"Prepping for Early Ice!"

[MN BassFisher]

It’s that time of year again...when a select group of fisherman begin going stir crazy waiting for the lakes to freeze over. While the others are out braving the chill on the water in hopes of catching an aggressive and large fall Brown trout or spending their time in the fields hunting Elk, Deer, Ducks, etc. - this group is preparing and getting their gear ready for "early ice”.

I, personally, am almost completely ready for this upcoming ice season. I recently purchased my first portable shack – a Frabill Trekker II – so I have been slowly making some modifications to that. I purchased a new, stronger, and longer pull rope; bought a replacement window; patched a small hole in the side; cleaned out the bottom of the sled; tightened all the bolts and screws; ran steel wool over all the poles; purchased an overhead light - for fishing after dark; and lastly I took fine sand paper and Armor All to the sled bottom to help reduce drag. I would love to put some Hyfax runners on the sled bottom to help prolong the life of the sled but I haven’t done this yet.

In an attempt to be prepared for first ice, I also re-spooled most of my combo’s, cleaned up a few reels, re-lubed and added new leaders onto my tipups, put fresh gas in my auger and ran it a few times (which turned a few neighbors lights on), re-organized my jig boxes, and re-charged all of my flasher batteries.

I plan on shopping at a few stores and purchasing some of the new and latest jigs. I hope to get into the high country for my first outing either the weekend of Oct. 26th or Nov. 9th (I'll be out of town the weekend of Nov. 2nd).

I can't be the only one chomping at the bit to get out! So what have you done to prepare for the upcoming ice season?

I am excited to hear others' tips and tricks on how they prepare for the ice season and I look forward to seeing some of you out on the ice this season!