Quebec ice fishing huts are sinking into ice with mild temperatures

Mild winter temperatures are forcing ice fishing businesses, including one on the Lac des Deux Montagnes, to rethink their strategies.

"We are open, but we are half open, I can say it that way," said Ronald Proulx, who owns Centre de Peche C.R. in Vaudreuil–Dorion. "The ice is really thin right now. It's around 10 inches."

He explains around 20 inches of ice is needed to allow people to drive to their cabins.

"Last weekend, we lost three to four inches. I never saw that right in the middle of winter," Proulx tells CJAD 800's Andrew Carter. "We're supposed to be, at night, -20 [degrees Celsius]. Now, we're really happy when we reach -10 [degrees Celsius]."

He says he worries for the future of his business.

"I've been doing that for 40 years," he said. "The last five years, it's really changed -- and changed really fast."

Proulx points out this is the second year in a row that the ice has been excessively thin.

Nevertheless, he says anyone willing to go out on the ice can expect to reel in anywhere from 15 to 20 fish per cabin.

"The fishing is really great right now. When people go out, we catch fish like [how we did] a long time ago," said Proulx.

LISTEN ON CJAD 800: Mild temperatures force Lac des Deux Montagnes ice fishing operator to rethink business

Proulx's business isn't the only business that is suffering.

In Saguenay, Que., about 200 kilometres north of Quebec City, mild winter weather has forced authorities to close the fishing villages in Anse-à-Benjamin and Grande-Baie.

"Ice fishing for the people of the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region is an activity that is not only recreational and economic, but also part of the culture," Remi Aubin, president of a local fishing group, told The Canadian Press.

An ice fishing cabin on the Lac des Deux Montagnes. (Olivia O'Malley/CTV News)

Dominic Arseneau, a spokesperson for the City of Saguenay, notes the decision to cancel wasn't made lightly.

"It's sad. Nobody was happy to make that decision, and it was made with a heavy heart, but at the same time we can't play with people's safety," he said.

People who paid to reserve a spot on the ice will be refunded, he added.

-- with files from The Canadian Press.