First Season Ice Fishing, need advice.

[hockey1099]

This will be my first season ice fishing and i need alot of info.

I am looking at the following tent:
http://www.thefishinhole.com/index.cfm?imageSku=3865768&enlargeSkuz=25780&C=073&GETPRODUCTSBYCLASSG=073&D=07

Its a 6 man hub tent by Frabill, is it any good? I will mostly have my dad and Gf with me and occasionally her dad or some of my friends.

I plan on buying a heater but dont know what type?

I need an auger but dont know whether i should get a power auger or a hand one? Price isnt a huge issue so im ok with power but if its easy to do by hand im young and in shape, so ill save the money if drilling isnt hard.

How safe is it to drive my truck on the ice? i have an 03 Avalanche

If i cant or shouldnt take it on the ice should i buy a quad or snow mobile to move around or is walking generaly sufficient?

What are all the little things i need that i wont think of before my first trip. Fishing rods and tackel are not a problem i have thousands of dollars worth of that. although ill probably pick up somne lures specifically for ice fishing.

[AlbertaAngler]

Wow lots of questions. I have no experience with that specific shack. I do have one of the smaller "pop" up ones and have had no issues. Easy to set up, anchors well and stands up well in the wind, easy to move.

The buddy series of heaters are popular and if you search this forum you will see some discussions on them and good places to get them, I just got one from Bass Pro they have a sale on the mid size one.

Hand augers are fine especially early season but you are generally restricted to a 6" hole, 8" max and it gets harder as the ice gets thicker. It will aslo depend on your style of ice fishing ie drill some holes and fish them all day or run and gun. If you are going to drill a lot of holes, are fishing for bigger species (pike) and are going to do a lot of ice fishing I would get a power auger.

For driving on ice, do another search lots of discussion on this board. There are some charts posted as well that will give you a basis to make your decission. In the end it will be a personal choice. Lots of people drive their trucks on the ice, myself included, but there are risks (air pockets, thin ice due to spring upwellings) and insurance will generally not cover a truck through the ice. Check with your insurance company, there are some that will cover it (again search as this has already been discussed here)

As for the little things, again lots of discussion already. Probably some tip ups and light weight ice fishing rods with small series reels. Get some safety equipment (ice picks, boot cleats, throw rope, floater gear or life jacket if your walking out on early season ice)

Have fun out there and be safe.

[gdbccb]

Can't help you with the tent - I've got a one man.

Heaters - Mr. Heater Buddy Heaters are very popular and come in several sizes.

Augers - hand augers are fine if: blades are sharp, ice isn't too thick (say, less than 30") and you don't have to drill more than 4 or 5 holes. What you'll probably find is that you'll drill several holes initially, but if the fishing isn't great, you'll want to move around quite a bit, so that you will often end up drilling 10 or 15 holes/day, which is a lot with a hand auger, even if you're young and fit. If you're really serious about getting into ice fishing, a power auger is probably the way to go.

Driving on the ice is a personal choice. Although there are rough guidelines concerning how thick ice needs to be to support a vehicle, I personally will not drive on the ice until it is obvious from tire tracks or from other vehicles on the ice that I won't be the "guinea pig". Generally speaking, most of the popular ice fishing lakes in northern Alberta will have enough ice to support vehicles by January. Toward the end of the season (February/March), many lakes will have over 3 feet of ice - enough to support a tractor trailer, let alone an Avalanche :D

If you're not going to be comfortable taking a vehicle on the ice regardless of how thick, a quad or snowmobile would certainly be an option. Most of what you'll need for a day of ice fishing (auger, tent, etc) can be easily pulled in a small sled by a quad/snowmobile.

In terms of tackle, you can use your summer gear, but you'll probably want to pick up a couple of specific ice-fishing items like short rods, tip-ups, etc. I use the same lures summer and winter. A couple of other needed items - a "scoop" to scoop ice chips out of your hole (keeps it from icing over) and a shovel to get rid of the small "volcano" that forms when you're drilling a hole.

Last point is to make sure you read the regs for the lake you're going to - there are sometimes different regs (e.g. closures, etc) for winter fishing v. summer fishing.

Hope this helps - I'm sure others will chip in as well.

