01-02-2009, 04:42 AM
A good auger is a major key. I bought a fairly cheap one on clearance a couple years ago and it takes about 45 seconds to drill in 4-5 inches of ice. I'd hate to consider using it at Ririe when it gets up to 2 feet. However my buddy has a 4.5 inch Nils master Ice auger and my word! We have easily drilled through up to 2 feet of ice in under a minute. It costs a bit more but worth it. Cabelas sells them. This is one area I wouldn't skimp. As for the shelter if you aren't sure but want a cheap way to try it I use one of those pop up blinds in the cabelas catalog. Can't remember the name but it's the model T-200. They sell for about $60 and are extremely light weight and easy to set up and take down. Only downside is they are easy to blow away if you don't stake it down. Rods you can pick up cheap.
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