The Icemen Came

It is up to 34° as I write on this bleak and dreary Sunday morning. The sun never did shine at all and the TV news reports say there are serious freezing conditions on the roads in the Northeast area. Well the roads aren't too bad here and many men and their gear have arrived to fish on the hard lake ice. They park on a small "point" where the road comes into the lake and drag their equipment on plastic or wooden sleds to their hand-picked spots. It looks as if most of them are jigging for panfish. There are a few tip-ups being used to catch larger fish. I regret that I can't go away from my safe spot here to see what they are catching, but it's not prudent for me to venture out. I'm afraid of falling. Soooooo...I took these from the cabin's front porch.

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All of the Mister's ice fishing equipment lies dormant in the shed. There are ice cleats, sounding weights, tip-ups, jigging rods, buckets, skimmer, bait containers and more. He sold his gas-powered auger several years back. His warmest clothes and boots remain, unused now, in his closet.  Time has moved on.