[AlbertaAngler]

Another not so little but well worth the investment item would be a flasher or portable fish finder. Flashers are the best for ice fishing although I don't have one. I have a cheap humminbird portable that I use on my pontoon boat in the summer and on the ice in the winter. They are invaluable for finding depth/structure, bottom composistion (soft, hard, weeds, etc). You can also see the fish and how they react to your lure.

Next on the nice to have list would be an underwater camera. They work well in winter, as your stationary and the water is quite a bit clearer than the summer. Makes ice fishing more interesting especially if you're bringing kids out.

[Penner]

Great suggestions by the other folks so far. Some of my thoughts below.

In my opinion, The Fishin Hole offers great service along with The Fishing Centre and Russell Sports, however I find Wholesale Sports and Bass Pro tend to have the lower prices however the service isn’t the greatest.

I’m not a big fan of using a combustible heat source of any type in an small enclosed area that it made of fabric. Could be a fire hazard not to mention the possibility of monoxide poising. I would suggest you spend the money on a high quality and comfortable winter boots, gloves, and a snowmobile suit. With proper clothing and a good ice fishing hut, the need for additional heat is not required right up into -30C.

While I don’t have any Frabill products I have seen some of their tents and they look fairly decent. They should service you well if you return the favour.

I would get both a hand and power auger. For hand augers I would highly recommend the Normark Swede-Bore III in 8” with the off-setting handles. It will service you early in the season while the ice is still thin and as a back-up to your power auger incase of mechanical failure (Jiffy’s from experience). Hand auger would be good up to 12” of ice thickness unless you’re feeling really energetic.

For a power auger I would highly recommend a Husqvarna 326AI25 in a 10”. Pricier than most but very light, dependable, and reliable 2-stroke unit. Worth it’s weight in gold in my opinion. Also purchase a 12” power auger extension for any February and March ice fishing. Ice can get beyond 3ft thick north of Edmonton regularly later in the season.

It’s never really “safe” to drive a vehicle onto the ice. I agree with the other fellows it’s a personal choice and done at your own risk. Lots of varying circumstances can cause the ice to be thinner or weaker anywhere on a particular body of water.

For my own guideline I will only walk on ice that is less than 8” thick. I prefer to use my quad (weight of 600lbs) after that all year long as the snow doesn’t get to deep where the quad becomes useless. A windshield and handle bar warmers are good options for a quad or snowmobile.

When I do drive my full-size half ton pick-up onto the ice (weight of 6,000lbs plus) I will not drive on until there is at least 18” of clear blue ice and only on lakes I know quite well. I drive slowly (20km/hr or less) stick to previously driven on trails where possible and avoid creek mouths, pressure ridges, and grey/dark looking area’s all-together.

A GPS is good to have to find those “hot spots” from the summer or from previous years as well to find your way back to shore during whiteouts

An ice scoop to clean auger shavings from out of the hole is a must.

Good off/road or mud/snow tires (if you decide to drive on)

A good snow shovel for when the above fails and you get stuck and need to dig out (and you will get stuck sooner or later guaranteed).

Talk to the locals and or the so-called “experts” to get you started on where the target species is being caught and on what. Be mobile until you find consistent fish activity. Change up lures regularly until you start hooking fish consistently.

[Mudslide]

If I was just starting to ice fish I would get, in this order. Assuming you already have a fishing rod and warm clothing.
1. Auger. Hand power first, power second, and keep the hand as a backup
2. Flasher. Get the best you can. Marcum LX5, Ice 55 are two of the best.
3. Tip ups, specialty ice rods etc.
4. Shelter. Pop ups are great. Flip ups are more expensive and heavier
4. Heater. Mr Heater Buddy. If you don't want flammable then go with the new electric seats
5. Jet sled. (to carry gear) if you don't have one built into the shelter.
6. GPS.

[hockey1099]

thanks to everyone for the advice. My biggest concen is driving on the ice. i think this year i will just walk or buy a used quad/snowmobile.

Powered auger seems to be the best bet as i will most likely upgrade at some point so buying a hand auger would be a waste.

It looks like im going to be spending a bunch of money on start up but after that it should be relatively cheap.

[Izumi]

The Frabill 6 Man tent is setup at WSS(Edmonton) if you want to have a look at it. The model you are looking at is new for this year as are all Frabill hub models. So it is unlikley there will be many reviews. I went and had a look at it and it seems OK, much like 2 Eastman ice cubs put together. Has the same windows type of window as the Eskimo, which I'm not fond of (too much Velcro). Stitching is nice, and the vents are great.

