Clampet

Go Back and if possible bring a friend as a witness. Bring a camera. Photograph the incumbents. Refuse to leave. Make them make the next move. Dial 911.

Made my modifications ie: drilled 1.25 inch diameter holes with battery operated cordless power drill to house the collapsible paint roller poles that hold up the tarp. My last post showed my tarp leaning precariously, threatening to take flight. I had used my 6" hand auger to make the holes, thinking that by tamping the hole with snow and slush would hold them at a right angle to the ice, but I discovered that did not work, hence a Leaning Tower of Piza syndrome. After I got the thing set-up to block the wind...................................... the wind changed direction from West to South by South West, so I had to drill one more hole and pick the entire thing up and adjust it to the new direction. That worked out ok. Here are the pics: I got ten keepers for my trouble...notice the size is improving..

Well, got tired of using my Walleye filleting knife, which I found to be a little on the large size fer the Perch. A fellow ice angler from the USA advised me to purchase an electric knife. I did for $8.95 on sale. I tried it for about three fish, then decided it wasn't the solution fer me. I then invested $20 some odd dollars on a 4" Rapala Filleting knife, and I found it made the job a lot easier. Here is the result of 35 Perch, fillet, de-boned, skinless....

As promised, I am posting my results of my super lightweight wind shelter as an alternative to expensive portable Ice huts. I discovered through this initial test that I need to make some slight modifications. My first problem was the ice thickness. It was only 5 inches. I was counting on 9-11 inches. This makes for poor support of the poles. My second problem was the hole diameter of 6 inches made with my auger. I thought that by tamping the poles tight with snow and slush, they would be snug. Didn't happen. This caused the poles to lean at a sharp angle. Solution is to purchase a drill with a diameter slightly larger than the poles. This should ensure a tighter, hence snugger fit, hopefully reducing the forward cant of the tarp. THE GOOD NEWS My wind shelter held up in brisk winds. It did not morph into a kite. I was not observed running down the Lake yelling, "Stop, stop, come back, puff, puff ,... groan"! As evidenced by the thermometer, I was enjoying +20C. Plus 20C, in the sun, out of the wind. Isn't that something! Out of the sun, the temp was -11 C. But no wind chill...Hooray! I also caught 35 Perch, all much larger than my last outing. I will be investing in an electric knife to keep Jethro at bay and make the job of filleting those Perch a little easier. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Here are the pics: The arrival. This is the scene that greeted me prior to getting on the lake: The leaning tower of, well you know... And from a different angle Notice the water on the ice, due to the weight of the snow... The Thermometer is looking good! The purpose of all this-->

I hope to attend. I'll try to keep Jethro out of it. Last time he went to one of them thar affairs, he cleaned out all the vitels afore anyone showed up. Tarnation!!

Is Six Mile Lake very far North?

You are missing the point, but I respect your input. Thi is a let's keep it simple and stay warm at the same time. This is for those that live in an apartment and don't have much storage space. This is for all the lonely people (oops, wrong song) It is for those who would like to go to a lake where they can walk out for a mile and set-up camp and ice fish. Otherwise, you cannot go because, you figure you cannot afford the cost of a hut rental, the cost of a portable, (and the portables, at least most do not fit into a car trunk, so you need a truck to haul it). You do not need a roof. You just need to get out of the wind. My plastic 40 dollar sleigh will accomodate all my equipment plus 100 lbs of walleye fillet on the trip back or 500 million 50 inch perch!

You ol southern dog. There aint no ice knowlege in Alabama, only Wild Turkey Whiskey This aint no Clam. This is a time tested wind proof, no time fer flyin, get outta ma face wind break. I was on the ice when I was 13 years old. I would a went earlier, but my Pa had me when he was 65 years old, and was in no shape to do what most fathers do with their sons. I have fished many seasons behind one. I do know that if you use a true tarp made of canvas, thay are whisper quiet in the wind, but heavier and more expensive. Also prone to rot if stored wet. The lighter fabrene tarp is noisier in the wind, but much less expensive, and easier to fold and store. Ain't no blowin' in the wind, the truth is blowin in the wind...

