Ice shanty

Ice shanties, Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin, US

An ice shanty (also called an ice shack, ice house, fishing shanty, fish house, fish coop, bobhouse, ice hut, or darkhouse; Template:Langx) is a portable shed placed on a frozen lake to provide shelter during ice fishing. They can be as small and cheap as a plastic tarpaulin draped over a simple wooden frame, or as expensive as a small cabin with heating, bunks, electricity, and cooking facilities.

More durable ice houses are generally left on a lake for the duration of the ice fishing season, although this can cause problems, such as thaws and re-freezing causing houses to be immoveably frozen onto the lake.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Lighter, cheaper versions can collapse into a package to be moved from lake to lake during the season.

Many northern communities have developed bodies of laws about the operation of ice shanties - frequently including dates by which they must be removed, even if the ice can still hold them.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> <ref>""Remove Bobhouses from Ice by April 1" New Hampshire Fish and Game, 1 April 2016. Template:Webarchive</ref>

Culture

In northern climates, ice shanties are the center of ice fishing culture, customs and traditions. Fishermen often decorate their ice shanties in humorous ways (toilets are a popular joke addition), while others studiously work on ways to make their ice shanties more comfortable and efficient. Much of the culture reflects on the inherent danger of erecting a structure atop a frozen pond. The mayor of Hudson, Ohio claimed ice shanties could lead to increases in prostitution, although WJW (TV) could find no evidence of this.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>