Due to the massive cold front on the way to Houston I think i might need a little help from experienced hunters. I hunt flooded rice field ponds that are at most 1 foot in depth. Besides a little ice on the grass I have NEVER dealt with freezing ponds.

It is supposed to be in the low 20's here, how much ice can i expect there to be? 1 in? 2 in?

When breaking the ice, how big of a hole do you normally break? The ponds are all roughly 1/4 - 1/2 acre.

Thanks guys

If you can turn your pump on and start flooding the field again thats the best solution. If not open a hole up around the pit or blind no less than 50 yards wide. Keeping small holes open is a pain in shallow water but if eveything else is frozen it can turn out to be a gold mine.

These might help:

http://www.ducks.org/Hunting/HuntingTips/3958/FighttheIceonYourNextDuckHunt.html

http://www.ducks.org/Hunting/HuntingTips/4129/Coldweatherhuntingtips.html

You won't have ice more than 1/8 thick, maybe a 1/4. It hasn't been cold enough down there to get the water temps that cold yet. The very surface will freeze if it's still out and that's it. Keep motion on the water and that should do it.

The main thing isn't if it gets really cold one night, it is if the temperature stays close to freezing for a long period. it's the second or third night in the 20's that'll lock up a rice field. I've seen ice that'll hold a four wheeler in AR. If it get's like that, the birds are usually gone.

I've read that you want to break the ice into large pieces and shove them under the surface ice.

I'll be headed to get some neoprene gloves today.

thanks guys..guess i won't know what it looks like until i get out there. It is supposed to be in the 20's for 3 days in a row in the morning. Hopefully it will get above freezing during the day and melt some if it.

It's good to know that it will not be more than 1/4 inch thick. I think in my mind i was expecting the entire foot of water to be frozen!

Lived in Kansas for 23 years. I never say ice over 6 inches thick. It's got to be real cold for a long time to get ice much thicker than that. We've had several nights of 20's and we haven't had ice over 1/8 thick up here yet so you should be fine.

im assuming if it's only 1/8" thick i can just step right through the ice and move it with my hands or do i need a hammer or something.

Should be fine by hand (or foot, in this case). Try to break it in large sheets, like sheets of plywood or larger, and push it under the surrounding ice.

My feet keep geting cold every time I click on this post

No doubt its gonna be chilly out there. Remember to wear layers and cover your extrimities.

The ice will not get very thick, maybe a 1/4in.

I'll bet out here it's an inch or more. 3 days at or below 32 and wind chill of 4......thick ice

I bet its cold in Amarillo...

Wind chill doesnt' do anything to form ice. it's the sctual temp that does that. If anything, the wind actually keeps the water open, becuase it keeps it moving and mixing warm water from below. Wind chill is an arbitrary measurement of how cold it "feels" on bare skin.

if the ice gets too thick I will be selling $5/hour or $15/all day - ice skating on my pond!

Every pond I saw today was froze, from big to little. I scouted half of the private stuff I hunt and they were all froze. Never saw a sigle duck ANYWHERE! Some ponds are already 1/4 inch thick(I broke to see if they would be worth hunting in morning). It's only going to get worse the next couple of days.

It's all about the food source for me now. Laydown blinds in agriculture feilds or BIG water on Texoma

Aren't you hunting in Katy? If so the ice will not be a problem.

What????????? Where you at man?? The Arctic??

I broke ice this morning in a rice field in Bay City...good luck over the next few days...find where the ducks are now and hunt those spots!

Had Ice this AM. Gone by noon. Scouted this afternoon, and no ice Might be some in the AM then gone againe by noon. The wind tomorrow night should keep it off bigger water.

Nope! 5 miles from texoma on the North side.

No wind/light wind will let ice form very quickly. We had 2-4 mph winds last night and most of today.

Take a drive up here and you'll see what I'm talking about. Wish is wasn't true, but everything I saw today(30 plus ponds) were froze over

Not just in the AM but all day

Well... Hang tough

out here in good ol west texas it will be cold but i doubt the hunting will be affected by the ice