I have noticed a dramatic increase in the popularity of ice fishing over the past few years. More and more people are buying ice augers, portable heaters and even folding fishing shacks to fish through the ice in the winter. There are several lakes scattered throughout the region that attract big crowds on the weekends when the ice is thick enough to safely support anglers. Last year, people were drilling holes in thick ice on Bonaparte Lake, near Tonasket at Thanksgiving. There’s over five inches of ice on the lake now, and that’s one of the few that are frozen. I wanted to mention Bonaparte because the resort is having an ice fishing derby there on January 27th. They did their first one last year and got almost 400 people to turn out for it. Another ice fishing event to consider is the 19th Annual NW Ice Fishing Festival on Sidley Lake near Oroville. It is scheduled for January 14th this year. I have attended this one, and in addition to fishing fun there’s great food available and other activities. Pick up a copy of this week’s Spokane Exchange newspaper, where I provide information on several popular ice fishing lakes.