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Ice shanty

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(Redirected from Darkhouse (fishing)) Portable shed placed on a frozen lake to provide shelter during ice fishing
Ice shanties, Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin, US
The Vista, an unusual shanty with a view
Sainte-Anne-River, Quebec, Canada 1964

An ice shanty (also called an ice shack, ice house, fishing shanty, fish house, fish coop, bobhouse, ice hut, or darkhouse; French: cabane à pêche) is a portable shed placed on a frozen lake to provide shelter during ice fishing. They can be as small and cheap as a plastic tarpaulin draped over a simple wooden frame, or as expensive as a small cabin with heating, bunks, electricity, and cooking facilities.

More durable ice houses are generally left on a lake for the duration of the ice fishing season, although this can cause problems, such as thaws and re-freezing causing houses to be immoveably frozen onto the lake. Lighter, cheaper versions can collapse into a package to be moved from lake to lake during the season.

Many northern communities have developed bodies of laws about the operation of ice shanties - frequently including dates by which they must be removed, even if the ice can still hold them.

Culture

In northern climates, ice shanties are the center of ice fishing culture, customs and traditions. Fishermen often decorate their ice shanties in humorous ways (toilets are a popular joke addition), while others studiously work on ways to make their ice shanties more comfortable and efficient. Much of the culture reflects on the inherent danger of erecting a structure atop a frozen pond. The mayor of Hudson, Ohio claimed ice shanties could lead to increases in prostitution, although WJW (TV) could find no evidence of this.

Construction

  • Setting up ice shanties in Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade
  • Off-season storage Off-season storage
  • Strengthening ice with soon-frozen water Strengthening ice with soon-frozen water
  • Installation of the electrical network Installation of the electrical network
  • Fishing hole and cut ice blocks Fishing hole and cut ice blocks
  • Insulation with ice, which will be covered with snow Insulation with ice, which will be covered with snow
  • Interior Interior
  • Fishing party Fishing party

References

  1. "USE OF ICE FISHING SHELTERS" (PDF). New Brunswick Canada. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  2. "Ice Thickness Guideline" (PDF). Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. Official Pennsylvania Government Website. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  3. "Ice Shelters - what you need to know" (PDF). Minnesota fishing regulations. Pennsylvania Government Website. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  4. ""Remove Bobhouses from Ice by April 1" New Hampshire Fish and Game, 1 April 2016.
  5. Peggy Gallek (February 10, 2022). "Does ice fishing lead to prostitution? I-Team checks Hudson mayor's claims". FOX 8.

Further reading

  • Bergeron, Rich (January 8, 2005). "A moving passion: Rumney man has unique bobhouse". Archived from the original on 2010-09-21.
  • Stark, Larry; Berglund, Magnus (1990). Hook, Line and Shelter, Ice Fishing Tales and Photos Too: A lighthearted compedium of ice fishing stories from across North America. Cambridge, MN: Adventure Publications, Inc.
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