Last January, I watched my buddy faceplant on glare ice while carrying a 5-gallon bucket of walleye. He was wearing basic winter boots with no traction, and one slip cost him a three-hour fish fry plus a bruised ego. That scene repeats on every frozen lake I fish, so I spent the last two seasons […]

Last January, I spent 14 weekends on frozen lakes across Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan testing portable ice fishing shanties with three other anglers. We dragged shelters across the ice in 25 mph winds, set them up at -18F, and ran buddy heaters for 8-hour sessions to find out which models actually hold up. After more […]

Last January I lost a $180 rod to a tangled mess on my sled. The tip snapped when I yanked it free from a cheap foam block, and that was the moment I started testing ice fishing rod holders seriously. Over the past three seasons my team has drilled holes with 47 different setups across […]