Getting old.

[lefty2053]

I went fishing the other day and found a glove on my way down to the lake. I picked it up and hoped to find the owner. Got down to the lake and the very first person I saw had 2 different gloves on. I asked him if he lost one and he said yes. I then could see it was a match to one of the ones he had on. Gave it to him and then fished with in 100 -150 feet from him. Later after talking to him several times during the day we both walked out. On the way out I followed him and was going to help him on the steep part getting off the lake. After that we walked a little ways, he turned and said to me. "I gota make more stops nowadays being 74. Yea 74 and he is still fishing on his own and using a hand auger to boot. I just hope I make it to 74 let alone keep fishing. He moved around to a few different spots and hand drilled his holes. Good for him.

[Capt.Jim-N.J.]

May he make it to 100 doing what he loves

[Unclegillhunter]

Why I have been fishing with my nephew for the last 20 + years will come a time when his boy will be pulling my sled out to our fishing spots!
Keep it safe! JDL

[bobberbill]

Good of ya to keep an eye on him. We'll all be there someday.. Hope..

[ice dawg]

I know an older guy who is 87 now and still uses 3 hp Jiffy. When he was 84 I asked him if I could help him load his one man flipover and gear into the back of his pickup. He said when he gets to where he needs help with loading  his fishing gear he will quit fishing. Who could argue with that??? 

[Curley]

I know an older guy who is 87 now and still uses 3 hp Jiffy. When he was 84 I asked him if I could help him load his one man flipover and gear into the back of his pickup. He said when he gets to where he needs help with loading  his fishing gear he will quit fishing. Who could argue with that??? 

We know the offer was genuine.

[esox_xtm]

Dang it! You just made me cry...

Never considered myself a whiner @ 63. Now I gotta rethink that. <sigh>. 

[AndyJ]

The other day my brother-in-law told a story about walking into the coffee shop as a kid with his Dad and passing a table with few older guys around it. One of them said 'Joe Whelan died in his sleep last night' and another guy said ''lucky basterd''. The young Dennis thought it was a terrible thing to say until his Dad explained that he really meant it.  May we all be so lucky.  Good story Lefty.

[todalake]

I never got started ice fishing til I retired at 65.   Be 74 in January and looking forward to another year.   First couple years getting the equipment, hub, flip over, augers(6"nils, 5" & 7"lazers),  dozen rods and reels, 100 jigs,  dozen raps and assorted other stuff.  Have drills and adapter for augers.  Getting ready is part of the fun.   Only have about 1 month of fishing time cause wife wants to spend month down south on beach.   My insulated flip over is a little heavier so load seat separately.   Run a Lund Baron in summer time by myself chasing salmon on the GL.    Some Satchel Paige quotes:  "Age is a question of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter."  "How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?"

[lefty2053]

Some other things I didn't mention is the guy didn't have one thing on that was really made for ice fishing. No Parka,no bibs not even his straight fingered gloves. He was layered pretty good though. He also had 2 old looking Laker rods(4.5') with some heavy line on them,Almost looked like it was fly line with a leader on them. Yep he was out there like me just wanting to have some fun. I told him it beats staying at home. He said:"There are only 2 things you can do in the winter and that is Skiing or fishing and I'm too old for skiing. "

[tomturkey]

Good story lefty

I will be 75 in March. I just can not stand the cold any more. After spending so many years trapping beaver all winter with the cold not bothering me it is frustrating. I need to get over to the other place and get my flip and smitty if I have any thoughts of getting on the ice.

Years ago I fished with a guy in his 80's. The last couple of years we would pull him out on a sled so he could fish. He would catch fish when no one else was. One time I drilled a hole right by his. I could not catch any thing while he kept catching. I dropped down his  hole when he was unhooking a fish. He dropped done mine and kept on catching. I finally grabbed his line and figured out why. His leader was monofilament sewing thread while mine was 2 lb.

[BlueDuck]

Don't get old before your time.  There are lots of old geezers out there.

[wlatrout]

I turned 74 last Saturday and I agree with todalake. I don't worry about the number I just stay active and do what I want. I intend to keep fishing and hunting as long as I can put one foot ahead of the other. I'll see you on the ice.

[eriksat1]

I will be 61 in March and have noticed my fingers get cold a lot faster than they used to, that is probably the worst part of trying to ice fish now. The fingers get cold and can barely tie a knot anymore. Thank god for a pop up and a buddy heater.

[todalake]

I will be 61 in March and have noticed my fingers get cold a lot faster than they used to, that is probably the worst part of trying to ice fish now. The fingers get cold and can barely tie a knot anymore. Thank god for a pop up and a buddy heater.

I hear you.   Between the cold fingers,  low light,  ultra light line,  tiny jig eyelet, weak eyesight makes it hard to tie anything anymore.   Why I carry 6-8 combos rigged in case I break off or want to change.

[JimQ]

You guys are scaring me!

When ever I need to remind myself of my immortality...

Just in case the whole immortality thing doesn’t work out, I hope they have to try and figure out how to get my frozen body off the ice after I fall forward off my bucket and stick.

Ha!  Keep on keepin’ on fellas! 

[WYIfish]

I will be 61 in March and have noticed my fingers get cold a lot faster than they used to, that is probably the worst part of trying to ice fish now. The fingers get cold and can barely tie a knot anymore. Thank god for a pop up and a buddy heater.

