what made you like ice fishing.

[jayswimmer09]

the adrenalin rush when your running out to a flag. anyone know what im talking about?? i just cant explain the feeling of it. its true love words cant describe it

[mistertwister]

i'm just like everyone else...my dad got me into it when i was really young. I think it was chasing my first flag that got me hooked. Really its all about the peace of it all, and then every now and then getting that flag to go up and see the spool peeling out line, knowing that there is something big on the other end.

[vermonner]

first, I'd like to say hello, I'm a new member--been looking at the site for a week and HAHAHAHAHAHAHA--love it
I started ice fishing as a kid w/dad in the 70's, carried on to my teens and got away from it.  Went last year with a bunch of guys from work and jumped right back in both feet.  My neighbors think I'm nuts--I woke up to a frozen puddle in the driveway this morning, augered throught it.  the asphalt was tough drilling, but the fishing was great!!!!  Going cuckoo waiting for hard water

[knotreelly]

always enjoyed the quiet solitude and serenity of being on the ice or in the woods. the sun rise warming you up in the morning. the winter scenary with fresh snow on the ice and the thrill of seeing that heritage popping up and then seeing that spool spinning as the salmon is running , or the slow turning of the spool when a good pike is slowly going away with the bait in its mouth with no fear of anything else trying to steal its dinner except a LARGER PIKE. the grandkids running to the flag yelling its there turn. cooking on the ice. no hauling of boat and trailor till spring.

[madpistoleer]

Beer?......Ya, thats it..Beer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[jr_the_dj]

The second I saw the bright orange flag go up  now I see flags in my sleep   

I have the same dreams!

My Grandpa started taking me ice fishing when I was about 4, He would sit on a bucket and jig in a hole about 2ft away from me and catch fish like crazy, where I would never catch anything..so I would get bored, then I think to simply amuse himself, he would ask if I wanted to switch holes..of course I said yes. Well he would end up catching all the fish in the other hole then.

It didn't matter to me how many fish I caught, it was the time I spent with him and even my Dad, thats what got me hooked, now I fish with my best friend, and about once a year I drive up to northern Wisconsin and just Grandpa and I go out and ice fish..Now things are a little different, I catch just as many fish as he does    but he will never admit it.

[IceholeFisherman]

A good friend with 25 years icefishing got me to try it on day. Been "hooked" ever since. Went to a farm pond nearby. He drilled his hole and handed me the auger to drill mine. I didn't even make it through the ice when he had a really nice largemouth. Had a great time catching fish and drinking coffee spiked with a little bit of gin. A  week later, with a small homemade shack put together for me, he graduated me up to bigger water. Here in NW Ohio we have a lot of above ground manmade reservoirs the city's use for water supplies. Ice was a foot thick but being a newbie to ice fishing I only felt relatively secure. The city was pumping water out for normal demand so the ice was quite noisy that day. Got the crap scared out of me a couple of times when relief cracks would form. They would start from one side of the reservoir and would race to the other. God must have a sense of humor because one of those cracks formed right under my shack and under my left foot. The hard crust on the top shot ice crystals in my face. WOW!!! I could of went airborne without wings! After I gathered my self together I peeked out the door and looked over toward Chris and told him what happened. He stuck his head out and never said a word. Just had a big  grin on his face and he went back to fishing. Seeing he wasn't concerned, I started to relax.

We caught quite a few perch that day. Ive been hooked ever since. Catching fish, warming up  canned beef stew on the heater, the moments of boredom, the moments of excitement(or sheer terror),  being out with a good friend, and watching the Aqua View and the flasher is what does it for me.   

Oh how I yearn for the sounds of the ice!!!

[samson]

nothing better to do in the winter so might as well keep fishing.  also like the physical challenge of dragging all my gear, good exercise

[pike hound]

A buddy of mine showed me some of his pictures of the big pike he had caught through the ice and told me all of his stories so I had to try it and the first time out I almost limited out on bluegill and he had two flags at the same hole in 10 minutes. Man, I love seeing that flag pop up. What got me addicted was the time I had a chance to go but decided not to and he caught a 28" and a 34" pike in about two hours. I go as much as I can now!

