OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — Ice fishing in recent years has been awful for fishers.
“I think in total, in two years, I've been out five times,” Travis Hart said.
Things might be different this year. The below-freezing temperatures have been quite consistent, giving hope to many.
“I feel like a lot of people around are gonna, you know, not just myself but everybody included, are gonna really benefit from those times. I mean, it's memories that you're gonna have forever,” Hart added.
This fisherman explains ice fishing has given him memories that will last a lifetime.
“Probably my earliest memory was ice fishing with my dad,” Hart said, “when we could go out together and make a day of it. I mean, we'd bring the shanty and bring a little... and we'd make food out there. Definitely been missing those days.”
Lots of local businesses have been missing those days, too.
“So once you hit kind of after November 15 with whitetails, we are praying for ice,” Outdoorsman Pro Shop Owner Chad Timmer said.
The shop in Jenison depends heavily on summer sales, but the ice fishing season extends them into the next season.
“For us, it's about paying payroll, and it's about keeping lights on till spring gets here. When you didn't have that, it just made it really difficult,” Timmer said.
The past couple of seasons have not been great for ice fishing, which has allowed the Outdoorsman Pro Shop to build up supplies for this season.
“The jigs, most of this stuff, we've been able to hold on to. Some of the soft plastics, depending on what they are, we've had to replace,” Timmer added.
The local shop owner explains they’ve held onto some equipment for years.
“Some of the stuff doesn't really have an expiration date. Some of the electronics, you know, that stuff hasn't changed. So those types of items we hold on to for the next year,” Timmer said.
WHAT TO DO WHEN GOING OUT ON THE ICE:
- Share your plans with friends and tell them around what time you'll be meeting back up with them.
- Never go out onto icy areas alone — always go with a group or trusted friend or family member.
- Make sure to check the forecast and be mindful of any major changes in conditions.
- Make sure to pack essentials like a charged phone, ice spud and a set of ice spikes.
“If they can stay calm, throw their wet arms on the ice and have the ice freeze them to that ice as much as possible, that'll help support them from going under. Just calm down, spread your arms out wide to put some of your body on the surface of the ice. And by calming down, you control your breathing and keep more air in your lungs to stay on that float,” Plainfield Township Fire Department Assistant Chief David Pelton said.
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