Yes, if you are only planning to punch 2 or 3 holes then a hand auger is okay, in fact that's all I used for a good many years. But it is hard drilling when the ice gets thick -- and I've seen it 3.5 feet thick in central Alberta -- it is even worse when it gets warm in March and the ice gets soft and wet and grabs the blades of the auger and can sieze them in the hole. Not to mention that staring down a 6" diameter hole through 3 feet of ice is extreme tunnel-vision if you are doing sight-fishing. There are 8" hand augers but then you've increased the area of the hole by 77%, which also increases your drilling effort by 77%.
When the ice is over a foot thick I can usually drive out on the ice to most of the places I fish, so bringing a power auger along is not an issue. And I like to punch 20 or so holes, making a hand auger impractical after about the end of December.
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