[blue mule]

beer slushies .
 iceholefisherman-- it's really funny how many folks here in the buckeye state don't know what fun they're missing. a few years ago, the lake i was fishing had 14 inches of ice. we were killin the perch and crappies. saturday came, warmed up to 35 degrees, i hit the bait shop for minnows. an old guy was there, couldn't believe i was goin fishin. i told him where i was going and how good the fishing was and he said the ice couldn't be safe. "you won't get me out on no ice , the snows melting". i told him you can drive a truck on it. he just shook his head. fished for 2 more weeks. best season i ever had

[saranacjoe]

The crisp cool air and not having the wife bugging me  to do this and do that. Also just the rush you get when you hear flag!!

[Tommyboy18769]

beer slushies .

Gotta love that...but its sooo quite out there and ya gotta love the laziness factor of not having to cast...lol

[oldken]

i like ice fishing because it's fishing

[Tommyboy18769]

i like ice fishing because it's fishing

Nicely said...

[sled-in]

everything is just so much more beautiful, and there is nothing like haveing a flag pop up.

[Shrek]

Being able to walk on water , and the solitude of being out on a crisp morning before the sun rises , cutting holes in the ice, not knowing whats coming out of the hole you just drilled. I work outdoors in the winter and it always seems colder out when I'm working than if I'm standing on the ice fishing go figure

[vipercat64]

When I was in high school, I was on the wrestling team, which meant that munching on sundays was "off limits."  So in order to avoid the temptation of the fridge, which kept calling to me, I went out fishing. 

It served three purposes:  1. I was not in the house listening to the fridge beckon to me.
                                    2. I was not at home for my dad to find "something" for me to do.
                                    3. Maintaining my body heat, while out on the ice, even though sitting motionless
                                        allowed me to actually burn calories, and thus lose unwanted ounces, while sitting
                                        on my butt.  Which meant I could actually have more at dinner.

After that, it just got to be a reason to be out of the house.   

[Smeltecca]

Monster Pike!

[frog eyes]

When I tell my wife I'm going ice fishing for a day or a week with the guys she says go ahead no problem. In the summer it's a little tougher. I can can do it but with much grief. I don't blame her though. Small price to pay for a family.

If she knew how much fun we had out there she would probably start to use that as leverage.

[2 dogs]

I like to see the sun hitting the ice and the clean air. Somehow hot chocolate and a sandwich of any sort on the ice is better than the best meal at the ritz.

[jimmygunns]

It's the one thing I like to do, that my wife will never want to do with me!  It's all I have left to escape!  I hate the cold, but I love to fish!  One outweighs the other!

[happy perch fisher]

When i was little there was this small trout pond i would got to 3 or 4 times a week and fish perch out of it. I used a bobber plain hook and garden worms i would average 25 fish up in 3 hours. Biggest i caught was 10 inches but most where 5-6. It was only 30 minutes away. Lol it was suppose to only have to trout but i only caught 5 out of there in 6 year period. Most where small but about 8 inches but i did catch one that was 18 inches lol. That what made me like fishing. I never did keep a fish out of there lol.

[walleye tattoo]

You do not have to work but you can not sit still just do it.

[icewagon]

When I was a kid in the 60's I always wanted to try ice fishing but had no one to take me. My dad was a walleye and channel catfisherman, and living just 600' from the Susquehanna River most of my life, thats what we did .We consider the smallmouth bass at that time junk fish, and we caught a lot of them trolling with buck tails,out of our boat. We would also fish for stocked trout and brook trout on mountain streams .Then in the mid 70's I got a chance to go out on the ice in one of those ice fishing seminars at the Montour Preserve ( Lake Chillisquaque ) I was hooked I got through those next couple years going along with a few guys who had hand augers .Then ,when I got married I bought my first hand auger ( 8" Mora) my wife gave me a hard time for buying it , she said I'd never use it  boy does she regret saying that

