The Great Outdoors

[Haykakan]

Re: The Great Outdoors

It has been a pleasant summer so far here with temps staying relatively cooler then most summers. I took my son fishing a couple of days ago and he caught a huge pike which i had to help him with. People in the boat next to us were clapping after we landed this brute. The fish was released and swam away. Landing a big pike can be a bit tricky because they have nasty teeth and prefer to save most of their energy until you grab them and will often go crazy once in the boat. Trashing with those teeth and the treble hooks sticking out of its mouth. This one was well over 40 inches and healthy looking...it was a pleasure catching, releasing, and watching this beautiful fish swim away. I did not have my phone with me so no pics this time.

[Haykakan]

Re: The Great Outdoors

Great white gets eaten by killer whale.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rS53yy_2R0Q

[Artashes]

Re: The Great Outdoors

Up here in N Alaska is a major flyway for migratory birds. They come from many parts of the globe to nest during spring and summer then head back during fall. N America, S America, Russia, Europe, and other spots.
Just now... 9/24/14, 11:10am, I saw 4 tundra Swans glide down and land on a small lake.
Such beautiful birds. They are getting ready to go home.

[Artashes]

Re: The Great Outdoors

December 21st is the shortest day up here in n Alaska. A brief amount of daylight but mostly it's dark. That gets old.
We are now gaining daylight every day.
Oh yes. Most welcome.
Hope all had a quiet & pleasant new year.

[Haykakan]

Re: The Great Outdoors

Hi Arty. I took down my hunting blind since the season is now over. I took my son with me and we went for a walk on some of the frozen lakes in the area. Since the ice is fresh you can see straight down to the bottom of the lake through the clear ice..it is so cool. I am so very thankful that I can spend time with my son in the great outdoors. He enjoyed every minute of it and we will soon be going ice fishing and making memories.

[Haykakan]

Re: The Great Outdoors

Strange weather continues here in Michigan. It went from 40 to 4 degrees in one day. I love ice fishing but when it gets into single digits and bellow your hole freezes up faster then you can keep it open and fishing is no longer fun. The "cool" thing about the lake flash freezing like that is how transparent the ice is. You can see all the way down to the lake bottom while walking on the ice... it is a very beautiful sight. My son got a big kick out of "walking on water" as he called it. Venturing out on ice covered lakes is not something you should do by yourself if you are not experienced. Ice thickness varies from lake to lake so if it is safe on one lake it does not mean it is safe on the others. Things like current, debt, underwater springs can effect ice thickness so it is important to know the body of water you are walking on or to be with someone who does.

[Artashes]

Re: The Great Outdoors

Today I woke up to negetive 41 degrees F. For the last 4 days or may be 5 days its been averaging minus 20 or 30 degrees.
Until about a week ago we have had another exceptionaly warm winter. These temps we have had this last week used to start no later than january but could start as early as october.
so finally we get a week of weather that used to be normal for all of january and february.
if one is not dressed properly in these temps then they turn into popsicles in short order.
haykakan mentions in his previops post how his ice hole freezes quickly when temp is down to negetjve 4. I have a friend who lives in Rampart village on the Yukon river. Before this dramatic warmup started in 2000 he would dig a hole 9 feet deep in the ice at 40 below but never mentions the ice freezing at the bottom. Maybe cause your hole is so close to the surface?
stay warm.

[Haykakan]

Re: The Great Outdoors

Yes Arty the debt shelters it from the wind. It is in the teens and low twenties here and I am having a great time fishing. I bought a shanty this year so my son can stay out there with me and we have had a wonderful time out there. He had a playdate with his friend and I took him out to and he caught his first fish ever. Tomorrow I have to clean all the fish we caught today. I had a big pike on today. He bit my tiny bluegill jig and I fought him all the way to the hole until he broke the hook. Ice fishing is a lot of fun and catching fish with my son brings me great joy.

[Eddo211]

Re: The Great Outdoors

Sounds dangerous......you guys use rope in case you fall through?

[Artashes]

Re: The Great Outdoors

Sounds dangerous......you guys use rope in case you fall through?

I haven't haven't ice fished with a hook in the last 4 decades as I stopped doing harm to the defenseless long ago. I do put bread , cheese, etc on a string (no hook) for fun.
When I did ice fish however the temps up here froze the lakes & rivers so hard you could put a fully loaded cement truck in the middle with no worries.
Now the ice on the Yukon only gets around 3 ft thick, but that's safe.
All who ice fish have to understand how to read the ice thickness situation or risk being eliminated from the gene pool.