Has it really been twenty years?

[Tom Gonya]

Well, it's been quite awhile since I've been ice fishing, at least twenty years, so when my recently acquired fishing buddy Matt had offered for me to join him and his brother-in-law Clay up at Fairview Lake (just below Wallenpaupack in the Poconos), I figured what the heck. It seems I've been spending every waking moment this winter working, and we all know that all work and no play... etc.

        It was Sunday (2/20) and Matt and Clay had left at 7am, but because I can't seem to shut the workflow off completely, (I had a job to spec out that morning), I planned on meeting them up there sometime after lunch. I had heard about all the serious ice storm damage that the Pocono region had incurred earlier this season so I took a meandering route up there to check it out. When I got up past the Blue Mountain into the higher elevations, I was stunned at all the busted-up trees. Coming past the Pocono raceway on Rt 115, it looked like a war zone. There were very few trees that had not suffered major limb breakage and it was quite a mess. What a shame. There were beautiful majestic oaks and maples in people's front yards that were in shambles. I hope all that broken timber doesn't become a fire hazard this summer. The damage seemed to taper off the closer I got to Fairview though, and I was glad to see that the entire, normally beautiful Pocono Mountain region wasn't completely reduced to looking like Godzilla's stomping grounds.

        My roundabout way took me past the lake at Tobyhanna State Park and there were quite a few people ice-fishing there also. The tip-ups scattered across the lake made it look like some drunken surveying party had come through in the middle of the night. It dawned on me that most of the people out there were wearing some sort of blaze orange. I guess it's not too much of a stretch to surmise that the same sort of hearty person that would sit in a tree-stand hunting deer in the middle of a snowstorm would find themselves out on the ice in the same type of weather. True Vikings, all of them.

        I arrived at Fairview about 1:30pm and made my way around the point to where Matt said they would be. Because of the melt we had the week before, the ice had very little snow on it and was quite slick. It was all I could do to stop myself from doing a "James Brown split", and even as I sit here writing this, my hips feel like I did the "Lambada" with Charo, that wild Spanish vixen, for 5 or 6 hours straight... I guess I'm not quite as young as the last time I was out on slick ice.

        I had filled an "action packer" with all sorts of stuff I thought I might need. I had hand warmers, extra clothes, and my normal "emergency boat kit" which includes essential items like snacks and toilet paper. Thankfully, I didn't have to use the last item for obvious reasons, and besides, it was rather crowded out there. There were maybe, a dozen or so ice fishing parties and a twenty-five man game of hockey going on, and very little tree cover. Not a real private situation....

        I got out around the point on the lake to where Matt and Clay were setup and heard Matt say to Clay "I told you he'd make it." It would seem that there were a lot of other friends of Matt's that had declined the offer, with excuses ranging from the more subtle "Sorry, I have things to do", to the bit more blunt "What!?! Are you friggin crazy!?!" It doesn't take a keen mind to realize that ice fishermen tend to be a lonely bunch. As a matter of fact, it could be argued that it doesn't take a keen mind to be an ice-fisherman, but that's, of course, just the opinion of people who don't do it, right?

        You’re allowed five tip-ups per person, and in anticipation of me actually showing up, Matt had drilled fifteen holes, all with a hand auger. The ice was about 10 inches to a foot thick, and I felt tired just thinking about what that takes. I was at Matt's twenty-eighth birthday party the night before, and even though Matt didn't, shall we say, hold back on celebrating, he still had the energy to drill all those holes. Ah but to be young again!

        I'm wiggling my way over to them, dragging the action packer by a rope with a lawn chair and a small cooler on top, trying to maintain some sort of dignified gait. But slick ice has a way of making even the most graceful ballerina look clumsy, unless of course you have skates or cleats on... neither of which I possessed at the time. I was just happy to make it there without busting open my skull.

        After what seemed like an awfully long time to go the 500 yards or so to where they were, Matt greeted me with a big smile and waved his hand across the impressive setup they had going there. Matt's quite the "do-it-yourselfer" (he's building a huge addition onto his house using lumber he cut and milled himself), and he had concocted this lean-to out of PVC pipe covered with a brown tarp. There were a number of trailer parks I past on the way up there and Matt's little shanty would have been a proud addition to any one of them. I couldn't help but have a "Jeff Foxworthy Moment"... "You maybe a redneck if...your shed does double duty as an ice-fishing hut".

