least sturdy. “I’ve heard guys say they were fishing on 6 inches of honeycomb ice and the next thing they knew, they were swimming,” Horner said.

Most importantly, “You’ve got to use common sense” Horner said.

All in all, Long admits, given the choice, he’d rather be summer bass fishing.

“It’s a lot warmer,” he said.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: ICE FISHING TIPS Ned Horner of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game offers these tips for those willing to brave the cold: Since the ice seals out most of the sunlight, fish cannot see as well. Use bright colored lures or bait with a strong smell. Jig the line up and down so they will be attracted to the movement. In the early winter, fish are more likely to be at the bottom where the water is warm. The ice cuts off fresh oxygen to the lake. As the winter progresses, the oxygen at the bottom of the lake will be used up first as the plants there decompose. Therefore, the fish, seeking oxygen, will move to shallow water later in the winter. Carry some sort of a pick or heavy nail in your pocket in case you fall through the ice. Use it to pull yourself out. Bring a rope with a cushion attached to throw if someone else falls through. Do not ice fish alone. “If you fall through and you’re by yourself, you’re probably not going to make it,” Horner said. Watch for springs that bubble up and thin the ice.

This sidebar appeared with the story: ICE FISHING TIPS Ned Horner of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game offers these tips for those willing to brave the cold: Since the ice seals out most of the sunlight, fish cannot see as well. Use bright colored lures or bait with a strong smell. Jig the line up and down so they will be attracted to the movement. In the early winter, fish are more likely to be at the bottom where the water is warm. The ice cuts off fresh oxygen to the lake. As the winter progresses, the oxygen at the bottom of the lake will be used up first as the plants there decompose. Therefore, the fish, seeking oxygen, will move to shallow water later in the winter. Carry some sort of a pick or heavy nail in your pocket in case you fall through the ice. Use it to pull yourself out. Bring a rope with a cushion attached to throw if someone else falls through. Do not ice fish alone. “If you fall through and you’re by yourself, you’re probably not going to make it,” Horner said. Watch for springs that bubble up and thin the ice.