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The target species is northern pike or more locally known as jackfish A mariah is taken on one of the tip up set lines a special ice-cutting, tungsten-tipped auger. The auger size is regulated at eight inches for safety so you can't fall into the hole and drown. However, constant care has to be taken not to step in one as you can and will break a leg if not careful. Your C$29 (about $35) fishing licence allows you to fish with rod and reel, hand line or tip-ups, with a maximum of two lines per angler. Children or juniors up to 16 years do not require a licence to fish but must abide by the rules. By now we had the shack opened with the fire lit and warming the shack. Kirsten put the pan on the stove and dropped in a number of moose sausages for lunch. With this done we set about boring the fishing holes, confirming the depth of ice at 19 inches, setting a couple of tip-ups, before settling down to a couple of coldies and something to warm the cockles of your heart before lunch. The hut quickly warmed up and as we waited for the fish I realised that patience was the order of the day. This was definitely not like snapper fishing. Meanwhile, more vehicles arrived as the ice community grew, with mums, dads and the grandchildren joining the many "Poppas" who had the fires burning in their cosy shack. It was a warm, early winters day with the outside temperature a mild minus 10 degrees celsius, with no added wind chill as such. It soon became apparent that in winter it's not just about ice fishing. This is a family and community social event as a number of folk started clearing the snow from a tennis court-sized ice rink for a game of hockey. Skating and ice hockey are national sports and children learn to skate from a very early age. Me? I was just happy to watch! Next I heard a "holla" as one of the tip-ups flags popped up. The target fish is northern pike, known locally as jackfish, from which the lake draws its name. Pike are generally green to brown in overall colour with milky-white bellies. Their flanks have white, bean-shaped spots extending from the gill cover to the base of the caudal fin. The large mouth of this fish is filled with numerous razor-sharp teeth. It is not uncommon for pike in Saskatchewan to attain a length of over 40 inches and weigh over 20 pounds (9kg). The 32 Professional Skipper July/August 2012 fish we were catching were much smaller weighing in at a few pounds. Once they are filleted and cooked, the firm white flesh is not unlike our sweet gurnard, with similar sized flakes. The other main species caught are burbot, a freshwater cod or catfish known as a mariah. The burbot is the only Saskatchewan fish species that spawns in midwinter, beneath the ice. Burbot are mass spawners. During the spawning act a group of 10 to 12 male and female burbot gather over gravelly, near-shore shoals or shallow, sandy areas just under the ice. The resultant fertilised eggs settle to the bottom to incubate. This spawning occurs only at night, with the females producing from 40,000 to 1.3 million eggs, depending on their size. Sadly this fish while plentiful is not popular with the locals, who prefer to kick them back down the hole alive. That's probably why they are so plentiful. I suggested to Kirsten that he might like to fillet one and add a bit of salt and brown sugar before smoking it. I'm sure once he tries this he won't see as many disappearing back down the hole. There was another excited whoop from inside a shack as the family urged one of the young ones to wind in a fish. On some days the fishing could be very good but today was a bit slow. Apart from drilling a new hole outside, no one seemed to worry too much about the fishing as long as they got the occasional feed. There is no commercial fishing although people from the first nations are allowed to set nets under the ice for winter customary food purposes. From what I understand the Inuit rarely abuse this right when fishing Crown lands or waterways and so there is no conflict amongst local fishers. Today we were the top fishermen going home with a nice feed as daylight quickly started to fade and the locals headed off home. From a fishing perspective, the fishing was pretty utilitarian, but when you are in the frozen northern winter, the social interaction of being out on the ice with friends and family is just huge and I can see why they do it. And let's not forget the superb moose sausages, washed down by good coffee and a wee dram that may not have been so wee as we too, drifted off home. Kirsten Bru was mindful of the jackfish dentures as he was extracting his hook