Modern Ice Fishing

On Sunday, my family and I took a ride upriver. We didn’t take a snow-machine or four-wheeler like most people would. Because the river ice was frozen over and there was no over-flow, we decided to take the Jeep up. I know, it sounds a bit scary, but it’s a pretty common thing to do around here in the winter. With the temps being so low for weeks now, the river is frozen solid.

It was a beautiful day to go upriver. The temperature was about 24 degrees Fahrenheit and there was no wind to speak of, which says a lot because we have been having windy days almost everyday this winter. Everybody and their grandmas were upriver fishing. People drove up by snow-machine, dog team, four-wheelers, trucks, and SUVs. On our way up, one local man was towing several tall logs behind his Ford F-150.

Cassidy ice fishing for her first time

My husband drove my mom, niece, daughter, and I upriver in our Jeep. It was nice to go upriver and stay warm. I still bundled up because we were planning on jigging for trout. If we hadn't taken the Jeep, I wouldn't have been able to bring my six-month old daughter with us. I would worry that she would get too cold and sick; plus a baby on a snow-machine just isn't a great idea overall.

Ayuu trying her best to catch some trout

 We forgot to bring bait so we didn't have any luck catching trout. I told Ayuu that we would go upriver again next weekend, but would bring bait so we could catch. She and I are both avid fisher-women. She caught her first cohos this summer and she is hooked on fishing! :) My mom hasn't been upriver in years so she was excited to tag along. Although we didn't catch any fish, we all enjoyed the outing. My mom said if anyone asks what we caught to say, "fresh air". As long as we didn't catch a cold, all is well.

My beautiful mother enjoying the great outdoors