Ice Fishing

Ice fishing is the activity of catching fish with lines and fish hooks or spears through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice anglers may sit on the stool, or a chair on the open expanse of a frozen lake or sit in a heated cabin on the ice, some with bunks and amenities. more...

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Locations

It is a popular pastime in Canada, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Norway, Sweden, Russia, and Germany.

In the United States, people from Alaska, Minnesota,Wisconsin, Michigan and New York, and the states of New England, and other areas with lakes and long, cold winters enjoy the activity. One of North America's biggest ice fishing contests is held in Forest Lake, Minnesota and is set to take place February 16th, 2008.

Shelters

Many fisherman fish with no protective structure, merely heavy coats and gloves and other winter wear. Longer fishing expeditions can be mounted with simple structures. Larger, heated structures can make multi-day fishing trips possible, but these are often eschewed by seasoned fishers, many of whom do not use these larger shelters.

A structure with various local names, but often called an ice shanty, ice shack, fish house, or just plain shack, bobhouse, or ice hut, is sometimes used. These are dragged or trailered onto the lake using a vehicle such as a snowmobile, ATV or truck. The two most commonly used houses are portable shelters and permanent. The portable houses are usually made of a heavy material that is usually water tight. The two most common types of portable houses are when your shelter flips behind you when you don't need it or a pop up shelter so it the only means out is through a door. The permanent shelters are made of wood or metal and usually have wheels for easy transportation. They can be as basic as a bunk heater and holes or having satellite TV, bathrooms, stoves, full size beds and may appear to be more like a mobile home than a fishing house.

In North America, ice fishing is often a social activity. Sometimes, the consumption of alcohol is involved. Some resorts have fish houses that are rented out by the day, often, shuttle service via Snow Track or other vehicles modified to drive on less ice than a standard truck is provided.

In Finland, solitary and contemplative isolation is often the object of the pastime. In Finland, fishhouses are a rare occurrence, but wearing a sealed and insulated drysuit designed out of space-age fabric technology for emergency rescue teams is not.

In North America, Houses will appear to create a city on various reefs where fishing is great.

Fishing equipment

Icefishing gear is highly specialized. First, an ice saw or auger is required to cut a circular hole or larger rectangular hole in the ice. Power augers are sometimes used. A strainer is sometimes required to remove new ice as it forms.

Read more at Wikipedia.org