        Actually, Matt and Clay had all the creature comforts one could want out on the ice. Gazing around, one could see a grill going, complete with deer steaks sizzling away (Aha! My deer hunter/ice fisherman theory holds true!), and various coolers, filled with just about anything you could ask for. These guys could have setup shop selling food and supplies to all the other fishermen out there. I had to shake my head just thinking of what it took to drag all that stuff out on the ice. When I asked if they had an "extra" pair of strap-on cleats, Clay replied that they don't use them, they just slow them down when trying to get to an active tip-up. Watching these guys slide around with the grace of a "Disney on Ice" performer, I began to realize that I was quite assuredly out of my league here. Of course, it isn't always that way...

        Matt had told me a story from a couple years ago when he had a Coleman grill setup on the ice on a little table, with a frying pan going full tilt with steaks. Matt had lost his footing, and on the way down had hit the handle of the frying pan with enough force to send it flying, steaks and all, high into the air. Matt's head hit the ice with a resounding "CRACK!!" and the pan, along with the steaks beside it, landed square on Matt's chest. Matt's laying there, cross-eyed from the impact, and (now here's a little insight as to just how tough these ice-dudes are) Clay sides quickly over, grabs one of the steaks and, taking a bite out of it, say's, "Good! They're done!" You don't seem to find many "Florence Nightingales" out on the ice...

        Upon asking how the fishing was, Matt produces this one 3 pound or so bass. Not bad, but other than that, not much was going on and that pretty much seemed to hold true for the rest of the fishing parties. We were about 200 yards out from this one cove where the hockey game was being played, rather enthusiastically I might add, and these guys were making enough noise to fill a stadium. No strike or lockout going on there. Being so close to NYC, a lot of the people who own cabins on the lake are from either New York or North Jersey, and they tend to be a curious lot... at the very least not shy about coming up and asking about the ice-fishing and whatnot. They were certainly nice enough and most of them had young kids but after about the fifth group of people to come up to us, it kinda turned into a show and tell. Matt and Clay, although very nice guys in they're own right, tend to have a sense of humor that would boarder on the sarcastic side. Me, I'm way over the line. Anyway, after a dozen people came up to see what we we're doing, Matt was getting a little weary of constantly walking them over to the hole where he had the bass on the stringer. True to form, Clay picked up on this, and as each group of people came up, Clay would offer, "Hey Matt, why don'tcha show 'em your bass..." at which point Matt would have to walk, er, slide fifty yards out to the hole to show them this fish. Clay and I were comfortably sitting in the lean-to, which was warmed with a twenty-pound propane heater of course, as Matt was showing this seemingly endless parade of gawkers this "trophy" three-pound bass.

        This one sand lot hockey player from Boston came skating up, and after a fairly long conversation, being the nice guy that Matt actually is, he offered this guy some deer jerky and a beer. (Yeah, they even had a couple "mini-kegs" of Labatts too!) After the guy had taken a particularly large bite, I turned to Matt and said, "Yeah, I don't know of many people that take the time to stop and field-dress road kill deer like you Matt". I was about to say I was kidding when Matt, in all earnest, say’s "Your Right! If you see them get hit and you deal with the carcass quickly, all's ya gotta do is cut away the damaged meat and they're fine". (There's another one for ya Mr. Foxworthy!) I look over at our "Beantown" friend, and it looks like he's about to loose it....

        I brought along my portable Humminbird Wide 100 fishfinder to see what there was to see. Matt and Clay try to setup along this one underwater ridge that goes from about eight feet deep out to like twenty. I had never used the unit before in these conditions, and I wasn't quite sure how it would react. When I first lowered the transducer into this one hole, I was getting some funky readings, saying we were in twenty feet of water (via a rope, we knew we were in about ten) and it was showing some sort of bar, almost like you would expect to see if there was a major thermocline. I played around with the sensitivity, but couldn't get it to read properly so I just left it in the hole and pretty much forgot about it. A little while later, Clay says that it seems to be working now. Sure enough, it was showing exactly eleven feet of water and a fairly hard bottom. Hummm, maybe it's time for a new set of batteries? Nah, I've only had that set in for four years or so...


Here are a couple shots from the day. Matt is the one wearing the blaze orange hat...





