Canadian Ice Angler's Guide

Gene Olson was Reference Librarian at the Humanities and Social Sciences Library, University of Alberta, Edmonton.

Andrew Macpherson, his 18 contributor-advisor-consultants, and Lone Pine Publishing are to be congratulated for putting together this compendium on ice fishing as it is practiced across the country. The difficulties faced in compiling a comprehensive guide to all the regional peculiarities of this unusual winter pastime are documented in the introduction and help explain the book’s eventual structure and layout.

Canadian Ice Angler’s Guide begins with an excellent layman’s review of the surface geology and soil geography of the country as they impinge on the nation’s salt, estuarial, and fresh-water resources and the fish species that inhabit them. Macpherson then provides an outline of the various techniques and gear adopted in the eight fishing regions identified. The chapters defining and illustrating ice angling techniques, tackle, equipment, and shelter are fundamental to the rest of the guide and deserve careful reading. Each of the regional chapters contains a map of a few fishing sites, a listing of desired species, and some indication of the preferred angling methods of the local fishermen. The Guide’s longest chapter deals with the kinds of fish available to ice anglers. Each fish species is represented by a clear line drawing together with material on its distribution, behaviour, and possible angling methods. Additional chapters discuss the dangerous characteristics of lake-ice, and the complex of federal/provincial jurisdictions, laws, and regulations overlaying the nation’s fisheries. The book is rounded off with sections on conservation, catch preparation, the evolution of ice fishing as a sport, and sources of additional information.

Because this guide covers the whole country, it cannot provide practical details on “how-and-where-to-do-it-good-within-an-hour’s-drive-from-home.” For this, the beginning angler must depend on the acquired wisdom of a local ice fishing veteran. On the other hand, a local expert may find useful information in the way fishing is practiced in other regions of the country.

In summary, Canadian Ice Angler Guide is a well-illustrated, easily read description of past and present methods, and of desired species in ice fishing in Canada. As such, it can be recommended as a practical reference book for the beginning or experienced ice angler.