Its 'name's not 'Big Windy' for no reason': Lake Winnipeg dangerous for unprepared ice fishers

Edzi'u Loverin · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 14, 2025 5:39 PM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

A Manitoba sportfishing usher who lives connected Lake Winnipeg successful the winter says helium often has to rescue unprepared and inexperienced fishers who go stranded connected the ice.

"When radical travel retired present and enactment their lives successful information and past they get stuck … I'm putting my beingness oregon my employees' lives successful jeopardy arsenic well just to spell get them," Brady Kingsland told Radio Noon this week.

Kingsland, who runs Kingsland Outfitting, has lived connected the water during crystal sportfishing play for the past 4 years. He says fishers often get stuck connected the crystal erstwhile winds gusting up to 40 km/h trim visibility and wipe out the trails.

His steadfast has rescued much than 100 radical stranded connected the water truthful acold this year, sometimes aft moving 14-hour days.

"I mean that's benignant of the codification retired here. You don't truly permission anybody, you know, stranded, but, you know, we got guys coming and knocking connected our doors … radical waking america up," Kingsland said.

Truck stranded

On Monday CBC News confirmed with RCMP a motortruck was stuck retired connected the crystal astir 12 kilometres westbound of Beaconia Beach connected the southeastern enactment of Lake Winnipeg astatine the Balsam Bay sportfishing access.

Fire and rescue rescued 2 radical from the truck, but the operator refused stayed to hold for a person to assist, according to the RCMP. They accidental the operator called that evening to study helium was harmless and disconnected the ice.

Kingsland says that concern isn't caller and radical request to beryllium much prepared.

"You know, you don't travel retired connected the Lake Winnipeg without a tow strap, without clevises, without shackles, without a bully shovel," helium said.

"It's decidedly not a gag retired here. And people … person to instrumentality the close precautions earlier thing atrocious happens due to the fact that it's lone a substance of time," helium said.

"I'm definite it feels similar the mentality is, 'Well, if it's stormy out, who cares? We've got the time disconnected … let's spell anyways and idiosyncratic volition travel get us.'

"I consciousness similar that's the mentality," Kingsland said.

Thousands of radical from each implicit the satellite travel to fish out connected the crystal each March, and Kingsland has a connection for them.

"I've been moving connected this water for 20 years and, I mean, there's been times wherever I've thought, you know, we mightiness not marque it done … Experience is great, but I mean even the astir experienced guys get caught," Kingsland said.

"When it gets atrocious retired present [on Lake Winnipeg] you cannot spot your manus successful beforehand of your look … her name's not 'Big Windy' for nary reason."