        Ok, I've been here about three hours now, and not even as much as a false strike. Matt was periodically going around to the tip-ups that were dispersed over about a fifty yard semi-circle, and after one round came walking up with this fourteen inch, rather fat pickerel. Clay asks him where he came up with that, as no tip-ups had shown any activity. Matt, in a very sarcastic tone, say's "He jumped up out of one of the holes after a fly, waddda ya think!" You quickly learn to expect stupid answers from equally stupid questions, and maybe it's the conditions, but both seem to slide out real nice-like on the ice. Here this pickerel had taken the minnow and just sat there, without ever tripping the flag. Matt said that it didn't even try to fight. After a quick photo, Matt released it to not-fight another day.

        Almost all the tip-ups were rigged, at various depths, with minnows. Not that I looked bored or anything, but Matt offered me a little "jiggin' pole" and we tied on a small trout jig tipped with a mealy worm. Clay had a huge brownie on the last time they were there, and at least this gave me some sense of fishing. I would see an occasional fish on the finder, but jig as I might, I couldn't get anything to as much as look at this thing. No matter, we were outdoors, having a great time trading tales, and generally enjoying ourselves.

        It was getting on about five o'clock and though both Matt and Clay had the next day off and were staying the night at a local motel, I was looking at just another grueling Monday at the grind. Besides, I told Matt that the sooner I leave, the sooner they'd start catching fish. I bid adios to these cold weather troopers and headed for home.

        As I was wiggling my way the quarter mile back towards where my truck was, I was thinking to myself... "I shouldn't let twenty years go by before I try this again...ten would be plenty!" Of course, I'm only joking, it WAS fun!

[Trophy Hunter]

dfuller if you have a hard time reading longer posts DON'T READ THEM!!! I on the other hand really enjoyed that story and the pics It was very well written and I almost felt like I was there.Tom I would like to welcome you to the Shanty that was a great first post don't let  dfuller's ignorant comments discourage you from posting again. 

[Trophy Hunter]

LOL looks like in the time it took me to type my post dfuller's post was already deleted obviously I wasn't the only one offended by it!

[Pasquatch]

Welcome to Iceshanty!
Looks like you guys had fun!

[Tom Gonya]

Thanks for the kind words Trophy Hunter. I didn't see the other post you were refering to, but like you said, I don't think that anyone is forced to read longer posts, although looking back on it, I guess I did babble on a bit!  

Thanks for the Welcome, you guys have a great site here, and although I'm not a dyed-in-the-wool ice fisherman, I get a kick out of reading about it. So much so that it wouldn't be a stretch to say that this site was at least partly responsible for kindling the fire to go check it out.... You guys are an asset to the sport!

[archbishop]

i dont know what dfuller wrote but welcome to shanty 

[PIKEGUY]

Great story and welcome to Iceshanty Tom!

[Fish-A-Holic]

Great story. I enjoyed it a lot. Welcome to the mayhem created when normally sane people decide that a 70 degree house is not as comfortable as a frozen piece of wilderness.

[WARRIOR_ON_ICE]

i dont know what dfuller wrote but welcome to shanty 

What I was saying in my first reply to Tom Gonya's first ever post on IS was basically that some people will see a very long message and, if they have other things going on in their lives that are somewhat important such as kids, work, etc. and don't have all day to sit and read every post like TrophyHunter and others do, they may choose to skip that message. I was attempting to give constructive criticism so that Tom Gonya would potentially give my comments some consideration, and possibly see it as an opportunity to gain more interaction and responses with fellow IS members.

This is not the first time that TrophyHunter has attacked me for giving my opinions. There is a whole range of users on this site, and I am saying from my experience that brevity is an appealling feature to most readers.

[WARRIOR_ON_ICE]

LOL looks like in the time it took me to type my post dfuller's post was already deleted obviously I wasn't the only one offended by it!

You totally do not understand the concept of constructive criticism. The post was from a brand new IS member who I was trying to help out. I can't be the only site member that reacts negatively to extremely long messages, especially when time is at a premium. The object of posting a message is to get as many people as possible to read it, even if the targeted people are a small subset of the general IS population. Tell me, who is really doing the disservice to Tom, someone like me who has offered some advice on how to possibly gain greater interaction with IS members, or someone like you who doesn't seem capable of seeing anything other than at face value, and therefore can't offer useful advice to new members? This is not the first time you have personally attacked me, any time you feel like doing it again I'll be happy to defend myself, TrophyHunter.

