It's that time of year, when the distance between the fisherman and the fish is the same, but the effort to connect the bait with the catch is another story.

Ice fishing is not for the faint of heart.

I grew up in a place where, on a summer day, I could grab my bamboo fishing pole (a gift from my grandpa), throw a kreel across my chest, hop on my bike and drop a line in the creek in less than 10 minutes. Depending on the day, you could catch your limit of stocked rainbow trout in a couple of hours or so.

Contrast that with the effort required to catch your limit in February.

First, you needed the proper clothing, which takes a while to put on. After a few trips, you'll know what keeps your nether regions toasty for hours on the ice and what garments fail miserably, making your trip miserable.

Then you need to load the truck with all your fishing accessories, as well as the ice auger and some sort of chair to keep your fannie and the frozen agua far apart.

Once there, the effort really begins, as I've noticed that most ice fisherman don't drill just one hole. Oh no, there has to be at least three, cut in strategic locations around the pond, lake or stream.

Next, you have to haul everything needed out to a point centrally located from which to survey the progress in each hole.

I guess the only thing that is easier about winter fishing is the casting. Unlike summertime, your success doesn't hinge on your prowess with pinpoint, 40-yard casts to the center of the pond. All you have to do in February is take a pole, hold the bait over the hole, and hit the button on the reel and decide how deep you want to fish. Next, find your stool and wait for Mr. Frosty Fish to get hungry and nibble away.

The entertainment possibilities are in correlation with how popular a certain patch of ice is on a given day. If you're sharing the ice with one or more fisherman, you're in for a day of fish tales more than fish tails.

If you're sharing square footage with ice skaters or hockey players, drilling a hole near the action will be very entertaining.

One of them might go off course, slide into the hole and possibly break a leg. The only certainty is you will end up with a broken leg, courtesy of their friends or teammates.

The first fish I pulled out of an ice hole didn't seem that appealing to me, until grandpa mentioned that, like us, the fish had put on some winter clothes to help them stay warm. Once home and cleaned, with the slimy film washed off, it actually looked edible.

And there's no end to the lengths avid ice fisherman will go to enjoy their comfort on the ice. Some erect actual buildings on the ice and stock them with all the comforts of home as well as a trap door in the center, which can be opened to give access to the ice without actually being in the elements.

I guess the Huck Finn in me always thought this was cheating. Fishing should be about fishing - not building a room away from home just to get away from the wife for awhile.

Jerry Hitchcock is a copy editor for The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2017, or via email at [email protected]