My Sled and shanty.

[Bob_D]

Here is the sled I made last year.

I carry a LOT of gear and this works awesome. It stays fully loaded, so when I get to the ice I just unload a go. Before I had to try and pack stuff into my sled when I got to the ice and wasted 15 minutes on either end of my trip. I carry 30 Heritage laker ti[-ups, power auger, tackle box, poles, electronics (cameras, underwater camera, etc), chipper, spudbar, safety rope, extra clothes, etc..etc... Even fully loaded this thing pulls like a dream.

Here is a link to my shanty I built. It has all the step by step pics. Just click on the smaller pics to see tha larger ones. It's still a work in progress. It's not a fancy shanty on wheels, but it works. I hope to build a metal frame crank down shanty in the next few years.

http://www.fishingvermont.net/Articles/Shanty_101.htm

[Northlander]

30 tip ups? Is that legal where you are?

[Matt Johnson]

Pretty sweet sled Bob_D!

Good Fishin,
Matt Johnson

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Matt Johnson Outdoors
[email protected]
Metro Area Ice Fishing and more...

Iceleaders
Catch-N Tackle and Bio-Bait
MarCum
Stone Legacy
JR's Tackle
Fish Fever

[ivegottabite]

nice unit!
what kind of brackets have you got the skis mounted too? it looks like they are sitting a couple inches above the sled--for better ride??

[Bob_D]

Northlander,
We are allowed 15 lines each on Lake Champlain. I usually bring my wife,people new to ice fishing, or people that may not have much/any equipment. I don't normally set all of my tip-ups if it's a busy day, but on the slow days it can make it much easier to locate fish. Drilling all the holes is not an issue either...

Matt,
Thanks. If I keep my skis waxed, I can actually ride the sled (bare ice) without pushing if the wind is at my back.

Ivegottabite,
The sled is about 4-5" above the skis. I have the skies a little wider then the sled for stability. It's raised up to keep from plowing snow. The skis keep the sled on top of the snow, but if there is a lot of fresh snow it can sink a little, so the clearance helps. The key is to keep the back of the sled heavier then the front. That way the ski tips don't dig in and the sled stays on top.

I'm going to be adding a piece of plywood between the wooden cross pieces and the jet sled this year. The plastic sled tends to buckle a little if a lot of weight is put on it, so a piece of plywood will distribute the weight better.

When I get some time I'll be adding a page to me site with the step by step pics of when I was building it.

[BDR]

Bob-D Welcome to FM. Looks like a pretty nice set up you got there.

What kind of conditions do you get in VT? Snow depths, ice depths?
What species are most common?

------------------
Brian Rogers

Iceleaders
JR's Tackle
Catch-N Tackle and Bio-Bait

[email protected]

[Bob_D]

BDR,
Thank you.

For ice...we usually get fishable ice in the 1st or second week in December. I'm usually on by the first weekend of December, but I'm not right in the head. The ice usually gets from ~30"-36" thick depending on the year. We can fish for just about anthing that swims in fresh water, so what's "common" depends on where you want to fish. I tend to fish for pike and walleye the most, but I also fish for salmon, trout (rainbow, brown,lake, and brook),smelt, perch. I'm going to try and find the crappie that are somewhere near my shanty. Others get them near me, but I'm usually too busy with pike to look for them.