[PCB]

cabin fever... i caught a few nice bass my first time out, but my second trip i lost a 6lb bass (give or take a lb) at the hole and ever since Ive been hooked... i also enjoy getting new people interested in ice fishing instead of having a drinking only season

[cheffy]

     Thirty something years ago I was playing jr hockey and "blew" both knees out.Doc said that if I were to play again chances were I wouldn't be walking by the time I hit 30. No skiing,hockey,no "rough" sports at all,and I was sitting a round feeling sorry for myself when one of the oldtimers in town came by and said he had the thing to help me forget my knees. The next morning (5 am   - 27 c) there was a pounding at the door and sure enough there was the old timer  bundled up like a eskimo.He told me I had 10 min to get ready or he and the "boys" were coming  in to get me ready or not. LOL They took me to their shanty and showed me how to ice fish.Soon every chance I got I was out on the lake with the "boys" learning everything I could.I think about the "Boys" just about every time I load up my gear to go,and I have to admit that it was the thing to take my mind off other sports cause now I'm a fanatic for ice fishing. I 've even taken the the boys (7-10 yrs old) next door out for the last two seasons and to have seen them catch their first fish ever is a thrill all on it's own,but to see their faces as they held up their fish to show their parents and the excited chatter as they both tried to talk at the same time. Icefishing to me is the memories of the good times when I was young as well as the chance to teach the kids now how to but also to be able to see nature in her winter splendor.

[esox13]

I am sitting here trying to put into words what makes me LOVE ice fishing and I am having a hard time. I am sure I cannot put into words how much it means to me. I started ice fishing when I was 4 with my grandpa and cousins. 36 years later and I still fish with my cousins. Ice fishing has been a very big part of my family our entire lives. I now fish with 5 very close friends and cherish each and every day we are on the ice together.

There is something about the sight of a flag against the background of a snow swept lake that warms my heart.

I have passed obsession a long time ago and am probably teetering on insanity I am sure. I love everthing from the anticipation of what is on the end of that popped tip up to the hunt for the fish, the camaraderie, the cold, the smell of a cold crisp snowing day (the smell of cooking brats isn't bad either). I like the socialization aspect ice fshing brings. I like to visit other camps and invite everyone to stop by ours. I will freely offer a beer and a hot spot if you are respectful and will make each visitor feel as if he were with friends. I like planning and organizing trips for our group. Exploring new lakes is a blast.

I am an equipment junkie - no matter what time of the year I am thinking ice fishing. Always looking for an upgrade or new equipment, or maybe just a good deal comes along and you double or triple up on stuff.

To answer the question posed - what made me like ice fishing - Everything!!!

[dabber-doo]

esox13 I think you just summed up why everyone that ice fishes loves the sport. And some day if I ever get down that way to fish, I hope I pick the lake your on that day. Because It would be a great pleasure to meet you on the ice. I feel people like you are what makes the sport of ice fishing so great !!!!!!! And I truly mean that.

[masterangler70]

My grandpa used to take me when I was very young 4 or five years old. I was hooked forever. I've fished all over the place with lots of people but still remember those days on the ice with grandpa more than any of the others.
   I can remember one day in particular that it was freezing rain and windy. I mean cold and miserable. The bluegills were biting as fast as you could get a line down the hole. My fingers got so cold I couldnt take the fish off anymore. Grandpa quit fishing and let me catch them and he took them off the hook. I remember complaining frequently about the cold. He's been gone almost 21 years now. Man what I wouldnt give for one more of those days now.
   Sometimes really good things cant be summed up in a few words and Ice fishings one of them. The whole experience is awsome.

[gaudetskie]

a couple of thoughts as to why I LOVE to ice fish....

1) THE COLD (I hate hot humid summer )
2) Watching the sun come up over the tip ups!
3) The smell of my shack ;musty, cigar, fishy, with a hint of 2 stroke gas exhaust.
4) THE COLD
5) Last but not least, I love the mystery of watching a flag go up, walking (running!) over to it and before
    you pick it up you just don't know what you got down the hole