But then again, this is Minnesota and outdoorsmen and women are pretty hardcore.

 

Take Martin Thorsten of Foley. 

 

He generally gets out ice fishing 20 to 25 times a month every ice fishing season. He ventures to Lake Julia, Elk and Little Rock lakes fishing for walleyes, and sunfish using flathead minnows and wax worms.

 

He typically catches and releases unless he nabs a couple lunkers like he did recently.

 

“I got a 16 and a 21-inch walleye and kept those the other day,” said Thorsten.

 

Thorsten enjoys hauling his portable fish house he totes in his Ford Ranger and says the weather never discourages him from getting out and doing what he loves.

 

“I’ve been doing this kind of thing pretty much all my life,” he said. “The cold don’t matter since I have a little stove that keeps things pretty toasty in there.”

 

People sometimes will stay out on the ice for days, weeks and even months, depending on their schedules and their ice houses. Those who do have all the amenities of home, combined with all of the tools that are available to the ice fisher. Underwater cameras, strike sensors for tip-ups, insulated hole covers, awesome sonar units (that are so dialed you can see your bait and fish on them), electric augers and the list goes on.

 

Just a hundred yards or so off the public landing, two friends arrived just after lunchtime Thursday on Lake Julia. John Anderson, 26 and Josh Wolf, 24 of Princeton took Thursday to utilize Wolf’s dad’s fishhouse, which has four fishing holes the young men hope will bring a good bounty of crappies and northerns.

 

Thursday was Anderson’s fourth time out on the ice so far this year.

 

“This is my third time out this year,” said Wolf. “We’ll be fishing with crappie minnows, fatheads and wax worms.”

 

Connected to Lake Julia, Briggs Lake had a couple dozen fishhouses on the ice and plenty of vehicles parked alongside the crudely-made shelters.

The cold weather didn’t seem to have any adverse affect on the hearty fishermen who dwell in these ice castles.

 

Jason Neumann, 19 and his brother Jim, 32, try to make it out ice fishing at least two-to-three times a week each season. Thursday, they were fishing for crappie, walleye and northerns using crappie minnows and artificial bait.

 

“It’s been sort of a slow day today, but we’ve had some good luck so far this year,” said Jim.

 

The Neumanns have a relatively modern fishhouse with chairs, bunks and a turbine on top of the fishhouse that powers some of the electrical devices the unit utilizes.

 

“It helps powering up our electric auger, too,” said Jim.

 

Here are some upcoming, prominent ice fishing contests in Sherburne, Stearns and Wright Counties:

 

• Frostbite Challenge on Pelican Lake - Jan. 12 from noon until 3 p.m. with an entry fee of $25 (top prizes range from $10,000 to $24,999);

 

• Maple Lake Ice Fishing Derby - Feb. 1 from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. with a $5 entry fee (top prizes range from $5,000 to $9,999);

 

• Grandslam on Grand - Feb. 1 from noon until 3 p.m. with an entry fee of $25 (top prizes range from $10,000 to $24,999);