DECEMBER 2016 • NEBRASKAland 31
mystery of "was this a fl uke" that forces us to lower
our jigs into the hole again.
One February night at a party, Kevin and I were
already counting down the days to the next winter
more than 300 days away when Kevin turned to me
and asked, "What if we go north?"
"How far north?" I asked.
"As far as we need to go," he said with a smile. "One
more round."
Permission for a trip farther north came quickly, as
our wives approved, as did the wives of everyone else
standing in the room. It was peer pressure at its fi nest.
"I have a friend in Bruce, South Dakota," our friend
Terry Mayfi eld said. He then made a quick call and
found out that local lakes near that area still had 10
inches of ice. And Bruce was just four short hours away.
Five days later, Kevin and I were high-fi ving our way
up north for a two-day trek, wondering if what we had
learned in Nebraska would translate to the Dakotas.
It immediately did. We found fi sh on both days,
introducing another set of friends to what we had been
experiencing for the last few months.
They received not only a brief tutorial of what we had
learned from ice fi shing, but also witnessed the party
atmosphere that can occur when 500 groups of anglers
decide that spring is coming and they want one more
day of winter Mardi Gras of their own.
It was the perfect cap to our season. On the way
home, Kevin and I compared notes on the year, two
friends that had bonded on a block of ice reminiscing
our successes as well as next winter's needs.
Did we "need" a second Vexilar? How about a four-
wheeler? Should we look into fl oating bibs? How many
more rods should we be looking for? Should we buy a
shelter?
As we stand on the ice somewhere this month, our
excitement for the passion continues to grow, and we
hope to see you on the ice as well this winter. If you're
hesitant, ask yourself one question: Am I waiting for
spring to arrive?
If your answer is yes, then I have an idea what you
can do to kill time while you are waiting.
■
The author is tackled by his son Eli while friend Matthew Marx looks on. There may be no better way to get
kids hooked on fi shing than introducing them to winters on the ice.
PHOTO
BY
JENNY
NGUYEN
