Do’s and Don’ts for Ice Fishing

Spring is almost here. I’m so glad because there was a lot of winter time for the past few months. I mean, just look at our backyard here.Just kidding, we don’t have teepees in our backyard. Earlier this year, Cy and I were invited out by our friend Richard to go ice fishing on Lake Simoe. Our first time! I felt extra Canadian that day.Minet’s Point’s ice fishing was your basic, no frills experience. You get your teepee with a metal heater, 3-legged, foldable chair, and a stick wound up with string and hook. The bait was an extra $10. Even with the basics, we caught tons of fish – the kind that had to be thrown back, herring.Richard caught tons of herring, and my friends Heather, Andy, Susan, and Jeff caught a few too. I caught one with the help of Richard at the end of the day.

Since I was the worst at catching fish, I don’t have tips to share. But, I have ice fishing tips from my own experience.Do’s

• Bring friends of all ages (baby Tiffany loved it)
• Double up your socks to fend off toe freezies
• Bring a cutting board and knife for when you do catch a fish you can keep
• Bring hot chocolate, everyone will love it and you
• Cheer loudly when you catch something
• Book a cabin instead, the teepee is neat but that’s it

Don’ts

• Buy a BBQ, they won’t even heat up a grilled cheese sandwich
• Move carefully in the teepee, you might slip on the slippery ice and really hurt yourself
• Leave your hook unchecked, no bait, no fish!
• Pee near your teepee, you know why
• Keep any herring! There is a big fat fine if you do

I’d do it again, and my hopes are still high to catch a whooper of a fish – if not then a Filet-O-Fish at McD’s after works for me.