Ice Rescue on Red Lake

Coletrain27 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>buckybadger wrote:</div>
Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but that’s the North Shore resort that was sold by Jonny P in the last couple years? I enjoyed that guy’s ice checks he always used to share and his big suburban rigs with the tracks.

If it’s the same one I remember looking at, they never used to open to daily public access under the old ownership but kept it for just the limited population that rented their houses?

Are you thinking of beacon harbor resort? That one was just recently sold

Both have been recently sold. red lake remote 2-3 years ago and beacon in the past year.

Dang. I was fishing out of that resort all weekend but left Sunday at 10am. I’ve was making a lot of noise on Sunday. We were on a consistent 10.5”. There was one small crack that they had a bridge over all weekend

“Now someone is getting rich by letting people out at $20 a truck.”

I would happily pay them 20$ knowing they check the ice often and stake roads that are pretty darn safe vs wandering out an access that doesn’t get checked.

The lake cracks and opens up all winter. Just harder to bridge when it’s early as you can’t bring out the heavy equipment needed.

Beltrami County is one of the poorest counties in Minnesota. Not sure Beltrami County can foot the bill year after year. I am a fiscal conservative, but I suspect Beltrami County … user fees make sense on this one.

If I was Beltrami County I would institute a $5 rescue fee on every private vehicle launch on Red Lake. Resorts tack on the fee to their user fees.

Fees generated go straight to the County rescue team to ensure they have the right training and right equipment. If they can’t use it all let it go to the general fund.

^ I didn’t mean to turn it into a debate over access fees and business philosophy, rather was curious as to which resort it was and so on. After looking, it is the resort I was thinking of.

Clearly Red Lake Remote’s business model has changed from very exclusive access to a more open format similar to most of the others with the change in ownership in the last few years. That’s their choice and to each their own. As an angler, I’d be more drawn to stay at a more exclusive place with limited populations accessing from the same point on early ice – but clearly there’s the other side of the coin and daily tolls are a business consideration that can’t be overlooked either.

We know it wasn’t the first, nor will be the last “rescue” or issue with people being stranded on moving ice on URL. Everyone should make their own decisions and watch out for themselves when on the ice. If you do end up in a situation where you need the help, be grateful it’s there. I hope the resorts on URL provide a significant kickback to the local FD and Rescue squads up there. There shouldn’t be a raffle ticket fundraiser or auction item they aren’t significantly contributing to year-round The tax base in that county is far from what it is in other areas of the state.

They don’t seem to mind. If people were not up there fishing don’t think the area would even survive. Even the Fire and Rescue suggest not going out a public access and using those greedy resorts that charge a small fee to make things as safe as possible.

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buckybadger wrote:

^

Clearly Red Lake Remote’s business model has changed from very exclusive access to a more open format similar to most of the others with the change in ownership in the last few years. That’s their choice and to each their own. As an angler, I’d be more drawn to stay at a more exclusive place with limited populations accessing from the same point on early ice

This is the second season without Jonny P. He did not provide access via his location. Only sleeper rentals.

However, I completely understand the economics aspect behind the decisions of the new owners.

Keep in mind that almost all of these “stranded ice anglers float out to sea” news articles have blown these events out of proportion. I was calling the resorts yesterday to get the actual story for an update page I was writing for another company and every single one of them said the news blew it WAY out of proportion. Yes some anglers had to leave their gear on the ice, but it sounded like they were never in much real danger.

As one resort owner put it “blown out of proportion as much as they blow Biden’s success with the country’s economy out of proportion.”

There’s your political post for the day.

mahtofire14 wrote:

Keep in mind that almost all of these “stranded ice anglers float out to sea” news articles have blown these events out of proportion. I was calling the resorts yesterday to get the actual story for an update page I was writing for another company and every single one of them said the news blew it WAY out of proportion. Yes some anglers had to leave their gear on the ice, but they were never in much real danger.

This is exactly it. Same story happens every year, news outlets blow it up, and this same thread pops up on here. I didn’t see any good pictures from the 2023 “ice rescue” but this picture is from last year’s URL “ice rescue”.