I have heard a lot of concerns of the board about propane heaters. Seems that a lot of people get worked up about this. If your worried about Carbon monoxide buy one with a low O2 shut off or get a Carbon Monoxide detector. Just know the signs too, it's most dangerous when you sleeping and most heaters are not for this; You are unlikely to suddenly faint while fishing.

There is a decent standard (CPAI-84) most tents need to pass this in order to be sold in Canada. I cannot verify this for this tent. Being there is no floor, the exit in case of a fire is anywhere.. :lol:

I have been looking at the CLAMs and Shapell's since the material is thicker (600D). I own a thinner Eastman Ice Cube today and the thinner tents are definitely still good.

The hub design is definitely a great system.

[chris262]

If you can afford the gas auger BUY IT! Im also young and in good shape but man it sure sucks having to drill 6 holes! Thats if your lucky and have found a good spot and dont move... then that's 12 holes... Your not having fun then. my two cents

[AlbertaAngler]

It looks like im going to be spending a bunch of money on start up but after that it should be relatively cheap.

:lol: That's what I keep telling my wife

[Penner]

:lol: That's what I keep telling my wife

What wife? With open water fishing, hunting season, and then ice fishing coming right up, I haven't seen my wife since April. :lol:

[Cal]

thanks to everyone for the advice. My biggest concen is driving on the ice. i think this year i will just walk or buy a used quad/snowmobile.

Powered auger seems to be the best bet as i will most likely upgrade at some point so buying a hand auger would be a waste.

It looks like im going to be spending a bunch of money on start up but after that it should be relatively cheap.

A hand auger is never a waste of money, even though I own two power augers I use my hand auger lots in the early season and almost any other time I cant drive on and the ice is less than 3' deep. As well even when I do bring my power auger the hand auger always comes along. If the power auger wont work drilling holes by hand is a better option than going home. Buy a 6" one, its easyer to turn than an 8" one, I've pulled 12 lb pike through a 6" hole with no problems.

[nicemustang]

Another point. Keep in mind there are lakes out there that you can't drive on at all, with any motor vehicle. IE: Spray lakes. So walking is your only option. A good jet sled to carry you gear is a good idea.

[Stella]

I am looking for a new sled to carry my gear out with and you guys have mentioned a jet sled. Is this a specific brand or is it a model of a sled? I was thinking about a calf sled or a otter sled. Something that is 50" long x 12' deep x 24" wide. Any suggestions on a good sled to be pulled by hand?

[honker_clonker]

Sounds hokey but I'm 20 and have been at the ice fishing game for about 18 years that I am aware of. Fished with a lot of different people with different styles and different budgets and all that stuff. I'm a junkie for fishing stuff and read the fishing catalogues for fun kind of thing, and I've tried dam near everything out there. You sound like me with fishing stuff where its all justifiable which is good. Things that someone should ALWAYS have for ice fishing (from a few years of trial and error)

1) TONS OF ICE SCOOPS:
The metal ones are great but generally dont get the finer particles like the orange plastic ones. So in the tent goes 2 metal Chipper Dippers and about 6 of the orange ones. If you can find the orange ones with metal handles buy lots of them and then cover the metal handle with hockey stick tape (so they dont freeze to your hands) The more the merrier with scoops.

2) Tip-ups: aka FORCE MULTIPLIERS:
If you fish with with people who use your gear, get a tip up for the biggest group you think you will have and add 2. I usually fish with a group of 5 people and I have 15 tip ups. Why so many? application. 5 wind jiggers, 5 thermal, 5 frame style heavy duty tipups. Some days the fish want action so put out the wind jiggers, other days they want dead still or its ridiculously cold so the thermals go out and lastly if were after monster pike the heavy duties go out. Buy a spool of 50 or 65 pound DACRON and put it on them. (Its cheap and works good) Then get a spool of 30 or 40 pound fluorocarbon leader material and make 3 or 4 foot leaders on all of them. This helps LOTS. The dacron is better than powerpro or tufline XP in the respect that it is something to hold onto (thicker diameter). The negative is its hollow and freezes slightly under really cold temps. If your using tuffline XP or powerpro I would say dont use less than 50LB with 65 being the preference. If a fish runs with less than 50 pound superbraid it can cut deep. 1/4 or 3/8 ounce jig heads on the tipups and your golden.

