Many of you have asked where in the world I've been.

All I know is that after 7 plus years of blogging and a different lappy, which I don’t like, I seem to have lost my blogging fervor.

Someday, when you least expect it, I will post again.

For those of you still waiting I say thank you.

Meanwhile, I am rather prolific on twitter. Find me: @KeethaB
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The Eclectic Company - Waitin' on a New Adventure!!
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Sunday, January 27, 2013

Solitary Ice Fisherman in My City

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Last week for SIMC I showed you an ice fishing shanty town on Lake Nepco.

This week I want to show you that not ALL ice fishing on the frozen tundra is done from a shanty town.
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If you look out on this frozen pond on his days off, you will spy this solitary fisherman decked out in his red and black "weather proof" togs.

This would be the now blog-infamous Fisherhubby.
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Come with me, we'll follow his sled trail across the ice to see if Fisherhubby will show us his craft.

Don't worry about him being cold - - - it was a balmy 9 degrees above zero that day.  (F of course)
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This is how you drill the ice fishing hole.

Fisherhubby has graduated up to a gas powered auger.  When I asked if that expense was necessary he looked at me and said,  "Do YOU want to drill through a foot of ice with a hand cranked auger.

He may have a point.

The gas auger powered him through the ice in less time than it takes to say Jack Robinson.

Once he had drilled the hole, he used the side of his boot to brush away the loose ice and snow from over the top of the hole.
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Next he picked up this tool - - - his handy dandy "ice chip scooper"
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After a few swipes with the ice chip scooper, his fishing hole was free and clear and ready for action.

His warm clothes are water proof, so he wasn't a bit careful to not splash himself during this process.

He did, however, aim one soggy scoop toward my feet, causing me to jump back out of his way since my leggings were NOT waterproof.
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I took this picture looking down into his fishing hole.  If you look carefully at the top half of the hole, you will see how deep the ice is, and you can even see how it freezes in layers.
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Now the happy ice fisherman is ready to unpack his fishing sled, sit on his bucket, put his under-ice fish finder probe into the hole and begin a happy few hours of fishing.
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He watches this orange tip of his pole - - - if it wiggles and jiggles and wriggles he knows a fish is nibbling.
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That orange tip is part of this - - - a special ice fishing pole called a tip-up, because the little metal tripod holds the tip up and the fisherman may walk away if he so chooses and still be fishing.

Fisherhubby says it's really cool.
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The little round box to his right is filled with the maggots he was using as bait.

I spared you a close up shot of those.

Though if you had been with us, live and in person, Fisherhubby would have told you it was necessary to put a maggot in your MOUTH to keep it warm so it would wiggle on the hook and attract more fish.

He would have been lying, and I certainly hope YOU would not have fallen for his pranks.

Also, notice his large, rounded, black boots which are called "Mickey Mouses" for obvious reasons.  They are one of his most treasured pieces of ice fishing equipment because they are warm and waterproof.
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If ice forms across the top of the fishing hole, the ice scooper is just the tool to quickly remove it before the hole freezes completely over.
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Well, we've seen what we came to see, so since WE are not togged out in waterproof red, black, and Mickey Mouse, we shall leave the fisherman to his craft and head back home to our nice warm fleece blankie and a hot cuppa joe.
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Today I'm joining Unknown Mami
For Sundays in My City.
Please hurry over to Unknown Mami's to see
What others are sharing from their cities.
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36 comments:

Tina´s PicStory said...

great shots! cool to see how it works :)

Buttercup said...

I'm getting cold just looking at your pictures. I'm more for the cozy shot at the top of your page.

mub said...

This is so fun to see up close and personal. When I was a kid we'd drive past a reservoir with ice fishers on it but they were little specks way off in the distance.

Pam said...

What was wrong with the hole just behind FH in your last shot? Surely the fish weren't biting better 2 feet away!

Wayne W Smith said...

He is a braver soul than I. I hope he had a great time.

mzzbev said...

So that's what you do in the winter up there in Wisconsin, ice fish! My son would love it, he fishes every chance he gets, even takes my grandson with him as much as he can. Great post and great step-by-step pictures. Thanks for sharing.

Tara R. said...

Great pics, I felt like I was out there on the ice with him. I even got a chill.

As Cape Cod Turns said...

He is adorable! Thanks for sharing and confirming my thoughts that that would NOT be a fun hobby for me! :)

Theresa said...

Thanks for the trip to the fishing hole with the fisherhubby:) It looks like he is really enjoying it! Enjoy your day dear friend, HUGS!