[PIKEGUY]

I believe the object of posting something on this site is for people to enjoy it and for you to feel good about what you wrote. I, for one always look forward to reading the comments I get back. I'm glad my first post on Iceshanty was better received than Tom's. I understand what you're getting at, but as TH said...nobody says you have to read it.

[The Muddler]

I don't see why there is a need for any criticism on a perfectly fine post.  Personally I really liked the story and had no problem with length.  Yes I agree some others may not like reading so much...so what.  Here is a constructive suggestion...if one sees that a post is too long for their liking then take the one second to go back and click on the "back" button.  Ahhh so simple, much simpler than suggesting someone should do things to appease a few's liking.  Or perhaps I'm way off and there is a rule somewhere that says we have to read every post on every thread.

If we wanted criticism we'd go to a debate board not IS.  My suggestion "think it don't say it"...others may not like hearing you talk as much as you like hearing yourself.

Thanks for the story Tom...only improvement would have been hearing that as you walked off the ice you said "stuff work" and went back to fishing   I know when I'm my deathbed I'll regret missing the days you described more than I will ever worry about what I accomplished at work.  Matter of fact I'm heading out with the buds again tommorrow and looking forward to another great day, fish or not! 

[Iceshanty]

Sheesh... it's so easy, don't read it. Nobody is twisting your arm to read the whole thing or every post on the forum for that matter.  The object of posting a message has nothing to do with what you said. Sharing ice fishing information, a good story, photos, or just having some good clean fun is what it's all about here. The moderators and I try to maintain a positive attitude on the forum and I am sure most would agree that this is why iceshanty rules. I for one would not want to see anyone shorten their post for fear of being hassled about it.

Keep them coming Tom and welcome to the site.

The object of posting a message is to get as many people as possible to read it, even if the targeted people are a small subset of the general IS population.

-Scott

[PIKEGUY]

Sheesh... it's so easy, don't read it. Nobody is twisting your arm to read the whole thing or every post on the forum for that matter. The object of posting a message has nothing to do with what you said. Sharing ice fishing information, a good story, photos, or just having some good clean fun is what it's all about here. The moderators and I try to maintain a positive attitude on the forum and I am sure most would agree that this is why iceshanty rules. I for one would not want to see anyone shorten their post for fear of being hassled about it.

Keep them coming Tom and welcome to the site.

The object of posting a message is to get as many people as possible to read it, even if the targeted people are a small subset of the general IS population.

-Scott

 (standing)

[vancouvercanuck]

LOL looks like in the time it took me to type my post dfuller's post was already deleted obviously I wasn't the only one offended by it!

You totally do not understand the concept of constructive criticism. The post was from a brand new IS member who I was trying to help out. I can't be the only site member that reacts negatively to extremely long messages, especially when time is at a premium. The object of posting a message is to get as many people as possible to read it, even if the targeted people are a small subset of the general IS population. Tell me, who is really doing the disservice to Tom, someone like me who has offered some advice on how to possibly gain greater interaction with IS members, or someone like you who doesn't seem capable of seeing anything other than at face value, and therefore can't offer useful advice to new members? This is not the first time you have personally attacked me, any time you feel like doing it again I'll be happy to defend myself, TrophyHunter.

He's just complaining cuz he can't read. Or if he can read, not too well, cuz it only took me two minutes to read that.

The Back Button is your friend................ ........

[vancouvercanuck]

By the way, great post. I hope one moron won't want to make you post one sentence posts.

[Trophy Hunter]

LOL looks like in the time it took me to type my post dfuller's post was already deleted obviously I wasn't the only one offended by it!

You totally do not understand the concept of constructive criticism. The post was from a brand new IS member who I was trying to help out. I can't be the only site member that reacts negatively to extremely long messages, especially when time is at a premium. The object of posting a message is to get as many people as possible to read it, even if the targeted people are a small subset of the general IS population. Tell me, who is really doing the disservice to Tom, someone like me who has offered some advice on how to possibly gain greater interaction with IS members, or someone like you who doesn't seem capable of seeing anything other than at face value, and therefore can't offer useful advice to new members? This is not the first time you have personally attacked me, any time you feel like doing it again I'll be happy to defend myself, TrophyHunter.

