Coldest Ice Fishing .....

[Winch101]

Pretty cool here this AM for Calgary . Just wondering
what is the coldest you been out ice fishing in Alberta .
Two years ago at Badger - 21 C , 25 mile an hour wind .
would be about the worst day here .
But back in the old country , Manitopickerel ,
Clearwater Bay , LoTW , Laker fishing , couldnt keep the holes open
Fire wouldnt start in the shack , - 42 Farhenheit ... No wind thank god.
Little Auger gas started the fire , first time I came face to face
with pyro-technics .. Thank God I kept my Manitoba Tuxedo
( Arctic Cat One piece snomo suit ) you just never know . W101

[ULTRAlite]

I'm pretty brave in the open until -20 C - Not a lot of fun after that. In our hardside out a Blood Indian we've seen -35 with the wind...

[Shrubs]

I've been out in the -30's but never in the 40's. I think my coldest day would've been on Sylvan a few years ago. I believe it was in the mid minus 30's and I was fishin in marina bay. I was going to leave but hauled up the biggest perch I've ever caught out of that lake and then decided to fish for a few more hours. The best thing about being outside in the cold is that it really feels good when it starts to get warm.

[brett01]

about 4 years ago. the mercury read -32 plus a 25 mph wind, out on gull. Didn't have a shanty back then, just the good old 5 gallon pail!

[Win94]

-36 up in Fort Mac on Engstrom lake. Had a tent, kerosene heater and all was well.

[TexasTornado]

Feb last year Deschambault Lake Sask with the wind chill it was -52degC the average 3 day temp was -43degC riding the sleds back to the resort each night was a treat. I have a Canada Goose Parka like the ones you see on the movies National Treasure etc with the fur lined hood, it was the only thing that saved me. My brother's eyelids froze open. The resort owners thought we were insane

[gonefishin]

-37C. Spent all day out on the ice (no shelter) and between 3 of us, I caught two little hammerhandles.

[Walleyes]

would have to be -28 with a sharp breeze out on Winefred Lake about 15 years ago with my Father and Uncle.. No shelters or heaters. My father would of been around 71 or 72 years old and uncle Mike around 75,, and them old boys sucked it up like nothing and here I was the tough young rig hand dressed in all the modern warm clothing shivering my you know whats off.. Tell you what I have changed my clothing styles a lot after that.. Went back to the older traditional clothing like wool..

[jrs]

I remember that day with great pain, it was -32 when we arrived, -25 or so daytime high, very strong wind down at Lethbridge, windchill was in -60's according to radio, the elementary kids had the day off, buses weren't running so we skipped out (Grade 10 or 11 i believe). Being a little less wise at the time i ventured out to a little pike lake that was really producing with a buddy. I had a fairly crappy ice shack at the time and got bad frostbite setting it up, still have some lumps and cartilage scars on me left ear from it. I had metal plates and screws in my arm at the time and i lost mobility of my right arm for about a week due to it getting too cold.
Caught a couple pike about 3 lbs and one around 7lbs which instantly froze, stood them up like a 2X4's against the shack. We lasted a few hours then the ice shack was completely blown apart. I will never venture out fishing with wind and cold like that again, yesterday it was -25 when i left for home and it felt like a sunny day at the beach compared to that other one. I'd go deer hunting but never again ice fishing with those sort of conditions ;) .

That was the greatest ice fishing year of my life, the lake was within 20 minutes of home and we were getting out at least 4 days a week from January on. Saw at least six pike over 25 lbs caught, we averaged 20-30 nice ones a day (over 4lbs or so), that's the reason the risk was worth it with the cold weather, i wanted a 30lber. The biggest pike I've ever seen landed was taken by a guy that took up some of my old holes, it was weighed on an official scale at 36lbs, was only 48'' long but had incredible girth (late spring, big female).

Yesterday had me thinking about that day and hoping the wind didn't start up :lol: .

[dodger]

I was a tough 18 year old until I spent a -30c day with howling winds on Mitchichi. The hole was slushing / freezing over in minutes. After 2 hours my bobber wiggled so I got ready to set the hook and as I stood up my lawn chair headed for Montana. Any trip after that it had to be warmer than -5c before I bothered to go out.
SCORE: Mother Nature 1.
Smart ass teen -30

Good post.:lol:

Dodger.

[Barbwire]

In 2001 I spent a morning at Battle lake in -35 degree weather with no wind chill and had my best day to date on that lake. I caught my limit of 4 to 7 pound whites, 2 walleye, 2 ling and a number of small pike. So lets just say I wasnt to worried about the cold.

I was fishing with no hut and I remember one fish got off in the hole and I stuck my arm in up to my elbow and pulled the fish out. My arm turned into a cast of ice in a matter of minutes:)

Barbwire

[TundraBuck]

Mine would have probably been fishing out at Jackfish Lake, west of rocky. The thermometer read -45 celsius, and we stood out there for maybe 10 minutes, and then just sat in the truck and watched for flags. When there was a flag, neither of us really wanted to get out, unlike when it's warm its almost a free for all for them!

[SNAPFisher]

Mine was in 2002 up in the NB1 area. I was at the cabin by myself and woke up to -46 celcius. I had an older 2 wheel pickup then. Even plugged all night it still took two electric heaters under the hood of the truck to get it to start...probably not a smart thing to put heaters under the hood of a truck....

I fished Fork Lake. Walked out since I only had 2 wheel drive. Walked about 2-3 kms to fish for perch. The wind picked up to 30-40 km/hr and the temp got up to a high of -35. I was not dressed that warm either. Good thing those little single man tents are easier to heat. I can't believe I did that and lived. Got my limit of very nice perch though. :)

[muzzy]

Northwest teritories minus 51 C caught couple small lake trout. Definitely not worth it that day 6 ft of ice to boot

Gord

[Izumi]

Who is going out today? ;)

[SNAPFisher]

I went out yesterday to Pigeon. I had to try a new technique for whites....was unsuccessful. Hard to keep the hole from icing over even with a tent and heater. I lasted a couple of hours and was gone by 10 a.m.

Interesting thing was that F&W was out there. They arrived just as I was packing up. That or they were watching me from a distance and came over as they saw me taking down. They actually followed me right off the lake. I guess they may have thought anyone nutty enough to be out there might be up to no good. I have to admit that I was kind of ticked for second but thought they at least they are out there doing their job. What a day to see them on though. You think they would patrol when there is more people to check.

It was a surreal morning. Still doesn't beat my coldest day but it was the likely the stormiest day that I have been out. I watched the temp indicator in the truck which was -12 when I arrived and -22 when I left.

[~Octane~]

My coldest day was on Wabamun the year before the spill (3 years?). I remember it was -42 with a wind speed of 35km/h...and those werent the gusts. No tent, no heater, and i forgot my good gloves at home so all i had were leather work gloves. Lets put it this way, i lasted about 20 minutes, was just gonna pull up rods and say ****** it, when a pike bit. He froze almost solid before i could even get the hook out, so i kept him and went home. Good thing it was legal. I must have scooped the hole of a cm of ice over 10 times within that time frame. That was a bit much, lol.

Another winter day on Wabz, early season, was real nice, sunny and warm...I saw a storm appraching but kinda thought nothing of it. "oh ill get off when its almost here", lol bad idea. Within 2 minutes it was hell, had to be 60 to 80km winds, snow, blew everything all over...had to stay close to the ice so you didn't blow away (like lots of my gear i lost). Luckly we quaded out, so we just threw everything in and got off just before it got a lot worse:scared: