Any chance the ice house out rule with be extended

[Sam and Bob]

Since when are we not living in real life conditions? Laughing at the people who say "should have been prepared" That's a good sheep following our gov't who makes innocent people criminals. Matter of fact, there should be a class action law suit if the season wasn't extended. The Gov't works for the people, not the other way around.

If your shack is sitting on 10" or ice, yes you better get moving.

If your shack is sitting on 3' than live in the real world and keep fishing.

If someone falls through because the DNR extends the season they PERSONALLY still get the Darwin award. I can't believe someone would think it's our gov't/ medias fault.

I personally have many plows and the equipment to move my shack, but it's awfully silly to plow a road to move my shack when we are in the middle of our winter season. And imagine how bad my plow wake would be for the other guys if I plowed out to my shack at the back of the line. Their side road would have the original 3' of hard pack snow along with the 6' pile I would put on top of it.

So let's say I do plow out to my shack. Now the side banks are twice as high as before I started. If we were to get a 1/4" of snow and wind, that road would drift in twice as deep, right to the top of the new plow wake banks.

The Deadline is coming!!!! The Deadline is coming!!!

How about give the "prepared for the deadline" a break.

My ice shack is blocked up and free. In the case of frozen in shacks after the deadline, yes there should be a citation issued.

Across the state, which situation seems more logical/safe? Plowing thousands of ice roads with 1 ton diesel plow trucks/skidloaders. Or waiting for 32 degree weather and letting the snow pack settle on it's own so people can use their standard half ton trucks and drive right off.

Great decision DNR, thank you for the proper call and all the great fishing that has been provided locally from stocking efforts.

[amateurfishing]

Yes we do live in real world conditions and those conditions in our very large state can be different in any region right now or change really fast in any of the different regions. The DNR is responsible for the state as a whole even though the conditions may vary across it the rules apply to all at the same time. You don't have to like it but if 50 degree weather unexpectedly show up, a massive melt off happens, and shacks are still out there and you have to drag it through 2 feet of water to get it off, someone will complain why they did not stick to original date. Its just like dangerous ice, some people are too dangerous to act smartly on their own so gov't does have to step in at times to protect those from themselves.

[hillbilly...]

[McGurk]

Here is our media's take on it...

WCCO Ice House Removal story

(2:48 in the video) What is an inflatable house?

Most people were expecting easier conditions at the end of Feb than at the beginning (as they should!), and I'd guess that less then 5% of house owners have personal access to trucks with plows. This was a series of unlucky coincidences that led to this, and the DNR says and I quote: "It isn't going to get any easier."? That is the preposterous statement of the year.

A one-time 2-week grace period on lakes with 30" inches of ice wouldn't be the worst thing in the world this year, but I don't blame them for not wanting to set a precedent for upcoming years. I can hear it already: "I remember back in twenty-14 when we could stay out 'til the middle of March. Those chicken little's at the DNR don't know what they are doing..."

[candiru]

With the sun as strong as it is now, a little warm up and some sun would cause stuff (including fishhouses) to melt down into the ice. Who is to say that the forecast doesn't change and some areas get a bunch of wet heavy snow by the weekend.

[nofishfisherman]

With the sun as strong as it is now, a little warm up and some sun would cause stuff (including fishhouses) to melt down into the ice.

That's exactly the issue. Houses need to be off the lakes while the lakes are still totally frozen. This time of year we can have a 40 or 50 degree day or a good rain storm that would make an absolute mess on the lakes with standing water. Add in one night of cold temps and now all those houses plus a lot of garbage are now frozen into the lake for good. You think its hard to get houses off now, wait until the bottom 6-12 inches are frozen into the ice.

The simplest thing is to keep the deadline the same, it eliminates all guess work from year to year and helps to prevent the situation from getting worse.

[MidCoast]

I don't own a permanent house and I don't have time to do the research to find the answer as I read through these replies, but when is the deadline to get houses off anyways?

[McGurk]

I don't own a permanent house and I don't have time to do the research to find the answer as I read through these replies, but when is the deadline to get houses off anyways?

I don't have the time to read your question so I can't give you an answer.

Today.

[Hawg]

Sorry, no sympathy from me either, this is all part of ice fishing. It has been for generations and will be for generations. Most people watch the forecasts anytime after mid January. Blame anyone you want, even me, but why should procrastinators and inattentive people get special treatment. You knew the risks.

[Chad Holst]

The answer to this issue is simple.

If a house owner is having troubles getting their house off the lake, then they should be able to call and report that and ask for a break. There are 1000 issues that can make it hard or impossible to get the house removed. Only 1 of them is poor planning. Weather, vehicle break down, family emergency, etc.

The deadline should stay the same, but then there needs to be an option for those that could not get their house off. Not because they didn’t want to, but because they couldn’t do it. Fines, etc...BLAH!

