Just curious what others do to make fishing in all of this slush a little more comfortable? I wear 10"+ all rubber, "mickey mouse" boots to help while walking, I know some wear waders, etc.
I'm curious what you do with/around your shelter? In the past, I've always build up an island and put my shelter on top. Is it better to "dig out" and put it right on the ice or does create a lake or hole for the water to collect? I've honestly never dug it out when the slush was deep.
F4F
[signature]
A good pair of sturdy................
Stilts [laugh]
[signature]
Last Monday we dug out the snow and slush around our holes and left the snow alone where we were setting. After an hour or so we had a 4" pond over the holes, but where we were setting stayed above the water. The funny thing was if a fish got loose, it would swim away and out from under the tent and then come back when it hit the snow. We would then return it into the ice hole and back home.
The more that we tried to dig out the slush, the worse the water got. I think that it is best to drill a hole and leave the shavings around the hole. This seems to keep some of the water from pouring up and out of the hole.
Next trip I will wear my ultra light hip waders under my coveralls and hope that they will keep the water from getting my feet wet and cold. I have not tried this before so I don't know how well it will work.
I also used snow shoes to access the reservoir and they helped to make the walk a lot better. Now all I need is a bigger sled for all the new gear that I will be taking. Will the madness never end!!!
[signature]
I was at the marina on monday and I wore the same thing I always wear. I wear my northwave snowboard boots and my burton snowpants. The pants are waterproof and have built-in gaiters that snug down over the boots, and the boots are waterproof. My feet were totally dry at the end of the day. I was snowboarding up by tibble fork lake several years back and my buddy and I were hiking right along the frozen lake shore. My leg broke through the ice and went in up to the hip. I scrambled out and within a few minutes realized that no water had penetrated through the clothing. I would recommend if anyone is looking for good ice fishing boots, get a new or used pair of snowboarding boots. They are waterproof, designed for comfort, and have a tread specifically for walking on snow and ice. Get them a size too big, and you can wear thick wool socks. Your feet will never get too cold again.
[signature]
In slush it is often best to not shovel out the snow and slush where the ice shack is going to sit. Last Monday I first tried to just drill holes through the slush and set up the shack on top of it. I couldn't get a good firm footing under the shack and I was afraid that we would damage the floor of the shack by putting our weight on it without a firm footing under it, so we shoveled out all of the snow and slush under the shack. That provided a firm footing but also meant that we had anywhere from 2 to 3" of water inside of the shack all day. Really strange to have a fish swimming on top of carpet inside of an ice shack! Other problem was often the fish would splash around in all of that water and water was flying everywhere! One plus is that it is no problem getting the fish out of the ice hole when there is 2 to 3" of water on top of the ice.
[signature]
well some things not to do is dig out the snow around where you are fishing..
another thing to do is push snow around and stomp it down and make a hard pack spot to stay up on top the slush..
dont take a snowmobile out on the heavy slush.. it will only make your day a lot longer if your spending 1/2 the day trying to get it unstuck and out of the slush.. been there done that!!
i try and stay away from lakes with slush anymore.. it's just not any fun sloping throw all that crap.. better to just stay home or go to a lake where it's open and long pole it.. or find a lake with no slush..
[signature]
Okay, Kent, I'll bite - what do you do to keep the water out and make for a half-way tolerable day? Do like Fuzzyfisher says and just don't go out? Things are the same for the fishies below the ice but awful for us air breathers above.
Still hoping to go to Strawberry on Saturday.
Anyone hear how things are at Currant Creek? Probably too tough to get to with all the snow, huh.
[signature]
I can handle slush up to about 8 or 9 inches deep. I don't like it but I have learned to deal with it. My Sorel boots will keep my feet warm and dry as long as the water doesn't go over the top of them. A couple weeks ago I purchased a pair of snowshoes, which helps getting to and from the ice. All slush is not created equal. Monday the slush and snow were both really soft, which made it next to impossible to try to pack it down, so I just gave up trying to pack it down and just put up the shack in the lake of water (I set up my shack in my shed when I get home and dry it out with an electric heater). When it is colder I can usually pack down enough snow to keep the shack above the slush. If I am not using the shack I just try to create a small island of packed down snow and slush to fish from.
One common problem I see out on the ice is many times anglers are wearing boots that are waterproof for only about 4 or 5 inches up on the boot and then the rest of their boot leaks. They could put on several plastic bread bags on top of their socks and under their boots and would probably be able to keep their feet dry.
[signature]
I am one that wears neoprene waders while fishing in slush. Besides being waterproof, they are extremely warm, and not particularly bulky which is a perfect combination on the ice. I fished the infamous Huntington "slush out" of early December in relative comfort and complete dryness with my waders. I recently read a concern about sinking faster if you fall in, because the waders will fill with water, but if one wears the belt on the waders, it should keep the water out in that event.
[signature]