Mar
13
All good things come to an end, eventually. The current ice season will be no exception. For many of us in the Ice Belt, we’re down to the final few precious weeks of ice time, due to the sun’s ever-intensifying impact on the snow and ice that blankets our favorite fisheries. Continue reading
Mar
13
Off-season or extended storage of your Polaris snowmobile requires preventative measures to prolong its life.
“An hour spent today prepping your machine for off-season storage will save you a big headache – and potentially a pretty penny – next ice-fishing season,” says ICE FORCE Pro-Staffer James Holst. Continue reading
Feb
28
Little did Brent Atchison know when he saw the $3,500 ICE FORCE Ultimate Giveaway sweepstakes on the StrikeMaster website, a few weeks later he would be walking away with the loot. Continue reading
Feb
28
One of the best times to use an underwater camera to find and catch walleyes is when ‘eyes are looking for weeds in the late-ice season.
“While an angler could punch a series of holes and drop a lure with the intention of snagging bits of vegetation to check for good growth, nothing beats seeing the condition of the surroundings underwater with your own eyes,” says ICE FORCE Pro-Staffer James Holst. Continue reading
Feb
28
As the days lengthen as we lean into spring, walleyes begin to shake the winter doldrums. Today, three ICE FORCE pro staffers leak their best tips for getting back on a good ‘eye bit in the late-ice season. Continue reading
Feb
28
Sight fishing on the ice? Now you’ve seen it all. That’s how ICE FORCE Pro-Staffer Tom Neustrom weeds out big ‘gills in the late-ice season.
To set up his sight-fishing technique, Neustrom locates thick and heavy vegetation and then drills two holes above them as close to each other as possible. He then chips out the ice between the holes, creating what he calls “the snowman,” owing to its stacked-circles shape. Continue reading
Feb
7
In late January many ice anglers find themselves in a self-imposed time-out, due to a mix of mid-winter blues and cold fronts that plunge temps well below zero. But as host of a fishing TV show, James Holst can’t take a time out. He’s got to find biting fish no matter how cold it is or how finicky the fish get. Continue reading
Feb
7
Been staring at your deadstick bait on your MarCum screen, watching negative walleye after walleye swim past it without even a second look? Bryan “Beef” Sathre of Fathead Guide Service has good news from the north country – we’re about to cross the late-winter threshold, and that means more aggressive fish! Continue reading
Feb
7
On the heels of “wacky” weather that’s dropped the Ice Belt into the Deep Freeze, hot spots and patterns have been hard to come by for Quintin Biermann. Still, he’s been able to find some biters in South Dakota’s Glacial Lakes and Prairie Region.
“It’s been tough to keep fish on a pattern, as far as location goes… and what the fish want,” says the ICE FORCE Pro-Staffer and In-Depth Outdoors TV personality. Continue reading
Feb
7
Although recent sub-zero temperatures have required a roof over his head, Tony Roach remains on the move in his quest to put clients on big Mille Lacs Lake walleyes.
“When you can’t get out and ice troll, you’ve got to keep the guys on the move in the portables, where they’re warm, comfortable, and of course, where they’re going to catch a lot of fish,” says Roach, an ICE FORCE pro-staffer, preeminent Mille Lacs Lake guide and popular ice-fishing media personality. Continue reading