3) TENT:
the hub style tents are good for a home base and for fishing with your friends. If you can or want to justify it, get a one man portable with a sled. You might always go fishing with your dad and GF but if you head out by yourself the big tent is alot for one person to manage. Throw a couple rods, some tip ups in your one man and go. Its also easier to warm a one man shelter than a 6 man with one body in it. Plus if you want to go blazing trail to find the fish, zipping around in a one man with a sled base is easier than moving a 6 man hub style. The pack shack by nature vision would be good for that, or the one mans by frabill and clam corp. its cheap and fits the purpose well and moves easily.

4) HEATER:
I use a Mr heater buddy heater and love it. Warms up my tent nicely and doesnt gas you out. Also has the option of 1 lb tanks or hooking up to a 20. the little catalylic heaters arent that good, they put out heat but its generally not enough to warm you up. You can get the Mr heater buddy at princess auto for like $60 or so. (been a while since i got mine so dont quote me)

5) AUGER: POWER ALL THE WAY!
hand augers are good at first ice and if you plan to not fish many holes. You up your odds if you swiss cheese the ice and hole hop. "go to the fish instead of waiting for them to go to you". Nils finbor is a really good power auger. This will cause some uproar but I would either stay away from jiffy or tune it before you go fishing. Every NEW jiffy I have seen NEEDS tuning to at colder temps. They tune the carbs to run in their factory which is at 20 C. If you get one take it out on a cold day and tune up the carb to get it to run at cold temps. Saves HOURS of frustration on the lake. I would also get a 6" hand auger for back up in case anything happens to the power auger. My hand auger has saved a few trips when the power auger packed in. 8" power auger minimum, 10 inch is great to have. Just watch out, a boot can go into a 10"er easier!

6) SHOVEL:
Bring a shovel. You may get stuck. Also its really important to scrape down to the ice when you put your tent down (others may disagree but this is what ive found) When you have a bunch of snow around the holes, a) it makes it harder for you to grab a fish (not really but its farther to the fish if it snows lots) and b) YOUR LINE DOESNT GET STUCK ON ALL THE SHARDS OF ICE. thats the big one for me.

7) RODS:
I prefer ice rods to traditional sticks. You can get some great combos for cheap! I like the quantum 28" medium rods for predators (pike and walleye) and frabill panfish poppers in light action for perch and whites. I find a noodly rod better because it absorbs some of the thrashing and equates to less pulled hooks. Basically all predator rods of mine have 20 LB Tuffline XP with fluorocarbon leaders. Sensitive and invisible cant go wrong. With the perch and white rod i use FLY TIPPET MATERIAL! The best thing i can possibly reccomend for perch is 5 lb rio powerflex tippet material. Stays limp, is super fine and really strong. The more rods the merrier. Last count was 16 rods. Why so much? All my rods are pre rigged. I tie them all in the comfort of my kitchen with WARM FINGERS and then take them on the ice. Just switch rods and your good. And if your going for perch and Mr. Pike comes by you burn up your perch hook and drop down your pike hook. If you can react to them you catch more fish. Be a opportunistic fisher instead of a specialist. Catch what you see and it makes it more interesting.

8) TOWEL:
This one is very important. Get a golf towel and clip it to your belt. Caught a fish and your all slimy? GOLF TOWEL! Wet hands? GOLF TOWEL! Prevents excessive hand coldness from liquid medians.
With all of these you should be set. If you want to be really serious about catching fish...

9) ELECTRONICS:
Flasher before camera* (The way I wish I would have done it) This will spark controversy but the way I have found it is Flasher is a FISHING tool, camera is an ENTERTAINMENT tool. yes cameras will help you catch more fish than without but a flasher will catch more fish than a camera. Its easier to run and gun with a flasher and it doesnt take that long to learn how to use. If I had to pick one it would be flasher hands down. I can honestly say MY VEXILAR FL 20 HAS INCREASED THE AMOUNT OF FISH CAUGHT ON THE ICE. The camera is great for fishing with the GF because its "oh theres a fish, i can SEE the fish and my hook and stuff" its more entertaining to fish with a camera over a flasher. BUT the camera is limited to time of day and ease of use.

