Ice, Ice, Baby.

To say I am not making the most out of 2015 (so far) would be an understatement. Given this is the last week of January (I know, right? Where did that go?) I subconsciously reflected on these last 26 days and realized quite the revelation: I have done a pretty extensive amount of fun stuff and tried new things. To be fair, it's been more like the past two weeks. Maybe it's some high from finishing off those boards. But still, there was enough to make my head nod up and down and feel pretty darn good about how I am kicking off my year.

One thing I'm happy I tried: Ice Fishing. Never in my life had I ever ice fished. In fact, I never really understood why anyone in their right mind would gleefully sit on snow and ice for endless hours and find it pleasurable. Yet within this new year I've been out two weekends in a row. I once again am reminded of the don't judge a book by its cover idiom. And that's OK, because I'm all about surprises. And to my surprise ice fishing was a blast. Outing #1 I discovered I am really good at watching other people attempt to ice fish. Outing #2 I learned not only does someone have the capacity to catch a fish, but I also got a sweet taste of the exhilarating feeling in catching one of my very own. A rush indeed.

Over the weekend I caught my first and he was one meaty northern monster. Considering I had never caught a fish in my entire life until last Summer I was pretty unambiguously happy with the size of this dude. Thankfully I had some good coaches by my side instructing me while this was happening, and I can proudly say I felt fairly calm throughout the process.

Here are a few photos of our ice fishing adventures thus far...

Here's my dude

 Checking on the tip-ups

If you haven't noticed, I have this thing with the sky.

 These textures engraved in the ice. <3 <3 <3

 

Fun days filled with good people.

Our friend Matt caught a beast of his own.

 Lighting the log in the evening

 Attempting to stay warm by the fire.

For me ice fishing has a fulfilling capacity that runs deeper than just trying to catch fish. It's about the people I'm connecting with, the anticipation of a flag popping up, and an environment that's simply out of the ordinary that generously gives much more meaning to the experience. Driving an ATV out 15 minutes from the shore provides me with a vigorous excitement and adds a mysterious nature to the whole exposure.

And while I'm proud of my northern, for me, it simply isn't just about catching a fish.

Happy Monday!

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