Are you serious? Give me a break I just wish your origional post was still there!This great site has a little of everything for everybody there are short to the point messages and there are more in depth lengthier posts as well.If you don't have the time then don't read it!!! It seems funny to me that you took the time to bash Tom on his first post? Why couldn't you just go to the next shorter topic?Someone else will enjoy it!Now we have totally turned this thread away from the original topic if you have a problem with what I have said PM me!! Tom  once again I enjoyed your story and the pics keep em coming!!

[toothfish]

 Tom Keep up the good posts. Ignore the stuff you don,t like and post on the stuff you do like.

[Tom Gonya]

Noooo problem on my end guys! And I honestly feel (even if I didn't see the dfuller's original post) that he was trying to be "constructive". In my experiance, fishermen tend to be a passionate lot (me included) and I always try to imagine the writer on the other end of cyberspace wearing a smile as he pecks out a reply because 99 times out of a hundred, that's the case.

And come to think of it, what kind of "family" don't have good 'ol sibling rivalries every now and then?

[METIPPIN]

Tom that was an awesome post. Reminds me of why we fish good friends, the great outdoors, the funny stories, and the food and beer always tastes better on the ice. Cudos to you and tight lines.

[Poorboy]

Hey Tom, Welcome to IS

   Take it from another long poster, I used to read fishing mags, but couldn't identify with the stories.  Had nothing in common with the contents, and many were about things I would never do.

   I'm a fan of yours from elsewhere (site "x"), as you know, because you write the kind of stuff I looked for in mags but couldn't find...so I stopped buying them.  When I found I could expect regular "features" by you, I made sure I stopped in from time to time where I could enjoy them.

   Possibly IS could add a section called Features or Stories or Don't Come To This Section If You Are In A Hurry or whatever.  I'd love to see some magazine type stories, just to take me away mentally.

   Love this site, have learned much from the short, information exchange type of posts so prevalent here, but variety is good. 

   Thanks for posting, Tom.

[Chainsaw]

      Stories like that are why I still buy the Fur-Fish-Game magazine after fifty plus years. Welcome to the boards.
       I notice that no one hit 'Reply with quote' though. I'm glad to see that I'm not the only long winded story teller on board this Ice floe. Folks'll see a L O  N   G post and may pass on it 'till a response or something attracts their attention. Then they just plain settle in to read it. Yours was good, and enjoyable, and since it's now 3:15am, it was like a bedtime story. I'm goin' back to bed. G'night Dad.

[Tom Gonya]

You guys sure know how to make a bloke feel good! Thanks!

The way I look at fishing (and the stories thereof obviously) is that the actual catching is really only a small, albeit important, but still, just a part of why I go. Probably why I never much thought of tournament fishing. Don't get me wrong, I certainly don't have anything against people who do, and I would be lying if I said there wasn't just a tinge of envy seeing guys be able to make a living out of fishing, but I would be equally wrong to say that my best fishing memories coincided directly with the amount of fish I've caught, even if the fish are considered to be the main act. It almost seems like that, without the photos, I would forget the details of a given fish relatively quickly. But the laughs and the good times (and even some of the bad) seem to be indelibly etched in my brain. At at the end of this amusement park ride we call life, that's really all you have to show for it.

Life is an adventure...enjoy the ride!
Tom

[Chainsaw]

      Yea Tom. Some of us really do know exactly what you mean, It reminds me of the time we.................... .....,(maybe another time).

[BJ]

Tom,a terrific post.  I just got back from 10 hours of icefishing and after putting my gear away and taking a shower,I hopped on the shanty. I read your post and felt like I was reading a story from field and stream. I think its great listening to another persons perspective on icefishing. Tired as I am,your post was well worth the read. Welcome to Iceshanty and cant wait to read more of your posts.

[chrisN]

i really enjoyed that post Tom.  well worth the read.  It made me feel like i was out there on the ice.

welcome to the shanty!

[big walleye]

Great post. Just because some anglers have problems reading more then two sentences does not mean you cannot write a novel. Great story.

[AirManCam]

Man, speaking of being here 3 hours Just kidding, good story! Too bad you didn't catch any fish..better luck next time!