The future of a beloved Midwest winter tradition is at stake as Michigan’s lack of a real winter this year has Lansing’s local ice fisherman in a slump.
Freezing-cold temperatures bring more than just frostbite; Michigan’s winter weather also provides a wonderland for ice fishing across the state that locals wait all year for, investing both time and money in preparations for the season. They only get maybe four months out of the year for their sport, if they’re lucky; now, their small season has shrunk down to mere days. Small windows of opportunity prompt eager ice anglers to get the most out of what they can by pushing the limits on thin ice, posing more risk than reel.
“It sucks because you wait all year for something like that, you get the sled out, your ice logger and poles and stuff like that and you invest a lot of time and money into making sure that everything goes smoothly,” said Eli Smith, a Lansing native.
They’re not just missing out on the joys of their sport, but also the return on their investment. In Michigan, if you are 17 years or older, you must purchase a fishing license. An annual license for a resident is $26, and for a non-resident, $76; these can be used year round, though guided trips on the other hand would cost a few hundred dollars, not to mention the cost of all the equipment.
“It's all an initial investment, you buy your poles, you buy a sled to pull everything, you buy an ice shanty if you’re going to be out on the ice for extended periods of time trying to get yourself away from the cold, and your bait. You could be looking upwards of a thousand dollars if you get a nice ice shanty and a nice ice drill, and poles and what not, so to spend all that money and not be able to ice fish, that could really affect a new ice fisherman,” said Smith.
Typical mid-Michigan winter averages a daily high of 33 degrees and a low of 19, according to National Weather Service Data. This winter, however, the temperatures have remained between the high and low 30s, rarely reaching below freezing. It typically takes around four days of below-freezing temperatures in order for bodies of water to freeze over.
“You kind of just take the ice for granted, so when it's not there it just sucks,” Smith added.
With this year’s season being dubbed a “lost winter,” many ice fishermen are grappling with the fact that their beloved sport was cut drastically short. The Michigan State Fishing Club plans a highly anticipated annual ice fishing trip in the Lansing area, and this year they struggled to find safe ice.
“This year we originally scheduled our trip for early February anticipating that we would have safe ice,” said Casey Shell, the MSU Fishing Club’s social chair. “After a drastic warm spell the ice became very unsafe quickly. We came to a decision to postpone our ice fishing trip to the middle of February hoping for better ice conditions. This time conditions looked a lot better with bait shops reporting six to ten inches of ice on some bodies of water.”
“Sadly, some lakes were still very unsafe due to heavy snowfall that hindered the ice from building. In frustration we found wherever we could possibly get out and fish. We made sure that the ice was safe by spudding our way wherever we went on the ice. Although we couldn't get access to the best fishing we still had a great time and we're very thankful to just get out on the ice.”
Others had similar experiences in struggling to find a safe place to fish.
“It sucks because it’s a highly anticipated thing for a lot of people come winter. It's always been the thing my dad and I do together, he especially really looks forward to it for that reason,” Joey Hauler, 20, said. “Most of us didn’t actually get a chance to do much this year because the ice hasn’t been safe.”
The safety of this winter pastime poses another concern for locals when temperatures rise and some dedicated daredevils still go out on thin ice. The small window of opportunity has eager anglers quite literally testing the waters in the thawing winter cold. Falling through the ice can surely be a fatal incident. Emerging into water at such low temperatures can send your body into hypothermic shock, making it extremely difficult to swim to safety.
“You have to make sure the ice is thick enough to come out here; you should have at least four inches,” said Lansing local Dean George. “Some people take the risk and go out on thinner ice, but we prefer not to because it’s not easy getting out of the ice once you fall through”
Beyond the disappointment and safety concerns, if this warmer winter trend continues, climate change poses potential challenges for the future of ice fishing. Increasing global temperatures have a direct impact on the formulation and stability of the ice, creating more challenging, unpredictable, and dangerous conditions for fishermen. Additionally, warmer water temperatures can disrupt ecosystems and alter fish behavior, potentially affecting ice fisherman’s ability to locate and catch them. These new influx of challenges may impact the appeal to the sport over time and thus threaten the future of it as a whole.