{"id":135312,"date":"2020-01-14T10:17:48","date_gmt":"2020-01-14T18:17:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/?p=135312"},"modified":"2023-06-14T11:33:37","modified_gmt":"2023-06-14T18:33:37","slug":"cabin-fever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/travel\/cabin-fever","title":{"rendered":"Photo Essay: Canada’s Ice-fishing Huts"},"content":{"rendered":"

A version of this story appeared in the winter 2020 issue of Uncommon Path.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Richard Johnson makes his living as an architectural photographer, so when he first noticed ice-fishing huts scattered across his home province of Ontario, he was fascinated. The portable, temporary structures, set up atop frozen lakes for days and weeks at a stretch, provide anglers with shelter from the weather.<\/p>\n

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Port Bolster, Lake Simcoe, Ontario<\/p><\/div>\n

The huts were often cobbled together from bits and pieces that remained from a home renovation\u2014spare lumber, extra nails, a leftover window. \u201cThey were crooked and beaten up,\u201d he says. \u201cI was drawn to the subject because of their simplicity.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Lake Scugog, Ontario<\/p><\/div>\n

He became so intrigued by the makeshift structures that he spent a decade between 2007 and 2017 documenting different huts\u2014and the hardy folks who occupy them\u2014across each of Canada\u2019s 10 provinces.<\/p>\n

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Yamachiche, Lake St. Pierre, Quebec<\/p><\/div>\n

In the east, for example, where warmer weather off the Atlantic makes for less reliable ice, anglers tend to use temporary tarpaulin-based structures.<\/p>\n

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Regina Beach, Last Mountain Lake, Saskatchewan<\/p><\/div>\n

In frigid Quebec, Johnson photographed far more elaborate wooden edifices on trailers, and in Saskatchewan, many residents own pickup trucks and build custom shelters to fit in the bed of their vehicle.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Petrie Island, Orl\u00e9ans, Ontario<\/p><\/div>\n

By the end of his project, Johnson noticed the shorter winters were driving many hut occupants to a new type of pop-up tent structure\u2014an even more temporary shelter that keeps the wind out but can be moved quickly in the event of rain or a fast thaw.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Gilford, Lake Simcoe, Ontario<\/p><\/div>\n

While practical, they\u2019re far less interesting to look at, he says. They\u2019re also less reflective of the culture because they\u2019re mass- produced.<\/p>\n

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Rimouski, St. Lawrence River, Quebec<\/p><\/div>\n

It seems climate change may do away with a big part of the ice- fishing tradition. \u201cI think I got there just at the end of it,\u201d Johnson says. \u201cI\u2019m glad I started when I did.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

All photos by Richard Johnson<\/em><\/p>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A version of this story appeared in the winter 2020 issue of Uncommon Path. Richard Johnson makes his living as an architectural photographer, so when he first noticed ice-fishing huts scattered across his home province of Ontario, he was fascinated. The portable, temporary structures, set up atop frozen lakes for days and weeks at a stretch, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":151927,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[388],"tags":[588,1411,1984,53,12,1934,2024],"internal-tag":[],"class_list":["post-135312","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel","tag-camping","tag-canada","tag-issue-2","tag-photography","tag-travel","tag-uncommon-path","tag-uncommon-path-issues"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/rei.com\/blog\/travel\/cabin-fever","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Photo Essay: Canada’s Ice-fishing Huts","url":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/travel\/cabin-fever","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/travel\/cabin-fever"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/01\/REI-IceVillage-Hero-1.jpg?resize=150%2C150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/01\/REI-IceVillage-Hero-1.jpg?fit=2000%2C1000"},"articleSection":"Travel","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Michelle Flandreau"}],"creator":["Michelle Flandreau"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Uncommon Path \u2013 An REI Co-op Publication","logo":""},"keywords":["camping","canada","issue 2","photography","travel","uncommon path","uncommon path issues"],"dateCreated":"2020-01-14T18:17:48Z","datePublished":"2020-01-14T18:17:48Z","dateModified":"2023-06-14T18:33:37Z"},"rendered":"