Great report Cade. You got talent. It is obvious from your past reports that you are a selective harvester, which in my opinion is great to see. It seems that some ice-fishermen see ice fishing as catch and take home as much as they can. I for one would like to see a reduction in the panfish bag limit here on the Mississippi River! Again great report and keep having fun.

Great fish! Even greater that you released her. If only everyone would follow your example..

I both love mine and hate it.
The good points: you do not have to mix oil in the gas, it is quiet, and it is lightweight.
The bad: It has a composite ring around the blades, which will freeze up with ice and then you have to break it out in order to cut more holes. Also, if you have more than fifteen inches of ice you have to clear the hole at least once or else the auger will bind up and then you have to dig the ice shavings out from the fins on the auger.
So my answer is I would not buy it again, I think there are better augers out there.

I am on my second tunnel hull, and I believe they are the way to go in a river system. The proper prop makes all the difference. Go with a stainless with aggressive cupping. There are some drawbacks, does not track well in reverse, you need trim the motor up and down for cornering or straight runs.

I owned a 16 foot alumacraft with a center console and a 40hp Honda. I could have used a 50 on it. It was a great boat. (Go with the 4 stroke).
I bought a 20 foot Alumacraft with a center console and a 115 four stroke this fall. Not quite set up yet, but I do need a different prop on it.
You will not find anyone with tunnel hull in stock. But I would give Upper Iowa marine a call. They ordered the boat for me and were very good to work with.

I was wondering who belonged to the two bodies in that scratcher. I was out by Sommners chute when you came by. I was quite surprised how well you moved along. It sure looked like you were on a mission.

I was out in the airboat doing some searching myself. About all I can say it was a nice day. First spot I lowered the camera into I had perch looking back at me, drilled another hole close by and had the same outcome. Then the usual happened, set up shop and the fish disappeared. Had the same thing happen last week with crappies. There were scads of them, set up shop and figured I would be in a crappie fisherman’s paradise. Same results, no bites, and the fish just disappeared.

I am starting to wonder if the fish in these none pressured areas are easily spooked?