ICE THICKNESS:
I will walk out and fish on 4 inches of ice if i bring my hand auger and not much else. Snow shoes help to disperse weight but its still a eerie feeling. Vehicle on about 8" of ice and SUV (small suzuki) no less than 14" truck no less than 18". If your not comfortable driving your truck you dont have to. simple. If you are not comfortable taking your truck on the ice, dont. Quads will work most of the time but if it snows LOTS a skidoo is necessary.

BUY THE BEST GEAR YOU CAN AFFORD. Better gear lasts longer and take good care of it. The winter is hard on gear. This is what I have found works the best for ME, others will disagree with some of my antics, but in the last 5 years I can count the days on one hand that I didnt catch a fish. My .02.

[nicemustang]

I am looking for a new sled to carry my gear out with and you guys have mentioned a jet sled. Is this a specific brand or is it a model of a sled? I was thinking about a calf sled or a otter sled. Something that is 50" long x 12' deep x 24" wide. Any suggestions on a good sled to be pulled by hand?

Its a brand name, carried at fishin hole, BPS, etc.

[Cal]

Yes you can buy every gadgit possible to enhance your ice fishing experience but IMO the real fun of ice fishing is its simplicity. Its not like hunting where you are going to spend a couple grand just getting started. For less than 100 bucks you can give ice fishing a shot and go from there.

Cal's ice fishing starter kit...

6" hand auger, I dont even break out my power auger till around mid january anyways so this will get you a couple cheap months of fishing to decide if you realy want to spend that kind of money. I recently picked Geezle up a good used one for $5. The one I have been using for over 10 years cost me $10 bucks at a garage sale. I have only ever owned one metal ice scoop since I have somehow managed not to lose it over all these years.

2 spools of line, 1 10 lb the other 6lb. Then find yourself some peices of wood around 1" by 1/2". Cut them to about 12-18" and cut a notch in each end. Wrap a couple up with the 10 lb line and tie a small snap/swivle on the end of these for changing hooks. Make as many as possible with 6lb line on them and tie a wide assortment of hooks onto these ones, this way if you want to change hooks you just grab another jigging stick rather than freezing your fingers tying a new hook on.

If you want tip ups there are plenty of ways to make cheap ones from simply tying some line onto a pop bottle all the way up to using metal bands to build ones that use the wind to jig your hook. A little later I will post pictures of one of the best, most compact, and easyest to build rigs that I have built.

A small tackle compartment or two, I usualy use one of those little plastic ones with the spin tops that split shots come in to keep my trout and perch hooks organized and a small store bought one to keep my walleye and pike hooks in.

A plastic 5 gallon bucket to throw your gear in and use as a seat. With your bucket in one hand and your auger in the other you are nice and portable and ready to hoof it out out onto that early ice. If I'm on foot I put a short length of rope in the bucket so I can drag my fish back if they wont fit in the bucket. This rig will not compete in the cock parade or satisfy the gear junky but it will get you and a couple buddys into some fish for under a hundred bucks or so.

[TRUCKER JON]

8" power auger minimum, 10 inch is great to have. Just watch out, a boot can go into a 10"er easier!

Honker does have a point here. Many years ago, out at Upper K, I just about broke my tib/fib when I fell into a 10 inch, blown over hole that someone drilled about 24" down. (ice was 36-40"). Hurt sooooo bad, turned around and didn't even try to fish.

I always laugh at the people with the "big 10 inch" at Chain lakes...when those 12 inch trout fight and come up sideways, you NEED that HUGE hole.

NOT!!!!

Personal opinion...all you need is an 8" blade, and maybe an extension (if it is a long, cold winter). I have seen BIG fish pulled through 6" holes.

[honker_clonker]

If you get a 10" and wanted to be real safe about it (dont have to I just thought of it now) you would get those 18 or 20" snow shoes. Its pretty hard to go into a hole and you get alot better float on the snow if its deep. 8" holes have their advantage, if a fish comes off in the hole its harder for it to wriggle out backwards because its movement is impaired by the narrower hole. I use a 8 but 10's are nice to have sight fishing. 10 inch hole= bigger window to the underwater world.

