Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Ice Fishing -Darwin Award contender

Today I saw the first ice fisherman out on the local lake. If there is two inches of ice I would be surprised. Two days ago there was someone shooting ducks off the same lake. Monday, the lake was clear of ice due to wind piling it up on the shore.

I can't believe some people put catching a fish over not only their own lives but the lives of those who would be called to save the fool. I was called upon to handle these emergencies a few times in my career and I never let the opportunity pass to give the survivors (not all lived) an earful of how stupid they were. I get there can be unforeseen occasions such as pressure ridges, schools of carp, and other factors causing sudden thin ice but a few days of cold weather does not make for safe ice.

I texted my neighbor about the guy as my neighbor is on the volunteer fire dept. I told him to let me know if there was a call and I would grab my ice rescue bag and meet him at the lake. We might be able to get a rope on the guy before he goes under and make body recovery less dangerous.

Just let "stupid" take care of itself.

He's probably been icing all of his life and "knows" how thick ice needs to be to be safe.

Yea, 2". Probably not safe.

He uses a calendar to base his knowledge of the ice thickness. Everyone else uses a tape measure and a thermometer.

How many vehicles do they loose a year up there that are parked out on the ice?

I've seen open water turn into 5 inches in 2 nights. Unles you walk out and drill a hole, you have no clue how thick the ice is. If you cant tell if it's safe from the truck, you cant tell if its unsafe either.

He sounds like the guy who went ice fishing and caught 100 pounds of ice. Then his wife drowned trying to cook it! People dumb enough to live where water gets solid are probably a couple of cans short of a six pack in the first place!
Jerry

Curious what 'schools of carp' have to do with this.

Six pack is gone. We drank it ice fishing.

Carp flatulence...

“Stupid is as stupid does”.....& it will.

IIRC AK Troopers had a poster saying that 1” was safe to walk on, 2” to drive a Snowmachine, and 8” to drive a car. I always preferred at least 6” before even getting on it at all.

Sometimes the herd thins itself.

Well, that's generally the problem - it ain't their first 6 pack.

I don't like to sweat all that much- I'll keep winter. If it ever gets here.

I can always add more clothes. When yer nekkid and sweating, there ain't any more to come off.

mid- 30's, but the freezing rain turned to snow. Melting snow, slush. gonna be fun when it freezes tonight. I'm home, and staying there!

From my point of view, people who live where you do have fired mush for brains for several months of the year. So there!

Image result for safe ice thicknesswww.almanac.com
If your reading is at least four inches, proceed with caution. Ice more than five inches thick will likely hold a snowmobile, and ice more than eight inches thick will likely support a car or small pickup truck.

Salt water ice is more flexible or "plastci" and "tougher". An inch will hold a person as long as one shuffles across the lead real fast. It bends real good before breaking. Usually. Probably. Most of the time. Pretty good percentages, tho. No need to ask me how I know....

And don't come back the same way.

Also curious about the carp factor

Large schools of carp finning under the ice can thin it .

Carp suck.

But I think it is related to turbulance caused by large schools of fish stirring up deeper, warm water and thinning the ice above. An underwater spring can do the same thing- or a bit of a drainage channel off a nearby hill, along the shore (ask me how I know this, too- Arctic experience.- but I have a fast throttle thumb!)

Best to stay off shore a bit. On fresh water, especially.

I'm happy to live in a place where lake ice thickness isn't an issue. If you got to take a post hole digger fishin',.....fuggit,....I'll pass.

Settin' there wrapped up like Nanook of the North,.....watching a fishing line hanging down in a hole through 3 feet of ice thinking,..."Something's about to bite,...I just *know* it!"

,...nah,...

Y'all are just bitter cause your neighbor won't let you fish.

6 feet. We deemed the ice safe. Ice auger extensions are da bomb!

Them 35 lb shee fish are worth eating... . It's why God or maybe Conoco made gasoline.