This year I decided to launch my ice hut rental business, and I've learned a lot along the way. There are many things I will be changing, like smaller, more portable huts that I can move with my atv or snowmobile, to be able to stay on the fish.
I chose Bain Park area as my starting point, because I did so well there last year. It sucked. I was the only one to catch walleye there during the first 3-4 weeks. I had my buddy bring the huts out with his Argo, but didn't have access to it to move the huts. I started out using my atv and trailer to transport my customers, but once the ice got thick enough for the truck I was able to move over towards Onderdonks, which paid off immediately.
Once the snow got too deep for the truck, I had to buy a snowmobile to keep the business going. I've had many guest take advantage of my overnight huts and have had good feedback along with a few complaints about the size of the 4 man hut. Next year it will be 2 man huts only, with the option of a third bunk for kids
I also had to jump through some hoops to get permission from Quinte West for overnight parking, which finally came through this week. Lol. Go figure. I have had my customers meet me at the farmers field at Onderdonks now and will probably continue this in the future, rather than have to transport them from the marina parking lot in Trenton with all the extra rules and conditions that entails.
I have also had some customers that made a mess and dropped all kinds of garbage down the hole, which necessitated moving the huts.. You know who you are, and won't be welcomed back.
All in all it has been a rewarding experience and I've met many awesome people. I will use all this information to make this a better/easier endeavour for next year.
I recently had to turn away a customer because of a problem with my snowmobile. He wasn't very happy after getting his friends to travel to the area. Although I can't control all situations, I will make sure I have back up systems in place to make sure this doesn't happen in the future. Sorry John Ford.
Thank you to all my customers this year, and I hope to see you back next year.
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