On a side note, for those that were commenting on how they shouldn’t put a house out without being able to remove it... Do you drive a car without the equipment to get it out of the ditch if a snow storm hits? Do you have trees without the equipment to remove them if one falls over? While you may live with the boy scouts moto book in your back pocket, the rest of the world lives in reality. I don’t own a snow blower that works, or a bobcat. I drive a 4x4 jeep that can pull a wheel house but that’s about it. I have not left a house on the lake, but if i did i would imagine the "law" is in place for those that don’t try or care to try to be responsible. I would simply call the DNR if a weather related issue arose and explain that i was working on getting it off and since the ice is good enough to drive a semi on, i won’t have any safety issues waiting until next weekend when a friend or hired party could help me get it off. If they don’t like that, then they can search for a place to kiss somewhere between where i keep my wallet and my check book. (I’m only kidding...i don’t use a check book anymore)

We didn’t hire lawmakers to make blind to reality rules that are simply to create revenue for the local government. The laws are there to govern safety. If there is no safety concern then there is no issue in my opinion. I would think it is more of a safety concern to have a bunch of people rushing to get their houses off in poor conditions than to give a small amount of understanding to those that are in need. If someone takes the time to call and report their own house and when it will be off, then I would think that some understanding is in order. I would also say that they should not be allowed to fish in that house until they have the ability to move it, this way people are not taking advantage of the situation.

Don't get me wrong, if you are fortunate enough to live with the scout manual in your back pocket and are always prepared, that’s great! Then i would offer some advice: rather than show up on HSO to point fingers and "i told you so's" why not take all this amazing equipment you have worked hard to acquire and put it to use? Instead of telling people how wrong they are you could show them how to be "right". I posted a message on HSO last week saying i would be at the local lake to help anyone that needed it, to get houses off. 1 person took the trouble to call my cell and offer aid with me... Just one! neither of us even have a wheel house on the lake, neither of us have a plow, chains or blower. Just small 4x4's and some shovels. I suppose the guys with the "right equipment" were too busy posting here on how great they are.

I told the salesman why I was buying bolt cutters. He said aren’t you worried that someone will be mad and call the police if you cut their lock off and pull the house to the parking lot without permission. That’s the world we live in? Where I should not help my neighbors because of the law? I purchased the bolt cutters anyway. If anyone is mad about the lock, please PM me your address and I’ll send you a new one with the bill for my time and gas, everyone else can simply say thank you and wait until I need a hand when I get stuck.

[Lusid]

^cliff notes? )

Way to much text and not enough breaks in structure lol I went all cross eyed.

[Hawg]

Good for you, you did a nice thing. I hope the guy in the bar appreciated it but everyone has personal responsibility for their house. There's not a Guardian Angel on every lake as helpful as you are. For every one "couldn't get it off" there's 50 "didn't get it off's" It's all part of the game. If you see that as I told you so, then I'm never going to change your mind.

[8ucksho7]

Not a good idea to burn your fish house! Besides polluting the lake, you could be charged with arson if the value is more than $300. Even it it's your own house.

[Chad Holst]

Lusid,... I edited it, sorry for the blob of words.

Hawg, you are 100% correct that everyone is responsible for there own house. You cant just rely on others to fix everything. You need to do it yourself and/or ask for help when needed.

I do have to disagree about the 1 out of 50 is a "cant get it off" and the other 49 are simply "didnt get it offs". I would give people more credit than that. I would imagine that 4/5 people couldnt get it off for one reason or another. Maybe 1/5 didnt care and by the time it was due to come off it was too late. With the price of things today and the type of people that can afford to due it often enough to facilitate the need for a house, i would think most of them are pretty responsible people.

There are alot of lazy people out there, but i think the majority of people are pretty awesome if you know how to give them the chance. If you treat others great, they will tend to do the same back. I know some people will say that is a recipe for being taken advantage of but you never know until you try and so far most people i meet are up to that challange.

Gaurdian Angel? I respectfully say "no". I dont believe in fairy tails that talk about angles and the like. I would be more apt to call me "average" and "a friend". It just seems to me that while some amazing/good people devote the 7th day to talking about being noble they could instead be out actually doing it. I'm all for being a good neighbor/friend and to each there own on why/who they give credit for doing it. In my house we thank each other, our selves and our friends that we are fortunate enough to have.

Brn0488,

It would not be arson. unless you claimed it was not intentional when infact it was. (thats fraud). You also couldnt report it as a loss to insurance (thats fraud also). We burn more than $300 worth of wood every year... is that arson? no. But, you are correct, DONT BURN YOUR ICE HOUSE. Call me, i will take it off and donate it and its belongings to our non-profit. You can even get a little tax right off for it.

A quote for you:

Quote:

While most arson crimes involve property that belongs to other people, you can also be charged with arson if you set fire to your own property. However, to be convicted of arson by burning your own property you must either set the fire for fraudulent purposes, or the fire must lead to someone else's property getting damaged. For example, burning down your home or business with the intent to collect on your insurance policy is arson. Similarly, if you intentionally set fire to your property and that fire then leads to someone else's property getting damaged, you may also be convicted of arson.

