Class Warfare on Ice
Owners and workers fight for fish on the ponds of Maine
A few years back State Representative Matt Dunlap of Old Town, Maine made what turned out to be the most controversial decision of his political career: He tried to shorten ice-fishing season by a month and limit anglers to two holes per man.
“I found myself in the middle of a category five shit-storm,” says a surprised Dunlap, who sponsored the bill after several constituents expressed concern that ice fishing was hurting fish populations. “I never had a reaction to a piece of legislation like this . . .. People were suggesting that I oughtta be taken ice fishing and shoved down a hole.”
“We looked at ice fishing as kind of an anachronism like bobcat hunting. We just didn’t realize how popular a sport it really was.”
After an intense lobbying effort by the Maine Ice Angler’s Association, Dunlap withdrew the bill almost in relief. “It was quite an educational process,” he laughs now. “We looked at [ice fishing] as kind of an anachronism . . . like bobcat hunting . . .. We just didn’t realize how popular a sport it really was.”
Ice fishing has always had something of a roughneck reputation, as the province of hard drinkers and…