[Bud Leight]

Sounds hokey but I'm 20 and have been at the ice fishing game for about 18 years that I am aware of. Fished with a lot of different people with different styles and different budgets and all that stuff. I'm a junkie for fishing stuff and read the fishing catalogues for fun kind of thing, and I've tried dam near everything out there. You sound like me with fishing stuff where its all justifiable which is good. Things that someone should ALWAYS have for ice fishing (from a few years of trial and error)

1) TONS OF ICE SCOOPS:
The metal ones are great but generally dont get the finer particles like the orange plastic ones. So in the tent goes 2 metal Chipper Dippers and about 6 of the orange ones. If you can find the orange ones with metal handles buy lots of them and then cover the metal handle with hockey stick tape (so they dont freeze to your hands) The more the merrier with scoops.

2) Tip-ups: aka FORCE MULTIPLIERS:
If you fish with with people who use your gear, get a tip up for the biggest group you think you will have and add 2. I usually fish with a group of 5 people and I have 15 tip ups. Why so many? application. 5 wind jiggers, 5 thermal, 5 frame style heavy duty tipups. Some days the fish want action so put out the wind jiggers, other days they want dead still or its ridiculously cold so the thermals go out and lastly if were after monster pike the heavy duties go out. Buy a spool of 50 or 65 pound DACRON and put it on them. (Its cheap and works good) Then get a spool of 30 or 40 pound fluorocarbon leader material and make 3 or 4 foot leaders on all of them. This helps LOTS. The dacron is better than powerpro or tufline XP in the respect that it is something to hold onto (thicker diameter). The negative is its hollow and freezes slightly under really cold temps. If your using tuffline XP or powerpro I would say dont use less than 50LB with 65 being the preference. If a fish runs with less than 50 pound superbraid it can cut deep. 1/4 or 3/8 ounce jig heads on the tipups and your golden.

3) TENT:
the hub style tents are good for a home base and for fishing with your friends. If you can or want to justify it, get a one man portable with a sled. You might always go fishing with your dad and GF but if you head out by yourself the big tent is alot for one person to manage. Throw a couple rods, some tip ups in your one man and go. Its also easier to warm a one man shelter than a 6 man with one body in it. Plus if you want to go blazing trail to find the fish, zipping around in a one man with a sled base is easier than moving a 6 man hub style. The pack shack by nature vision would be good for that, or the one mans by frabill and clam corp. its cheap and fits the purpose well and moves easily.

4) HEATER:
I use a Mr heater buddy heater and love it. Warms up my tent nicely and doesnt gas you out. Also has the option of 1 lb tanks or hooking up to a 20. the little catalylic heaters arent that good, they put out heat but its generally not enough to warm you up. You can get the Mr heater buddy at princess auto for like $60 or so. (been a while since i got mine so dont quote me)

5) AUGER: POWER ALL THE WAY!
hand augers are good at first ice and if you plan to not fish many holes. You up your odds if you swiss cheese the ice and hole hop. "go to the fish instead of waiting for them to go to you". Nils finbor is a really good power auger. This will cause some uproar but I would either stay away from jiffy or tune it before you go fishing. Every NEW jiffy I have seen NEEDS tuning to at colder temps. They tune the carbs to run in their factory which is at 20 C. If you get one take it out on a cold day and tune up the carb to get it to run at cold temps. Saves HOURS of frustration on the lake. I would also get a 6" hand auger for back up in case anything happens to the power auger. My hand auger has saved a few trips when the power auger packed in. 8" power auger minimum, 10 inch is great to have. Just watch out, a boot can go into a 10"er easier!

6) SHOVEL:
Bring a shovel. You may get stuck. Also its really important to scrape down to the ice when you put your tent down (others may disagree but this is what ive found) When you have a bunch of snow around the holes, a) it makes it harder for you to grab a fish (not really but its farther to the fish if it snows lots) and b) YOUR LINE DOESNT GET STUCK ON ALL THE SHARDS OF ICE. thats the big one for me.

