Anyone with experience using snow bear in extreme conditions. Cold,deep snow and slush!
If they do get stuck how difficult are they to get out?
Are they worth the money?
I love late winter fishing but last couple years have been nightmare with sleds.
Huge investment!$$!$$ ??
I have a friend who has one. I fished with him a few times in it last year and it handled the slush pretty well. I think it would be hard to get it stuck but if you did, it would be tough to move. They’re big and heavy. If I remember correctly they’re about $70k.
I’ve been in them a few times. My impression was the are very noisy, extremely cumbersome, and strangely kind of cramped. You sit in a weird position and it’s not real easy to get down to the trench to grab a fish. If you’ve ever watched old war movies and seen and heard the tanks clanking along it’s just like a Slow Bear, oops, Snow Bear. I didn’t enjoy fishing from them at all. Everybody should try it once though because they do like slicked thing on ice by theory.
For the same price, I would consider a Polaris north star edition ranger on tracks, with plow and still have enough cash left over to buy sled with flip over to pull behind it…. but that is just my two cents.
For the same price, I would consider a Polaris north star edition ranger on tracks, with plow and still have enough cash left over to buy sled with flip over to pull behind it…. but that is just my two cents.
Shoot, you could buy a fishhouse trailer to pull behind the Ranger for that price. I’ve got 22k invested for this.
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I was thinking the same, unless he is looking at a used Snow Bear.
I really like your set up, That is a toy hauler right?
If I remember correctly they’re about $70k.
yikes!
Here’s one from Glacial Sales- whoever that is. Check out our inventory. 2021 Snobear XP Hyundai Engine. $84,900.00 …wOW!!!!!
I think- and I could be wrong but I think- these things are designed for a very specific use case, namely large resorts/ guide services taking a few people out and trying to get on fish in areas like LOTW. I could not see any practicality in using one of these as an individual but they sure do look cool. Castle Rock’s setup looks amazing and clocking in at a quarter of the price… it’s likely a lot more comfortable too.
Remember with that snow bear you’ll likely need a trailer to haul it so that bill increases even more.
I would like to try fishing in one sometime
Here’s one from Glacial Sales- whoever that is. Check out our inventory. 2021 Snobear XP Hyundai Engine. $84,900.00 …wOW!!!!!
How many guided ice fishing trips could a guy go on for that kind of money? WOW is an understatement.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>KYLE P ERICKSON wrote:</div>
I could not see any practicality in using one of these as an individual but they sure do look cool.
The practicality for an individual is the fact that there’s no faster way to stay on roaming schools of perch in comfort when combined with a livescope.those things would scare perch into the next lake! LOUDER than you can imagine.
Saw one stuck on LOTW in the NW angle last year. Good guys from Sunset took about 2 hours to get it out with some “wading” into the slush required. Did not look fun.
Yup, toy hauler.
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Had the ability to fish out of one for a few years. They are amazing! It was similar to a boat in regards to mobility etc We kept everything in it, trailered to a lake, backed out of the trailer and off we went. Could easily cover a lake in a day moving around. Was not uncommon to move 20 times in a day with it. They have their place, not for everyone, but if you want simplicity and not dealing with any elements of weather when setting up, moving etc they work amazing. We literally fished in a hooded sweathshirt and jeans every time. Never had to put bibs etc on. We carried emergency gear with but never had to utilize it.
Did some overnights in negative 40 below and had zero issues. but i will say that they are not the most comfortable for that. It works but they are really designed to be utilized like a boat, keep all your gear inside it, hook up and go. Moving from spot to spot is extremely easy, push a button, raise the tracks, drive to your gps spot, lower, drill a couple holes and fish.
Never got it stuck, they typically operate off one track but have posi in case you need it. We went through alot of snow, crossed alot of heaves and fished in places that unless you were on a track machine of some sort you were not fishing that area.
Look for a good used one, can usually get a 5 to 6 year old machine for around 45 grand. They really do not change from year to year a whole lot and they do hold their value. The one I was fortunate to use sold in 2 days for 3 grand more than what was originally paid on it.
Speed wise they run about 20 miles an hour across the lake.
If your main objective is to stay mobile, be out of the elements and not hunker down for a long period of time, they are the ticket.
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The practicality for an individual is the fact that there’s no faster way to stay on roaming schools of perch in comfort when combined with a livescope.
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I realize it’s subjective so bear with me, but $80k+ worth of gear to chase Perch just doesn’t strike me as practical. Again- subjective.
and dont forget a $4000-$8000 car hauler trailer to haul it 
those things would scare <strong class=”ido-tag-strong”>perch into the next lake! LOUDER than you can imagine.
No, they don’t scare fish. I know two guys that own them and routinely fish in less than 10 foot of water.
I saw a couple of those Snow Bears out on a lake near Webster, South Dakota last winter. First time I’ve ever seen one. So I had to look it up online. The price tag almost gave me a stroke. You REALLY have to be serious about ice fishing to even consider buying one.
Plus there’s the fact that you still have to haul it by truck on a trailer in some cases.
A couple years ago we fished with some guides on Poinsett in SD. There were a 1/2 dozen of these things scootin’ around the lake every day. One of the guides said they were retired farmers who lived on the lake and knew each other. They’d radio each other to stay on the perch. I can think of worse ways to spend retirement! 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJO5IzWtzNE
This would work pretty well.
2nd half of video is in the snow
Quite a few running around on Devil’s Lake,one thing not mentioned is the heated shop to thaw them out.
The guys I know that have them,thaw them in heated shops to save on wear and tear.
I have been stuck in one,it ain’t fun!!
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