Testing the new Ice Hut...

Posted On January 25, 2012


First fish of the year… Well my “fishing” year has started off slow but at least it’s started. I have finally hit the water, hard water that is. Wanting to test out some of the fishing gear I got this holiday. I finally took out the Clam Nanook I scored to put it through the paces. What better place to do this at than South Park.

I met my buddy at the lake around 7am and started dragging the sled to the spot. It did well over the snow but I don’t have much heavy equipment like a big gas auger to weigh it down. Setup was pretty simple, hop in the seat, pull the top over, and extend the poles. Put the rear pole in to support the rear braces. Setup complete, so easy a caveman could do it.

The shelter was very comfortable and has a lot of room, more than enough for two anglers. I was really surprised by this. Fishing by myself I kept switching chairs and lounging about trying to take up room. I’ve ice fished a lot in the past but always without a hut and I usually did pretty well. But the advantage of the hut was very obvious to me. Set up over 18 foot of water and being able to see clearly to the bottom as soon as the hut was pulled over the hole was awesome. Watching the fish come in and take your jig improved hookups greatly. On top of all that you are fishing out of the wind and warm if you are running a heater.

There were a few things that I thought could make this shelter a little better. The Velcro on the windows are just in the two corners instead of all the way around the window. This allows a little more light in then I would like but not too much that it affects the fishing. Also the chairs don’t recline, boy that would be nice. LOL. Other than that I would highly recommend the Clam Nanook for those looking for a 2 person shelter. For the first trip of the year I did fairly well landing 15 fish, multiple LDR’s and even a few misses. Good times!

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About

Rick Schroeder
Rick Schroeder
Colorado Springs, CO
Joined February 22, 2011

Rick Schroeder is the creator and founder of ColoradoMountainFishing.com a website designed for those who share his passion for high country fishing, four wheeling, hiking, camping, and photography. Rick is also on the Blogging staff of Fish Explorer http://www.fishexplorer.com and a moderator on the oldest Colorado forum http://www.coloradofisherman.com. Rick has spent a significant portion of his life in the back country of the United States, starting at a young age in the Scouts, then in the Infantry with the 82nd Airborne, and after the military as a avid fisherman. In the summer months, Rick can often be found in the shadow of one of Colorado’s many fourteeners casting to some hungry cutthroat at one of the many alpine lakes in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. He also spends long hours on the summit of those peaks, capturing those unforgettable panoramas with his trusty Nikon. Rick has had photographs published on multiple websites, CMC books, and American Angler Magazine. During the colder weather, Rick frequently enjoys fly fishing one of the many tail waters in Colorado or using the short rod on the hard water with the South Park Junkies ice team. When he’s not wetting a line, Rick works as an IT Professional for the US Army and spends his off time moderating multiple Colorado fishing websites.

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