Over a year ago, Mark French and I bought and modified new pop-up style ice shelters into hot tents. This effort was met by the mildest winter and the most unsafe ice conditions in recent history last season. We’ve used them on day trips so far this year but my goal has always been to do Chuck Porter, (fantastic Labrador based YouTuber) inspired winter campouts which I finally accomplished this weekend!

Mark and I hoped to camp overnight last weekend but Sunday morning brought 5mm of rain so we did a fantastic day trip instead with his shelter. This weekend I planned to camp Saturday into Sunday, but a big late winter snowstorm and very high winds delayed my plans by one day.

Sunday morning French and I headed back to Bauline, Mark piloted his 2017 Argo Huntmaster while I loaded up Project 6x6 with all of my fishing, cooking and camping gear. I couldn't fit everything I wanted/needed/desired in just the Argo. To solve that problem I picked up a 60" Pelican sled to tow bulky items that were ok to become snow covered on the ride in.

Thirty centimetres of fresh dense spring snow made for a beautiful ride into the country, our track equipped Argos really worked great in these conditions.

First on the to do list before all else was to set our lines and get them fishing!

Next we set-up my Woods Arctic-4 ice fishing shelter turned hot tent. This drill adaptor is a must have for driving the anchor screws into hard ice, especially since we always have a drill on hand for our 6" cordless drill adapted ice augers.

Then we set up my modified Princess Auto Woodstove, this is my first time running the stove with a new H-shaped cap & gasket on the door. I also chose to add two firebricks at the front of the stove to balance the offset chimney pipe & new cap, especially with today's windy conditions.

Like in my backyard shakedown campout I placed the stove on a piece of plywood. This provided a sturdy, level surface for the legs of the stove, but also prevented snow & ice from melting out from under it. The welding blanket protects the inside surface of the tent from damage due to radiant heat.

Finally we shovelled snow on the bottom flap of the shelter which eliminated any breeze from coming in under the wall. When setting up the shelter, we positioned the chimney and door downwind to carry smoke and possible embers away from the tent.

I brought some dry wood & kindling from home in a fish pan, but it wouldn't be enough to last all afternoon and overnight. I took my CS 2500 mini chainsaw and dropped some standing dead dry firewood, enough to last the whole trip.

This wood wasn't green but was damp from the recent storm, placing it under the stove dried it out quickly.

Daytime mode: Although not quite as spacious as Mark's Eskimo 650XD there was plenty of room for a couple chairs, table, cooler, action packer and my fish pan of dry wood. My sleeping cot, mattress pad and sleeping bag were stored in the Argo during the day.

CO detector just in case!

One of my most favourite feelings today was putting on a warm dry jacket that had hung next to the woodstove to go check ice fishing lines!

For supper I prepared a Moose Sausage Seven Layer Dinner concoction I pre-made at home and reheated/simmered today on the woodstove. I boiled potatoes to make fresh mashed potatoes on my MSR Superfly gas stove.

This is a meal I haven't made up in the woods but often make at home as it requires a few different seasonings (black pepper, sugar, garlic and Worcestershire sauce).

Mark packed up and headed home just before dark as he had to work Monday morning, I changed the shelter over to night mode shortly thereafter. This would ensure my sleeping bag, pad and cot were all nice and warm having been outside in the cold all day.

This 90" square shelter provided plenty of room for my chair, cot, stove and even a table. For one person it's no sweat to have it set-up this way to cook, fish, sit and sleep.

The stove is running much better than it did during my Hot tent Shakedown night January 2022. With the new H-shaped cap and door gasket no smoke leaks out anymore. I do still get smoke escape while opening the door, but not nearly as much as before.

My 12v LED lighting kit put together with Princess Auto parts still works great. I don't leave it attached permanently to the shelter as these strips can be delicate and break while setting up & taking down the tent.

I tied my Gearline organizer to the shelter poles and it worked great for drying out clothes after a long day outdoors.

This little fella came up and stuck around for a long time Monday morning.

The following morning brought overcast skies and light freezing drizzle. I started to break camp around 8:30, packed up the Argo and Pelican sleigh and was back to the truck at 10am. I would have stayed longer, but the weather wasn't great nor was the fishing. I did have to get some work done in the afternoon so it worked out fine.

All in all I'm very pleased with the whole experience, it went as well, perhaps even better than I imagined. Its been a long time planning over the last year, testing out pieces of the equipment I would use, and figuring out what I needed and didn't need. All of this lead to a successful adventure! Can't wait to get out again!

Cheers, MIKE

Copyright © 2025 Michael Smith