While some anglers plan their next visit to an iced over body of water to go fishing, other anglers are starting to think of the day when they can get back on or in open water. Although many of us have experienced numerous first open water trips of the year, it’s still exciting to be thinking about and preparing for the next one. Following are some things that can help you be ready when it’s time to hook the boat trailer up to the truck or put waders on for the first time this year.

For members of the Iowa Great Lakes Fishing Club that attended Feb. 8 evening’s annual spring banquet at the Hap Ketelsen Community Center in Everly, it was an evening of great food, telling the normal fishing stories, participating in a general raffle topped off by a top-notch fishing seminar by Joe Henry, executive director of Lake of the Woods Tourism.

IOWA CITY — Reid Tigges punched his ticket into the Iowa Boys State Swimming Championships Saturday in Fort Dodge at Districts. Tigges qualified in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle competition, taking first in the 50 and second in the 100.

FORT DODGE — The Spencer Tigers boys wrestling team has been waiting all season for this weekend, the beginning of postseason action. Spencer will travel to Fort Dodge on Saturday to compete in the IHSAA 3A District 4 Championships at 10 a.m.

“Guys are chomping at the bit to get to Saturday,” head coach Adam Gress said. “It's the date circled on the calendar from November until now.

MONDAMIN — On Feb. 4, the Spencer Special Olympics basketball team traveled to Mondamin to compete in a 3 on 3 basketball competition at West Harrison High School. The team split into two separate four-man teams to compete. Both teams were successful in advancing to the Spring Classic in Iowa City on March 11. The team of Raul Ortiz, JD Bumgarner, Tate Nielsen and Trinity Kreig finished in second place for Spencer.

ORANGE CITY — Spencer started their week with a trip to Orange City to face off against the Unity Christian Knights. The Tigers got out to a slow start, trailing by 11 points in the first quarter. Spencer would never be able to cut the deficit to an extent, losing to Unity Christian 64-52.

ORANGE CITY — Spencer hit the road on Monday looking to redeem their loss to South Central Calhoun on Saturday. Taking on the Unity Christian Knights to look to grab their eighth win of the season. Spencer was not successful, dropping the game to the Knights 72-61.

SIOUX RAPIDS — Newell-Fonda came to Sioux Rapids on Tuesday for a matchup with the Sioux Central Rebel girls. The Rebels looked to avenge the first loss that took place in December. Sioux Central made it close in the first half, but would not have enough. They would lose to Newell-Fonda 84-55.

SIOUX RAPIDS — Tuesday, on the same night Lebron James claimed the throne as the scoring king of the NBA. Jacob Hargens took his throne on top of the Rebel single game scoring record. Hargens scored 53 points in a bizarre second half comeback to vault Sioux Central to a 91-86 overtime win over the Newell-Fonda Mustangs. Hargens would simply not allow the Rebels to lose the game scoring 37 points in the second half and overtime.

SPENCER — Tiger wrestler Logan Huckfelt has officially decided where he wants to continue throwing people around the wrestling mat. Huckfelt will be the new heavyweight for the University of Sioux Falls, he made it official on Wednesday in the Spencer High School Auditorium. Huckfelt will be studying education at the university.

Six more weeks of winter — so I hear. Never did trust that rodent!

Historically, according to Punxsutawney Phil’s data, he’s only been accurate around 46% of the time. Of course, if he were shooting 3-pointers in a basketball game, he’d be pretty deadly.

The good news is we’re now into February, and the days are getting longer. As this month unfolds, there are a couple of dates ice anglers need to adhere to.

The calendar indicates that the ice fishing season is winding down. In some states or certain areas of some states, regulations prohibit fishing for walleyes and a few other species at this time of year. There are still plenty of fish to target though, and they can be very willing to bite during this latter part of the ice fishing season.

I grew up on the farm in the ‘50s and ‘60s, and most of my time was spent out in the sun.

Back in those days, there was little thought of danger and exposure to the sun. We never thought about UV radiation that can lead to skin cancer. The only reason I ever wore a cap/hat was because the mid-summer sun was so hot!

Of course, I spent a lot of time fishing in the hot summer sun, and that would fry my skin even more!

CORALVILLE — Olivia Huckfelt remained perfect for Spencer all season long. Breaking into the history books, becoming the first Tiger wrestler to win two individual state titles. The first Tiger athlete to go back-to-back in winning state titles, as well as the first girls heavyweight state champion in Iowa girls wrestling sanctioned history.

SPENCER — The Tiger girls would improve to 15-3 after picking up two more victories over Storm Lake and South Central Calhoun over the weekend. Defeating the Tornadoes 62-47 and the Titans 62-54.