Snot-Rocket Extravaganza

How we were able to pull it off I will never know, but I was able to get Josh, Abram, and Stella up for a weekend of ice fishing. Josh clearly needed a retreat from work and I was more than happy to oblige.

Dad made a nice breakfast Saturday morning before we headed out on the the frozen tundra.

I can easily say there was some excitement in these faces!

We headed out to the lake and started drilling holes in one of the closer bays. Upon further inspection it was determined that the bay was just about 2 feet deep and we needed to find some deeper water. Dad stayed with the kids while Josh and I were on a recon mission. We found our spot and looked to make the transition. At one point we look across the bay as Dad and Abram are running over to Stella, as she was now flopping around on the ice. She had one on the pole grandpa gave her and it pulled her right off of the chair. Unfazed doesn't even begin with this little gal.

The next few hours absolutely flew by. It was so much fun watching these two little munchkins race around on the ice. Stella would play in the minnow bucket and Abram would race to the next tip-up. Abram kept a running count of every fish we caught that day, and we never could have even fathomed 34 pike on the day.

 At one point Paul and Stella were across the bay admiring a giant pike another guy caught. It was bigger than Stella!!!

Even though we were indeed standing on a frozen lake, it was fantastically warm. Paul provided food for an army and we ate between flags.

 

I was in the middle of my sandwich when a flag went off. Abram starting running and I had to help him with a mouth full of turkey sandwich. What a terrible problem. :) 

This was the black lab puppy that another fisherman decided didn't need to be tied up. When it wasn't terrorizing Stella, it was getting snuggled by Cathy.

When the feet finally succumbed to the cold, it was time to call it a day and we headed back for a dinner of fish and pork chops.

The next morning was one in the same in terms of easy, but good breakfast and then back out on the ice. It was a little colder this morning, but still relatively mild. We again, hit the easy button and fished our spot right off of the road on Antelope. After have a frenzy-filled day yesterday, the kids were antzy as we were not exactly hauling them in this time.

 We did finally end up catching one, and it as bigger than any pike we caught the day before. Even though Abram and Grandpa hauled it in, Grandpa knew there were much larger teeth in this one, so there was a group photo for this fish.

This ended the fishing trip for Josh and company. We headed back home for a patty melt lunch and it was time for our travelers to head home. 

It was still early in the afternoon we actually headed back out, yet again onto the lake. This time we went with Paul, Adam, and Cathy to Indian Springs. Dad and I ran tippers, while Paul searched for a waldo. I did manage the best pike of the weekend while out and Paul, by the grace of God, found a beautiful waldo while monkeying around on the ice next to Dad.

We fished out there for another couple of hours without much more luck, but our trip ended with Cathy losing her phone, and Paul and I finding it buried in the snow near the shoreline...That was a close one.

This ended an absolutely phenomenal weekend in which I was able to help my brother and his kids enjoy every minute on the water. It was great to spend some time with Josh as I don't get to see him often, and the weather made it possible for the kids to enjoy the time running in circles. I hope this is a trip the kids will not forget, that way they will pester their parents enough to bring them back!



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