Joon Moon, I guestimate that Pike to be 17.5 lbs. Nice one! I also like the size of the windows on the ice shanty. That is rare. Most have tiny little windows near the ceiling. Good to hear cars and truck on the ice, but like you said, ifn ya don't have experience drivin on the lake, you'll get stuck. An ol friend of mine prctically lived on the ice, and he drove an old 2 wheel drive pick-up truck, and went places on the lake where people got stuck in their new 4x4s. You gotta know when to speed up Know when ta slow down (Sung to the tune "The gambler" by Kenny Rogers).

I'm a Northern boy. Yes, I know, 'ol Jed is in the lap of luxury in Beverley Hills, but he hasn't forgoten his backwoods ways. Now I know a lot of you don't have the modern conveniences of Ski-Doos, Yamahas, Polaris' and the like. Or of course the 4 wheelers. Some of us have to resort to booking with outfiters to have the priviledge of sitting in an Ice Shanty, to get our sorry behinds out of the wind. Some of us bite the bullet and pay the big bucks for one o' dem portable ice huts like the Clam, Frabill, Shapell, etc. Well,........ back in the day.................all we used was the wind tarpaulin, or tarp. Yeah, we would cruise the shoreline for that perfect looking tree branch, then do it again till we had three. Heck if they were reallly nice, we would hang on to them fer the entire ice season, electing to jam them under our feet on the runners of our sled for the trip to the fishing spot. These were used to hold up the tarp. Nowadays, most lakes are rimmed by cottages, and you cant go cut their trees. Now if you haven't been behind a tarp, when it is windy, do not knock it. I personally hate those Ice Shanties you rent because of the small windows. It is akin to fishing in a darn clothes closet. Very boring, some may say, claustrophobic. Once you are out of the wind, ladies and gentlemen, the cold factor is cut in half. It goes without saying that yes, you need quality boots, and clothing. "specially the footwear, don't skimp. By the way, Walmart has a terrific sale on now for -40C boots for $19.99 down from $39.99. Anywhoo, enough of my rambling. (Thank God! said the reader, get on with it already!) I bought a 6x9 foot tarp for $4.99. Then I purchased 3 extentible paint roller poles for $9.99 ea. They collapse to 3 feet, and extend to 6 feet. I will allow 1 foot to be in the ice for support, so the height will be 5 feet, more than ample when you are sitting down behind the tarp, out of the wind. I bought a bag of re-usable tie wraps, for a buck 99 to fasten throught the tarp's grommet holes onto the poles. Quick, easy, no fuss. This little package weighs about 5 lbs. Five Pounds!! This all fits into a 39" x 28" plastic tote sled I bought fer $ 39.99 at Crappy Tire. Sure I get to walk, but hey I need the exercise. Pm me for details.

Thanks fer sharin' Pointe Anne, is that on the Bay of Quinte?

Wunder bar!

That wasn't Joe Fish

It may have to do with the Lakes' orientation. If the lake is oblong in shape and is oriented in a West -> East direction, and the wind is coming from the West, or East, then the wind gets a chance to sweep the entire lenght of the Lake and the opposing shore would have some dandy waves. Just guessing at this, not sure if it has any real relevance.

You may have been one the few groups to catch fish I wanted to go elsewhere, closer to Barrie, but heard the were getting snow squalls. Let me know if u r available, I'd like to try some deeper water action.

In view of the poor bite during this cold snap, I was wondering how many anglers beleive the wind or temperature etc has an effect or not on the success rate. And yes, I'm sure many of you have heard the old saw: Wind from the North: Don't go forth Wind from the South, blows the bait in the fishs' mouth Wind from the East, fish bite the least Wind from the West, fish bite the best

Cute little devil!

Youtube Q: Why isn't my video showing up? A: Depending on site traffic, changes to video information can take 8 hours or more to show up in the search index after they have been uploaded, changed, or removed. This includes changes to tags, ratings, views, and comments. Under ext Hopefully by tomorrow.

That is a good sized Whitefish! That would a made 200 Perch I caught take a back seat. Thanks fer sharing the laugh with the peanuts.

You guys had fun. I find half the thrill is the planning and the anticipation. Great pics too, like the jam session.

Uh huh it does.

You will never be cold if you have good clothing, but you prolly save yerself some expenses as the fish are definitely not cooperating. To test this get dressed in you heavy clothing tonight and go outside and see if you are cold. I went out today and was not cold at all!! (see my report).