7) RODS:
I prefer ice rods to traditional sticks. You can get some great combos for cheap! I like the quantum 28" medium rods for predators (pike and walleye) and frabill panfish poppers in light action for perch and whites. I find a noodly rod better because it absorbs some of the thrashing and equates to less pulled hooks. Basically all predator rods of mine have 20 LB Tuffline XP with fluorocarbon leaders. Sensitive and invisible cant go wrong. With the perch and white rod i use FLY TIPPET MATERIAL! The best thing i can possibly reccomend for perch is 5 lb rio powerflex tippet material. Stays limp, is super fine and really strong. The more rods the merrier. Last count was 16 rods. Why so much? All my rods are pre rigged. I tie them all in the comfort of my kitchen with WARM FINGERS and then take them on the ice. Just switch rods and your good. And if your going for perch and Mr. Pike comes by you burn up your perch hook and drop down your pike hook. If you can react to them you catch more fish. Be a opportunistic fisher instead of a specialist. Catch what you see and it makes it more interesting.

8) TOWEL:
This one is very important. Get a golf towel and clip it to your belt. Caught a fish and your all slimy? GOLF TOWEL! Wet hands? GOLF TOWEL! Prevents excessive hand coldness from liquid medians.
With all of these you should be set. If you want to be really serious about catching fish...

9) ELECTRONICS:
Flasher before camera* (The way I wish I would have done it) This will spark controversy but the way I have found it is Flasher is a FISHING tool, camera is an ENTERTAINMENT tool. yes cameras will help you catch more fish than without but a flasher will catch more fish than a camera. Its easier to run and gun with a flasher and it doesnt take that long to learn how to use. If I had to pick one it would be flasher hands down. I can honestly say MY VEXILAR FL 20 HAS INCREASED THE AMOUNT OF FISH CAUGHT ON THE ICE. The camera is great for fishing with the GF because its "oh theres a fish, i can SEE the fish and my hook and stuff" its more entertaining to fish with a camera over a flasher. BUT the camera is limited to time of day and ease of use.

ICE THICKNESS:
I will walk out and fish on 4 inches of ice if i bring my hand auger and not much else. Snow shoes help to disperse weight but its still a eerie feeling. Vehicle on about 8" of ice and SUV (small suzuki) no less than 14" truck no less than 18". If your not comfortable driving your truck you dont have to. simple. If you are not comfortable taking your truck on the ice, dont. Quads will work most of the time but if it snows LOTS a skidoo is necessary.

BUY THE BEST GEAR YOU CAN AFFORD. Better gear lasts longer and take good care of it. The winter is hard on gear. This is what I have found works the best for ME, others will disagree with some of my antics, but in the last 5 years I can count the days on one hand that I didnt catch a fish. My .02.

8 ice scoopers
15 tip ups
16 rods
That's not advice. That's a joke.

[honker_clonker]

To each their own. It works very well for me so its what I do. I catch fish when people cant. I also fish with 2 to 5 people who dont have any gear. Give everyone 2 rods, leaves 6 for myself and thats all of them used up. Everyone gets one tip up, thats 6 out there depending on the application. I have the bases covered. Really cold day? Rotate tipups so some have time to thaw, if one goes down I have spares. Everyone needs a scoop that leaves me with 2 a couple to leave by tip ups or spares if some break. Doesnt end up being much of a joke does it? Who wants to be running around sharing gear when your fishing over a large area? Everyone gets their own stuff and life is good. Would you go 100 yards when its -25 to get a scoop? **** breaks when its cold outside and I've got myself covered. With my style of fishing its necessary.

[Freedom55]

The best ice scoop that I own is a soup ladle (one dollar at a garage sale) that I attached to a golf club shaft (free). I drilled a series of 3/8" holes in the bowl and rivetted the handle on for strengh. I also carry a commercially available galvanized unit but the holes are way to big to scoop out all the chips, which re-freeze quickly, and use it to scoop out only the first bits. Another good tip is to stop drilling an inch or three before you break through and pull out all the snow by hand. I own a lot of expensive tackle but ALL my ice fishing gear is homemade or recycled except a rod/reel combo that was a prize at a derby. Be creatve and make your own gear, Something to talk about between bites. Dave

[Reddeerguy]

Looking for a shelter, go buy a three person eskimo quick fish best ice shack bought yet. Very quick to put up like a min tops and really holds in the heat. I put mine up to the test, -30 one day, with a mr heater. Best fishing I had last winter in Dec sitting in there catch fish after fish with no winter cloathing on. You can get them at Costco in a weeks time and they are really cheep there, the auger they just have that came in eskimoo aswell , is what I use and love all the gear I just bought next is a flasher.