What could possibly go wrong? I pose that question before setting out on a fishing or hunting expedition, either by myself or with buddies. “Murphy was an optimist,” goes the adage. No matter how carefully I plan, I adhere to the safety protocols and consider weather conditions; something goes awry. For example, I had difficulties with my Jeep getting stuck in the snow on two recent ice fishing expeditions. Despite the drama, in both outings, I caught lots of fish. Yellow perch were the target when I got out with my fishing buddy Colin on the Ottawa River at Buckham Bay. I hoped to get into perch on Crappie Bay on the Ottawa River but caught bluegills exclusively.
When I drove to Colin’s house, I brought snacks for Colin and me and waxworms for bait. I brought a few of my ice fishing rods and reels too. They are rigged with braided and fluorocarbon fishing lines and tipped with tungsten jigs and jigging spoons. Colin lives in a house situated on the bank of Buckham Bay. His driveway is sloped and curved. I park at the bottom of his driveway for the rest of the year. I was running late, so I did not notice the driveway was not ploughed. I parked in my usual space, confident I would exit as quickly as before. Colin joked that I should have parked at the top of his driveway. The man he hired to plough his driveway, he told me, could not fit his truck in the length of the driveway.
Undaunted, we set out to Colin’s portable ice-fishing shelter on snowmobiles. It was a new experience; I never drove a snowmobile before. I followed Colin as he led the way. I was a little cautious, and we arrived safely. Colin had minnows and earthworms for bait. Inside the shelter, he set up a dead stick baited with a minnow and, in seconds, a nice perch bit. It was a good start to the day. The water below the ice was approximately 6 feet deep. The perch were at the river bottom. I started with a small jig baited with a waxworm on 3 lb test. I caught a couple of small perch but had lots of the bait swiped. Next, I changed to a rod-and-reel combo with a jigging spoon baited with a waxworm. I got more bites and caught several more perch with the rig.
Colin caught a few perch with minnows and earthworms for bait on his rigs. As the afternoon wound down, he hooked a fine walleye on the dead stick combo baited with a minnow. Though the walleye was an eater, he set it free. All the perch were released too. The nice thing about fishing is you can release the fish when you catch it. We packed the gear and rode back to Colin’s house as the sunset. We got back without trouble, and Colin safely parked the snowmobiles in the garage. Colin asked if I would stay for supper, but I told him I promised Mika I would be home for supper. I packed my gear into the Jeep, and then the fun began. I tried to turn the Jeep around to drive out of Colin’s driveway, only to get hopelessly stuck. It was stuck fast despite Colin’s efforts to help free the Jeep.
No matter; I called the CAA to ask for a tow. A tow truck was promised to arrive within the hour. While we waited, Colin offered me a bowl of chicken soup. It hit the spot. The tow truck arrived in due course, and I quipped to Colin when the driver came to the door, “he’s probably there to tell me why he can’t help me.” Sure enough, that is what he said. Unfortunately, Colin’s driveway is not only curved and on a slope, but there is also a steep bank on one side. The tow truck driver told us he could not winch the Jeep up the driveway without it toppling off the bank. Back on the phone with the CAA dispatcher, I was told they could try again in the morning. I could not wait that long. Colin gave me a local towing service number, and I called. I told them where I was and the situation. They sent a tow truck, and the driver told us he needed to send a second truck to winch the Jeep up the driveway.
The towing company got the job done though it took a couple of hours. It was late when they arrived. It was after 1:00 am when they reached the Jeep back to the top of the driveway. It cost $432.75. The CAA said I could file a claim for reimbursement for the winching fee. I filed the claim and will see where it goes. It was after 2:00 am when I reached home. So much for getting home in time for supper. Colin made a quick calculation and concluded that it worked out to $48.00 per perch. To his credit, he chipped in $200.00 for the winching; bless him. Despite the dramedy, it was one of our better fishing expeditions. The following weekend, I found that history rhymes. I drove to Petrie Island to the parking lot next to Crappie Bay, where I park on ice-fishing expeditions. I pulled into a parking space only to get stuck.
A young man named Francois and his friends had parked next to me in a car. They were stuck too. Francois and his friends tried to help me out, pushing on the front of the Jeep as I tried vainly to free it. He told me his father was on the way to help free him. I had a spade in the Jeep, and I used it to chip away at the ice under the tires of Francois’ car. I did the same for the Jeep and got the Jeep free with Francois and his friends pushing from the front. I drove out of the parking lot and parked on the street. Francois told me he did not mind if I left to get on with my ice fishing. I waited to see that he got his car out of the parking lot as he had helped me. Finally, his father arrived, and we got to work. It took more chipping at the ice under tires, spreading sand and putting wood under them, but we got the job done.
With the drama over, I made my way onto the ice. It was heavy going as the snow was slushy. Finally, I got to a spot where the river was 20 feet deep. Two men were fishing, and one pointed to a hole in the ice next to them, telling me I was welcome to use it. I thanked him for his generosity and got started. I tried a pink and white tungsten jig on a light combo with a fluorocarbon line, baited with a giant mealworm. Unfortunately, they were out of stock of waxworms at the bait shop. I found the mealworms challenging to put on the hook. The mealworm’s exoskeleton is fragile, and its innards are soft and mushy. They broke apart quickly when I tried to place them on the hook. That and the fish had little trouble swiping the mealworms from the hook. Nevertheless, I caught several bluegills; they were suspended at 15 feet.
What was different this time was that I did not feel the bites. Usually, when fishing, I feel when a fish strikes at the bait; it is a tugging sensation. It took me a few lost mealworms to realize that a fish bit when the rod tip dipped toward the water. After that, I put an ice fishing bobber on the end of my rod and found it easier to detect bites. However, it was challenging, and I missed many of the bites. Still, I caught several bluegills; the largest was 7 1/2 inches. I released them all.
I look forward to future ice fishing expeditions on Buckham Bay and Crappie Bay with Colin and other fishing buddies. A final drama erupted on the drive home. I got stuck in a traffic jam on the Queensway. Yes, Murphy was an optimist. On the whole, however, the first two ice fishing outings of 2023 were optimal.
Geoffrey's Hunting Diary 