Only in Minnesota would it be possible to Ice Fish IN the convention center!

about the only ice fishing to get frenzied about this week ;)

Ain't no ice fishing coming to northeast Ohio anytime soon. Temp. is 58 degrees air and 58 in Lake Erie.
Caught a lot of perch yesterday and will be eating them in an hour. They have a lot of pin-bones and my old man never takes the time to get them out. So I have to clean the fish. I think he does this on purpose so's i'll clean the fish. I don't mind- a needle sharp bone sticking in the back of your throat will ruin a dinner real fast.

is roll it around lightly on the tip of the tongue, and chew gently. omitted fish bones can be discreetly removed. remaining shot pellets can be expectorated towards the moosehead on the wall, in an attempt to get two critters on the same shell.

shouting, "Woo Hoo Baby, parted his hairs!" is optional. depends on whether your pajamas are camoflauge or not.

perch bones are the little bitty demos of what pike bones will grow up to be. if the fish is completely fried or baked through, you can kick most of 'em loose with the fork, I have found. there is a nifty filleting trick to getting almost every single pike bone out and still have meat, which I half know. google for it and try with a thin, snappy knife next time you have perch.

I can't think of a single word that word that describes ice fishing worse than 'frenzy.'

The word "frenzy" always reminds me of Hitchcock's film of the same name -- actually, not the film itself as much as the hilarious trailer...

Here in Northern Vermont there is already skim ice in the swampier areas of Lake Champlain in the mornings. Signs are that it will freeze over early, but, time will tell, I suppose. We can work up an ice fishing frenzy here, during the tournament, and on a nice 40 degree day in March, when being out hard water fishing feels more like a day at the beach.

Kind of wish I could make it to the show, though. But upper mid-west ice fishing techniques don't work that great here anyway, or so I am told.

The only 2 ice fishing techniques I know about are either sitting on an upside down 5 gallon pail out in the cold, or inside a fish house with a heater, TV, radio, deck of cards and an adult beverage.

In either case, stop off at the grocery store so you can bring some fish home. Tilapia can pass for walleye on a good day, but tuna, not so much.

Well of course there are some similiarities :), but if the expo is about five gallon buckets, you guys are worse off than I thought.

Actually, this is the rare, seldom-discussed "ice piranha" fishing event, in which people and fish are eaten in rough parity.

Lilek's photo reminds me of this ice-fishing story:

A well-lubricated ice fisherman stumbled out onto the ice late one night, lugging 5-gallon bucket, ice augur, fishing gear, and the remains of a 12-pack. He picked a spot but as he began to set up his gear a loud, deep voice seemed to reverbrate all around him:

"There are NO FISH HERE," the voice called out.

Startled, the man fell to the ice and pulled the bucket over his head. After several frightful minutes, he slowly extracted himself and cautiously looked around. His bleary eyes could see nothing through the gloom except the soft glow of a few strange red lights spaced evenly just above the horizon. After a few more minutes, he carefully picked up his ice augur to start anew.

The voice erupted throught the night a second time:

"There are NO FISH HERE," the voice admonished.

Again, the man could see nothing. After a much longer wait, he slowly retrieved his ice augur once more.

The deep voice bellowed a third time with the same message.

Cowering in fear, the man finally summoned the nerve to respond:

"Are...are you G..God?", he asked with shaky voice.

"No!", the voice replied. "I'm the manager of this hockey arena!"

Yes, we're an odd breed up here in the Northland.