Barb said...

This is a great photo essay! Thanks for showing this to us -- I've only ever seen ice fishermen from a distance. FH is a hard core fisherman, apparently -- ice too!

Oh, and that ice scooper thingy looks a lot like an old kitchen utensil. Heehee.

retired not tired said...

I am glad I could see this adventure from the comforts of my computer because I would never be caught on a frozen pond.

42N said...

Wow, that's a lot of ice on the lake. Watch out for the freezing rain and ice. Its passing through us right now and is headed your way. Today is a stay off the roads day until the warmer air comes through later today or tomorrow.

Debby@Just Breathe said...

It seems like a lot of work and of course pretty cold but I find it rather intriguing. Way to go FH!

Anonymous said...

Well, that was rather interesting...made me have to turn my heating pad on high...

Unknown said...

I am impressed by your tutorial on ice fishing. I agree that the gas thingie is needed. However, I am not impressed enough to make this my next endeavor. Enjoy your cuppa.

Lady Jane said...

My son does this very thing. One year came the power auger and a couple years later the 4 wheeler to get out there with, lol... See what's coming...

Claudya Martinez said...

That is sooo much work! He is one dedicated Fisherhubby.

Keri said...

So does he swivel back and forth from hole to hole??

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I must say he looks happy! I just can't imagine that I would be...even though I LOVE to fish! Sunday hugs!

Cathy said...

My father loved to fish as do all three of my son's. But we don't get a lot of opportunity to ice fish around here, so I loved this post. Thanks for sharing!

Anonymous said...

That is SOOOO not something I'd ever do. But, I did enjoy the shots and walk through.

Unknown said...

I loved seeing this man tonight and learning more about ice fishing. Thank you so much for sharing! Awesome post!

noexcuses said...

Thanks for sharing your fisherhubby and his activities. Too cold for this SoCal transplant! Love the Mickey Mouse shoes! Have a great week!

Unknown said...

Okay, you have sold me that ice is plenty thick enough to be very safe. Thanks for not sharing photo's of the bait...lol. I sure could have used a pair of those Mickey Mouse's yesterday.

Kay said...

Nah, still looks like a fry spider to me!! So funny. You see all sorts of fishermen clusters on our lakes up here too. Very dedicated to be out on a frozen lake fishing, if you ask me.

Powdered Toast Man said...

All he has to do is throw a lawn chair with a hole in it and he has an ice toilet.

Raymonde said...

Great post to learn about ice fishing, am I going to take it up... No I am more the staying indoor type with some knitting!
Thanks for stopping by. Have a great week. xxx

Erin said...

The boots are cool, and very Mickey like. I think that I'll leave the ice fishing to FH. I can't believe he does that for fun! ;)

Kathy ... aka Nana said...

So, did he catch anything? ;-)

Rawknrobyn.blogspot.com said...

Wait, did he catch anything besides a cold? I enjoyed these pictures, Keetha, from far, far away.

xoRobyn

Cathy said...

Now that was an interesting post, as I knew nothing about ice fishing. Thank you for sharing. And you really need to buy him some Mickey ears to go with his fishing gear. haha

Joanna Jenkins said...

Nine degrees??? NINE?!?! You are a very good wife to be out there with your fishing husband. I'm cold just thinking of it!
Stay warm,
xoxo jj

Vidya Sury said...

Oooh, shiver shiver! Though I would definitely have been curious to come along and see how it was all set up. I would NOT fall for the maggot prank though. Ewww!

That ice sure is thick! I am glad Mr FH has a gas powered auger!

Hugs to you. I hope you had a nice warm mug of whatever you enjoy! :D

podso said...

Fascinating! And nice your hubby wore a bright red jacket for the photo shoot. Red in a pic always enhances it, not that your photos needed enhancing, Say it still gave me the willies not just to see him but to realize you were walking out on that ice, even though you explained it to me and all. Stay warm. Nice to see evidence of a real winter since ours was only a day or so.

StarTraci said...

I have to say after all that work, he looks really happy! That is one big smile he has!

Happy Fishing!
:-)
Traci

Ann in the UP said...

That was an excellent ice fishing primer, and I had to put on my cap and mittens to finish reading. I covet FH's warm waterproof boots. I do, I do!

On Sunday we were in Iowa slipping around on the ice. It was really treacherous! On the way home on Monday the hardest parts of the trip were getting to our car in Iowa, and getting into our snowy driveway in the UP.