Four times a week Bernie Fallert parks his car near the dam at Lake Redman and walks about a hundred and fifty yards out on the ice to drill a hole. He doesn't care if it's freezing cold. "It's a good day to fish. Everyday is a good day to fish," said Bernie. He's been ice fishing for the last fifty years. Bernie used to be a salesman. When the job was done he could have gone to the bar to blow off steam, but that wasn't his kind of thing. "I'd fish for an hour or two hours just before work and that's how I'd unwind. I'd drive home in total peace," said Bernie.
Not every experience has been peaceful. One time, on a particularly warm day, he fell through the ice. In that moment only one thought went through his head. "ummm... "Oh [expletive]. The first thing you think is I got to get out of here," said Bernie. Thankfully he was able to climb out. It was a close call, but it hasn't slowed him down. He uses wax worms for bait and attaches one of them to a lure and drops it in. The fish love them, his wife not so much. "Get those things out of my refrigerator! I say look they're in a bottle, they aren't going to hurt anything," said Bernie.
For Bernie fishing is a way of life. It's his meditation and, despite the freezing temperatures, it keeps his blood flowing. Except for his wife, there's nothing he loves more. "It's just total peace. It works," said Bernie.