Image by Mark Sardella via Flickr

Ice fishing is carried out on a frozen body of water. Lines and spears are part of the ice fishing gear together with other tools meant to break the hard surface and cut a hole for uniform access to the unfrozen depths underneath. They may sit on a stool in the open air on the ice near the opening through which they get their fish. Some fishermen have made this activity even more pleasurable as they have built cabins of wood around the opening which are heated and equipped with bunk beds so that they could also take a bit of rest.

Ice fishing is very popular especially in the cold areas on our globe. Some countries where it has become a hobby during free time are the European Northern ones like Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Norway, Russia and even Germany. The Great popularity levels are reputed by ice fishing in the North of the United States, as well as in Canada and Alaska.

Getting into more details about the fishing gear used, we may realize that it is pretty different from other types of fishing in that it has become rather specialized. A fishing line or a spear would surely prove worthless in this type of activity in the absence of a chisel or an ice saw to start things with. Keep in mind that the ice break through is the one to come first. But despite the hole the freezing process is unstoppable, therefore most fishermen also get a skimmer with them to remove that newly formed ice layer. Most people also rely on a heater not only for their sakes but also for keeping the area around the hole warm enough to avoid letting more ice be formed. This is the reason why wooden huts or cabins which retain the heat indoors are held in high esteem by ice fishing fans.

Ice fishing is based on three different methods, each with its specifically designed tools. First, you can use small-sized rods with colorful little lures or baits. Secondly, you can tip-ups that are a great means of catching fish in large quantities within a certain period of time. And last, there’s spear ice fishing for which you need a larger hole and fish decoys.

No matter for which of the three you go, things with ice fishing will never be like in the all days. It seems that today, with the help of sonars, ice fishing lovers can identify the areas where fish are located in the large body of water under the ice. Presently fishermen will make about 100 holes per day if they want a lot of game and have so much better results than those of their predecessors’ who relied on just one hole and waited for the fish to come by.

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As James has mentioned in an article he wrote on his ‘The Joy of Fly Fishing’ site, I had asked him about a spot that he has good luck catching bass and is easy for kids to fish. He was gracious enough to tell me the location so my twin daughters and I were off on what I was hoping would be a great day of bass fishing.

I have taken my girls trout fishing on a number of occasions but the trips never lasted very long as poor fishing and terrible bugs took the fun out of it for them in a hurry. They are now ten so I was hoping that they were getting to the age where they could handle their fishing rods better and not get frustrated as easily.

Once we arrived we got geared up and started our way around the water. It was not long before we started catching some bass. Many of the fish were jumping right out of the water after being hooked. The girls enjoyed this a great deal. They were also using very light tackle so even a small bass felt big to them.

We were having a great time catching fish and spending the day together that time melted away into late afternoon. On previous fishing outings I would be lucky to get an hour out of them. On this day we fished for over 4 hours. They improved their casting abilities and even got brave and touched the bass.

People have things happen to them with friends or family and they say it will be a day they will never forget. Well, thanks to James, this simple fishing trip turned into a day of fishing with my girls I will truely never forget.