When you're out on an ice fishing trip, there are times when you have to endure long waits in between the fish biting. This also happens when you are trying out the various baits and lures that you have with you, to see which is the most responsive. When you're out in the cold weather, even a five minute wait can seem like an hour. However this can all change when you're snugly comfortable and warm in your very own fishing house.



An ice fishing house unlike a shanty or a shelter is designed to be a permanent structure, for at least one season. An ice house is often built on trailer frames and mounted directly to the frame. This allows anglers to easily hook the trailer hitch to their trucks and to drive the ice house straight onto the ice to their chosen fishing locations. An ice fishing house could also be on sleds or skids which allows it to be easily towed onto the ice.

Among the most recent luxurious additions to the humble original ice houses are:

- Benches or padded seats or even couches for an extra comfortable sitting area when monitoring the ice fishing holes.

- Heaters which run on propane, wood or even natural gas; these can be mounted off the ground and are vented. These heaters in the ice fishing houses allow the temperature to be adjusted and to be constantly monitored.

- A special cooking area which includes the necessities such as a table, a stove, as well as electrical lighting. The lighting only needs car batteries or an inverter hooked to a generator or car engine to run and to recharge.

- Generators which are powered by gas which will then provide all the electrical power for your ice house. The only thing you'd need to bring with you is a can of gasoline.

- Fully stocked supplies for food and first aid, as well as additional gear and provisions.

- Your own sleeping area which will enable you to spend an overnight or a weekend at your ice fishing house.

An ice fishing house could be as luxurious or as bare as you want it to be. What is important is for you to take into consideration the weight of the ice fishing house, and to constantly monitor the ice conditions. This will ensure that the ice will not weaken or damage under the ice fishing house, which could lead to a hazardous situation of breaking through the ice. Once there are early sings of spring or of ice thawing you would need to immediately remove the ice house. This is important as should the ice fishing house sink into the lake, you would have to pay for the recovery of the house.