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bring me the news has a 3;43 video footage some officer took during the rescue…….. glad i wasn’t one out there!!!!!!!!

glenn57 wrote:

bring me the news has a 3;43 video footage some officer took during the rescue

Here you go. Its from his bodycam. Apparently the gap was initially 50 feet and widened to 200 feet so an airboat was used.

https://bringmethenews.com/minnesota-news/dnr-releases-video-showing-conditions-during-rescue-of-35-from-detached-ice-sheet

The scariest thing I saw was people trying to walk in from more than a mile out in that 50 mph wind!

Did anyone see the pictures of the ski plane that went through this morning? I saw the info and pics on the Beltrami police report.

Yeah that was a new one….

Holy sh-ice-ter! I will admit, that video terrified me. Never thought of it because I always have seen/envisioned “clean edges” along open water like that, but man! Those large slabs of ice he had to maneuver through were crazy. I think I’d want a bigger boat!

Idk, sure doesn’t look like those people were going to make it in on their own so I don’t see how it was blown out of proportion.

big_g wrote:

Paying for a service, because you use a service, you already are paying for ?

If your house catches fire, you likely will get a bill.

My neighbor took a ride off about a 12′ rock face with his trail mower and compact tractor. The FD was called to help get him and the machine out of the woods on the bluff. He got a bill.

There’s a lot of maintenance, time, trainings, fuel, equipment, etc all involved in these rescues. I’m not one to call these people “idiots” or blame the resorts nonstop, but if you have to be rescued…you should be paying for a portion of the bill. Period.

That video is terrifying.

buckybadger wrote:

If your house catches fire, you likely will get a bill.

Cities can bill for emergency services. Many/most don’t, unless that bill is going to another city

MN statute 366.011

366.011 CHARGES FOR EMERGENCY SERVICES; COLLECTION.
A town may impose a reasonable service charge for emergency services, including fire, rescue, medical, and related services provided by the town or contracted for by the town. If the service charge remains unpaid 30 days after a notice of delinquency is sent to the recipient of the service or the recipient’s representative or estate, the town or its contractor on behalf of the town may use any lawful means allowed to a private party for the collection of an unsecured delinquent debt. The town may also use the authority of section 366.012 to collect unpaid service charges of this kind from delinquent recipients of services who are owners of taxable real property in the state.

Fire Department Management and Liability Issues

I know for certain in Lake City MN and Wabasha MN you will get a bill.

If people come rescue me on an ice sheet as portrayed in that video, I’d pay the bill and those people who helped wouldn’t have to buy a beer ever again if they were locals to where I was from.

Don’t see what was so scary in the video.
Most likely if they didn’t show the people would have had to drive or walk a ways to find where the ice came back together and use a different access to get off.

Now the plane breaking through that would be terrifying.

Ripjiggen wrote:

Don’t see what was so scary in the video.
Most likely if they didn’t show the people would have had to drive or walk away to find where the ice came back together and use a different access to get off.

This was the case last year as well. That’s the reason we carry our portabridge. The way you came out may not be your route back in.

No bridge necessary if you just bring a plane with you Bearcat. Apparently you can even use it for trolling.
https://bringmethenews.com/minnesota-news/pilot-lands-small-plane-on-upper-red-lake-crashes-through-ice

Ripjiggen wrote:

Don’t see what was so scary in the video.

Being stranded a mile from shore with a couple hundred feet of open water seems like just a normal day to you?

Again not stranded. They are not floating out to sea. If walking then yup I would have been pissed to have to walk and find where it closed back up. Wheeler not that big of deal.
Then again if they were predicting winds like that I would have been off well before dark or been ready to hunker down till day break.

Well they were stranded if they couldnt get across the open water on their own hence the need to be rescued.

Ripjiggen wrote:

Then again if they were predicting winds like that I would have been off well before dark or been ready to hunker down till day break.

That’s kind of key here. Early ice and high winds don’t mix.

I wonder how that works if you drift off into tribal territory?

The next access to the east is 4-5 miles or so. Long walk in that wind wheeler not that big of a deal.
Been on the ice plenty where could not cross a crack and had to drive around it and find a different route.