I will be 65 this September and with my new glasses that I have lost I can't see where I have put my hearing aids. Now the wind whistles in my ears when I forget my hat. Can't see the small fish on the fish finder any more and am    going color blind so I can't tell which jig the fish like most.

[ice dawg]

I'm pushing 75, deaf in one ear, hearing aid in the other, glasses, a couple titanium hips and I take pills for my memory. If only I could remember where I put em. 

[lefty2053]

Ice Dawg,

[spoofhoundicefisher]

got a good story along these lines.  so my 9 year old son this morning tells me as he is sitting on a bucket looking at a vex fl8 "dad how long have i been ice fishing"  i said well you were out with me when you were 4 so you do the math.  he says "man been ice fishing over half my life.  just think when i am as old as you(i am 41) well its too cold out to do that much math this early in the morning.  hahahaha made me laugh.

[potatoe]

My eye sight is going, I need readers bad. Today is was kinda hard to see the flasher. Not sure what to do it was far away from me which normally helps.

It is frustrating wearing the glasses - I had 20/20 all my life

[fishermantim]

74 and only lost one glove? Then he's way ahead of the game!

When it comes to age, there are only a few ages that I have any concern about.
21..when I was considered a "legal adult"
65..what used to be "retirement age".
then whatever age they put on my headstone.

Basically, age is just a number.

[quackpot]

Thanks for making me feel young, I'm 59. I had to get bifocals last year and back is not repairable. I still enjoy getting out to chase fish. Used to take my oldest grandson until he discovered a special girl. The others don't have a interest in it.

[E Z turn]

I'm pushing 73 doing 110 and still out and about but I don't talk to much about how hard it is to get around because of aches and pains. When my old dog Bobby got old and couldn't get around very well my wife had him put to sleep.

[hunts2long]

Due to poor ice I didn't fish the last 2 years but before that got out 5/6 times each year. Wife is now not happy with me ice fishing alone so will only go out with my nephew when he fishes. I can't say I miss it all that much but it is a good time to get out with a group for a day....h2l

[ice dawg]

I'm pushing 73 doing 110 and still out and about but I don't talk to much about how hard it is to get around because of aches and pains. When my old dog Bobby got old and couldn't get around very well my wife had him put to sleep.

Do you sleep with one eye open? 

[Gamalot]

It does kind of stink this getting old. I am coming up on double 6 s and hardwater fishing is probably my favorite sport. All along I have upgraded my equipment and added the stuff to make ice fishing easier and more comfortable, great tip ups, pop up shanty, power auger, buddy heater and then I needed a truck to get it all there and back. Last year I learned the old legs just don't have the mule power to drag all this crap unless the ice is slick. 6 inches of snow on the ice is a heart attack looking for a place to happen. I needed younger buddies when ever I went to help with the dragging but most of them are still working M-F so I could only go on the weekends when they were available. My wife is still working so I sit around all week long and don't like that at all. Last spring I made it a mission to start downsizing with stuff I no longer use and get it sold so I could put some nickles away for ice season. The boat and motorcycles went down the road and a bunch of other stuff with them. I kept a nice fishing kayak I can handle by myself.

Just last week as I saw the ice forming I reached into my cash stash and bought myself a new Snowdog towing track machine to pull my sled shanty. Looks like I have the Mule problem solved. Then I broke the ice gear out to get it ready only to find the mice set up house in my Clam and ate holes all over the flip cover on the sides which I was able to patch but it was time for a new pop up. I just broke the bank and bought the latest and greatest Otter XT Pro Resort 3 man since I now have the mule. Ice should be pretty good to go by the time I get the new shanty all set up with this below normal cold snap we are in right now. Fortunately I already have a good utility trailer and can still lift the gear up onto it. I hope to keep ice fishing for as long as I can and my wife looks in complete amazement at how I get all this stuff figured out and the only negative thing she has to say is don't you dare go until you know the ice is safe. Sitting around this empty house on nice days when I could and should be out is the last thing I want to do. All last winter when the weather was nice but my pals were working I spent my days fixing things that weren't broke and wishing I could be fishing.

Gam

[prospector]

 Great stories guys! I am 43 going on 15 but my body thinks it’s about to fall apart. Hopefully this year I can get some of those titanium hips and lose that 50 pounds that has been hanging around for the last couple years. Sure appreciate hearing about your Situations and wish you guys all a good new year!

[E Z turn]

Do you sleep with one eye open? 

Yes the good one .

[eriksat1]

I think I solved the problem with re-tying knots. I do it at home under good light with readers and clip on magnifying glasses. Then tie up a bunch of jigs with my 2 Lb line, and a surgeons loop at the other end about a 15” leader. Then tie a small micro swivel to my main line 2 Lb test. To put on a new jig all I have to do is cut the old one off the swivel put the surgeons loop of the new one through the swivel eye and drop the jig through the loop and cinch it down. No more tying a knot on the ice. I keep the pre-typed jig/ leader separate in a cheap pleated sandwich bag so they don’t get tangled up. Then the hardest part is putting the surgeons loop through the swivel, one of those sewing needle threaders works slick for that, you barley even need glasses to do it.