[candiru]

With the sun as strong as it is now, a little warm up and some sun would cause stuff (including fishhouses) to melt down into the ice. Who is to say that the forecast doesn't change and some areas get a bunch of wet heavy snow by the weekend.

Landings/access points can go bad real fast as well.

[Sam and Bob]

Oh I can hear the medias blame already when some innocent kid on a snowmobile smashes one of the piles us ice fisherman were almost forced to make to get a shelter off of 3' of ice. Or wouldn't it have been something if multiple skid loaders went down in the same day, different lakes trying to get shelters off. I don't imagine it would be very easy to get out of the loader as it's falling through the ice with a big chunk of ice blocking the door from opening.

If a person waits until there is 2' of standing water on the ice, I would say they pushed it right to the end. Perhaps sometime between 2' of snow and 2' of water, some action should have been taken.

Since we live in such a great State with fishing opportunities that range from North to South with many different ice conditions. Why are there only 2 deadlines for shack removal in a state that has so many different regions. Putting any permanent set date on ice shelter removal seems to be more dangerous than just living real time.

When a person does drop a shack through or the DNR is forced to take care of the shelter. That's when serious fines should be handed out.

[McGurk]

Well, I guess they didn't extend it after all, and good luck to all those with houses left on the ice.

FYI, your permanents can still be used all day, any day as long as you are in it. However, you cannot leave the house unattended between midnight and 1 hour before sunrise) per the DNR. From their HSOforum:

"-After removal dates, shelters may remain on the ice between midnight and one hour before sunrise only when occupied or attended.

-Storing or leaving shelters on a public access is prohibited."

[J_D]

International Border waters have a different deadline so we have 3 different dates across the state. If you are gonna put a permy out you better have a way to get it off regardless of the ice conditions can't blame the DNR for the weather.

[Chad Holst]

Quote:

FYI, your permanents can still be used all day, any day as long as you are in it, but you cannot completely leave the house at any time per the DNR. From their HSOforum:

"-After removal dates, shelters may remain on the ice between midnight and one hour before sunrise only when occupied or attended.

-Storing or leaving shelters on a public access is prohibited."

Your quote is correct, but your understanding of it is not. You can leave your ice house from one hour before sun-up until midnight, you only have to occupy it from mid-night to 1 hour before sun-up. The house doesnt have to be removed and you dont have to be in it, except durring that period in the early AM.

[McGurk]

Oops, You are right Chad.

[20lbSloughShark]

I agree, sometimes you just have other things happening. One thing I don't get, how can you live in MN with enough room for a wheel house and not own a snow blower? And yes, my car has everything I need to get out of the ditch.

[Maverick]

I was ice fishing this past weekend and got to thinking about this thread. I don't own a permanent, so I really don't have a dog in this fight, but it occurs to me to have a set date for removing houses is a little silly. First of all there is no date for when you can put a house out. Everyone just decides for themselves. Some like 3 inches, others wait for a foot or more. The point is you get to decide. I think it should be the same at the end of the season. The idea that a date for removing a house in Brainerd should be the same for Fairmont is pretty lame. I say let everyone decide when to get the house off the ice. Sure, there will always be a few idiots that don't remove it before it's too late, but probably no more so than someone that tries to push their luck at the beginning of the ice fishing season.

Using this logic would mean that the DNR would not have to enforce a pretty lame law and we would not have to have this discussion in years like this one where there is still three feet of ice in many parts of the state.

I am generally pretty supportive of the DNR and our regulations, but it would seem that there is very little good arguments for the current rule. It should simply be everyone's responsibility to get their house off the lake before it fell through the ice. If somebody presses their luck and can't get the house off, then the DNR can fine the dump out of them, but for the 99.99 percent of us reasonable folks this would not be a problem.

So, if anyone has the ear of the DNR, maybe they should pitch this idea to them. Oh, I'm sure there will be plenty of if's and but's on this, but if you think about it, it does make some sense.

This fish weren't biting.

[harvey lee]

I do not worry so much about the ice depth on the lake as there is plenty at this time to put a wheelhouse on the lake.

What should be more of a concern to many with a house on the lake is, how long will the ice be good at the landing where they drive on and off the lake. I know the lake I was on this week for 2 days had plenty of ice on the lake but when I left, the water was running down the landing pretty good and with the salt and chemical that was on the street, now on the edge of the ice at the landing, that will for sure be bad long before the ice thickness on the lake.

[fivebucks]

I would rather have to pull a house a little earlier than you would have to than have the pieces of a house floating around to be hit by my boat. (maybe that has been mentioned as I have not read this whole thread - if so sorry)

[Tom7227]

Maybe it has something to do with the closed season?