Drinking on the ice?, ice fishing

Just booked with the Waltonian for the 21st for four days. Looking forward to good food, cold beer and good fishing! Just wondering with the new changes in the drinking laws what the tolerance level of the OPP is like and do they care if you drink in your hut??

What changes?

We were warned last year that the OPP were charging people for drinking on the ice? What i'm wondering is are the OPP just stopping people from walking around outside your hut with beer or do they care if you drink a few beers in your hut .. it seems like a real shame if they wont let you drink in your huts anymore? and would make it even tougher on the ice hut operators to run there businesses if there is a zero tolerance

I asked last year and was told as long as you are in the hut you are ok....walk outside he will get ya.

They asked if we could go number one in the outhouse also..not on the ice.

But this guy was friendly enough to chat with us...I guess it's all up to the person that comes and checks you.....

I had a co a few years back show up and ask about our counts on Simcoe...I said I had five in the bag...he all of a sudden saw a beer on the ice and went to cop mode....who's beer ? Long story short....he charged an old fella with the beer and never even asked about my five fish on ice.....I had two whiteys, two trout, and a ling....but if he heard five you think being a Conservation Officer he would have checked about the odd number?......

Oh well, most of the enforcement people you meet on the ice are great to chat with....let's face it ....who would not want their job!.....paid to cruise the ice

Cheers. Greg

If you are in a stay over hut or bungalow you are ok if outside or in a day rental it is illegal.

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and there is nothing new about that law.been on the books forever.

Just seems to be a need to enforce it more now than before.

If your hut has cooking facilities, sleeping accommodation and a porta potty you're good to drink in the hut only. You must be able to prove "intent" to stay the night and have enough food on hand for same.

Drinking outside the hut and/or taking a squirt can get you ticketed.

Also, contents of porta potty MUST be taken ashore for PROPER disposal.


One exception to this law that I know of is; some waterfront property owners actually own beyond their shoreline. Very few in fact, but those who do are drinking on their own property and breaking no laws.

Unfortunately there are a few jurisdictions that have/had bylaws prohibiting drinking in any public place except by special permit. When I lived in Etobicoke a neighbor of mine was charged for having a beer in his front yard. He was told he had to be in his back yard behind the house to be legal. At that time, in Etobicoke your front yard was considered a public place for the purposes of that bylaw. I don't know if that is the case today or not, I left that puritanical area years ago

The liquor licencing act trumps by law hands down. If he fought it in court, the judge probably would have severely reprimanded the by law officer for even laying that charge.

As you know, my property extends well into the Trent River. If I ever get charged, I'll be defending myself in court.

Betcha I win!

I bet you do too John. That was then, this is now. I understand that Etobicoke has drawn in it's horns over all sorts of stuff, they were laffed at for all their dumb bylaws. I'm talking about ~ 50 years ago. The liquor control laws have also evolved dramatically in that time. I can't begin to describe how silly they once were.

I thought all liquor was illegal back in your day Gord

You're half right Craig. Back in the day there was no where to legally buy liquor on the east side of Simcoe. The moonshiners on Thorah made a pretty good living.

Thanx for the replies but what I still don't understand is why you are not allowed to drink in the day huts. If you are in your hut and out of sight why would they even care? If this has been a law in effect for a long time it was never really enforced. We have been coming to Nip for over 30 years and never been warned and we have always been in day huts. Just seems to me that they (OPP) and the government continue to make rules or enforce them in a effort to stop people from having any fun!

Any hut that has the cooking(stove), washroom facilities(outhouse-bucket) and sleeping(bed/bench/floor) you can drink in. Day huts included. It's classified as your residence.You step outside and your on public land they charge you.

A retired OPP told me once that even you get a 20' radius around your hut as the law states for camping on crown land.