Had to head north.

[kcskypilot]

Had a great trip visiting family in MN.

I lived here myself for 23 years. One thing I missed was driving out to your fishing spot.





Ice 15". Water depth 35'

Worth the "drive"!

[RoeBoat]

Nice!  I've never driven on ice.

[Hexagenia51]

Late 60's or early 70's used to drive on Bear Lake quite often! Back when we got 16 to 18 inches of ice most winters. Man I miss those winters with good ice early in the season. Nice looking fish by the way. Hex

[hoppy63]

Late 60's or early 70's used to drive on Bear Lake quite often! Back when we got 16 to 18 inches of ice most winters. Man I miss those winters with good ice early in the season. Nice looking fish by the way. Hex

Same on lake erie......global warming is killing us.....lucky to even get on inland lakes now, around here

[RoeBoat]

Late 60's or early 70's used to drive on Bear Lake quite often! Back when we got 16 to 18 inches of ice most winters. Man I miss those winters with good ice early in the season. Nice looking fish by the way. Hex

Just before my time, I do remember the blizzard though.

[zcm_82]

Very nice. 

I was born in northern MN, and spent about 15 years of my life living there. I miss the fishing, but not the -40s in the winter.

[river_scum]

sound like a fun trip congrats.  we used to go to battle lake MN. area every year 70s n 80s.  I probably filleted more fish back then than most do in lifetime. lol  one year the group left there with 45 gallon bags of fillets. lol  gills were trash fish there then.lol


it was later than that here in our state.  I have pics of shanty town on Hamilton iin the 80s.  several cars/trucks out there.  it wasn't that many years(less than ten?) go I posted a pic of small truck out on sylvan lake main basin by island. 

story time. lol  I was setting on 7-8"of story lake one night.  about ten o'clock I get visitors.  a full size 78 blazer full of drunks come barreling out off the ramp.  man that ice was cracking bad!  they drove out around the island and spinning around yelling tossing beer cans out.  I was waiting for him to spin out and stop.  I was sure it would go threw if he stopped.  I was hoping they didn't come to say hello. lol  they made it back off and away they went.  I had my rope out and ready. lol  that was in the 90s sometime.

I never have drove out on the ice either roe.  don't think I would either.  ill leave that up to those that can just go buy another truck out of their savings.  mite be from watching a buddies car sink to the roof one year.

[zcm_82]

sound like a fun trip congrats.  we used to go to battle lake MN. area every year 70s n 80s.  I probably filleted more fish back then than most do in lifetime. lol  one year the group left there with 45 gallon bags of fillets. lol  gills were trash fish there then.lol


it was later than that here in our state.  I have pics of shanty town on Hamilton iin the 80s.  several cars/trucks out there.  it wasn't that many years(less than ten?) go I posted a pic of small truck out on sylvan lake main basin by island. 

story time. lol  I was setting on 7-8"of story lake one night.  about ten o'clock I get visitors.  a full size 78 blazer full of drunks come barreling out off the ramp.  man that ice was cracking bad!  they drove out around the island and spinning around yelling tossing beer cans out.  I was waiting for him to spin out and stop.  I was sure it would go threw if he stopped.  I was hoping they didn't come to say hello. lol  they made it back off and away they went.  I had my rope out and ready. lol  that was in the 90s sometime.

I never have drove out on the ice either roe.  don't think I would either.  ill leave that up to those that can just go buy another truck out of their savings.  mite be from watching a buddies car sink to the roof one year.

They are dang lucky they didn't go through on 8". 

A lot of guys up in MN would drive on 12" but I never put wheels on anything less than 24, because I have seen a couple vehicles go through the ice firsthand. There were always several that went through a couple particular lakes where I lived every season.

Some lakes I never drove on, period, because they were always full of weak spots, even when the ice was 3+ feet thick.

Driving on the ice around here was well before my time living here. I have seen some pictures from a friend's family pond with vehicles on it in the 70s, but those days are long gone. The most ice I've ever seen on it was 13" back in like 2006 or 2007, and most years it doesn't get over 6" locally. We did hit about 11" on one pond back in 2019, but that was the first double digit thickness ice I had found in several years.

[techboy]

50 years ago My dad drove his truck all over tri-lakes in Whitley County
and 20-30 years ago we drove all over the Mississippi backwaters at lansing Iowa

[ftwwalleye]

Only time I have driven out was on saginaw Bay and it wasn't very far. The parking was on the ice.

[Lee1977]

It hasn’t been that long ago we drove out on Devils lake in Michigan. Grew up there and that’s what we did all the time and never thought anything about it. There was always one that would go through if you got in the wrong area.

[tater140]

Petenwell and Castle Rock for me up in Wisconsin.  we were driving on 16" of ice up late one February when our ice was completely gone around here.  It was definitely spooky the first time, could hear the ice cracking.    After a while we got used to it.  It was nice to drive to a new spot, hop out, drill holes, and fish.

[kcskypilot]

Very nice. 

I was born in northern MN, and spent about 15 years of my life living there. I miss the fishing, but not the -40s in the winter.

Me neither!

[TeacherPreacher]

Saw guys drive on Lake George in the 50's. My first ice drive was on Cisco Lake in UP of Michigan about ten years ago. Rather daunting the first time!! But there was 30 inches of ice. Also drove on Leech Lake in MN on 30" of ice.
Those local boys don't fish if they can't drive!!!
Most ice I ever saw in Indiana was in late 70's. We measured 27" at the Slough!
Teach

[zcm_82]

Saw guys drive on Lake George in the 50's. My first ice drive was on Cisco Lake in UP of Michigan about ten years ago. Rather daunting the first time!! But there was 30 inches of ice. Also drove on Leech Lake in MN on 30" of ice.
Those local boys don't fish if they can't drive!!!
Most ice I ever saw in Indiana was in late 70's. We measured 27" at the Slough!
Teach

Jeez, 27" of ice at the slough, there'd hardly be any water under it a lot of places. 

Was Dutch still running the bait shop then, or was it after he had died?

[RoeBoat]

That's what I was thinking!  How did anything survive in a foot of water under all that ice!!

[zcm_82]

That's what I was thinking!  How did anything survive in a foot of water under all that ice!!

Sometimes it doesn't. WS has had a few bad winterkills during really cold years.

[chicagill34]

Looked like a blast!!

[klbeeks]

 March 2, 2015. We drove all over wawasee that day  15-18" of ice

[kcskypilot]

 March 2, 2015. We drove all over wawasee that day  15-18" of ice

The year "polar vortex" became a household word! I heard people were driving on Lake of the Woods that year as well.

[klbeeks]

The year "polar vortex" became a household word! I heard people were driving on Lake of the Woods that year as well.

Yep, I remember it well.  We had 22" on mississinewa that year also. Ill be hard pressed to see that ever again

[ftwwalleye]

Yep, I remember it well.  We had 22" on mississinewa that year also. Ill be hard pressed to see that ever again

2015 was year i decided to buy a drill adapter after hand drilling thru 20" of ice. Sure didnt hole hop much that year. It was damn cold but hand auger thru all that ice warmed you up..ha

[zcm_82]

I wasn't able to get out much that season. My kid was born that year and there were some complications, but I know we had 13" on a local pond that year the last time I was out that season, and it was cold well after my last outing. I imagine we had over 15" at some point that year.

Early February 2019 we had 11" and that was our last double digit ice around here. This year I haven't found anything over 4.5" and last season we barely saw 4 before it melted off during that freakish warm spell.