Ice fishermen to the rescue, tow downed plane on frozen Lake Champlain (video)

It’s a fishing story that Jimmer Sherman says he’ll be telling for years to come.

It’s about how he and two ice fishing buddies on Saturday (Jan. 30) came to the rescue of a pilot and his small plane whose engine died in mid-air and had to make an emergency landing on Lake Champlain.

Sherman, 60, of Mineville, N.Y., and his friends helped the pilot out by taking turns on their ATVs towing the plane more than a mile on the ice to a boat launch on the New York side.

Ice fishermen tow downed plane on Lake Champlain

Jimmer Sherman, Justin Green and Scott Farnsworth took turns towing a downed plane on frozen Lake Champlain with their ATVs.

The ice fishing that day wasn’t memorable. But that didn’t matter.

“I caught a plane. I did good,” Sherman said.

The day started off early, with Sherman and his wife, Brenda, getting up at 5 a.m. to go ice fishing with another couple and five others on the southern end of Lake Champlain near Ticonderoga. It was pretty cold that morning, he said, minus-15 degrees when they started out.

To get out on the ice, which was some 10-12 inches thick, the contingent had four ATVs and one UTV. Due to the cold weather, the machines had to be jump-started before heading out on the ice.

The fishing was slow, Sherman said, as they only landed three northern pike and perch after hours of fishing. Sherman’s wife caught the biggest fish, a 20-inch northern.

Despite the cold (the temperatures went up to about 2 degrees by noon) they were having fun, with lots to eat and drink including grilled cheese sandwiches, homemade corn chowder and homemade hamburger and macaroni soup, Sherman said.

Ice fishermen tow downed plane on Lake Champlain

Jimmer Sherman, his wife, Brenda, and friends were out on the ice enjoying a fun day of ice fishing when they were asked to tow a downed plane about a mile north of them on frozen Lake Champlain.

During the morning and early afternoon, the group noticed four, small planes buzzing around overhead. At about 1:30 p.m., one landed right near them.

“We thought it was the DEC coming to check us out,” Sherman said.

It turned out to be a pilot who was seeking help – help for another pilot who had to make an emergency landing more than mile north on the lake. He asked if the ice anglers if would come and tow the downed plane.

Ice fishermen tow downed plane on Lake Champlain

Jimmer Sherman gets ready to tow a downed airplane on frozen Lake Champlain with his ATV.

The pilot in the disabled plane was Jake Mahoney, who works for Adventure Sports Rafting Co. in Indian Lake. The company offers white-water rafting trips on the Upper Hudson River during the spring, summer and fall.

Sherman and two friends, Scott Farnsworth and Justin Green, hopped on their ATVs and came to Mahoney’s rescue. Upon arriving, they attached a rope to the plane and began towing the 700-pound aircraft southward on the lake.

“We were like little kids, taking turns towing the plane. Like, when are we going to do this again?” he said. “To be safe, we stayed (relatively) close to shore. We went over one crack in the ice, but we didn’t have any problems.”

Ice fishermen tow downed plane on Lake Champlain

Ice fisherman Scott Farnsworth takes his turn towing the downed plane on Lake Champlain.

The three towed the plane to Ticonderoga, where a boat launch is located.

Mahoney left the plane there for the rest of the day and came back the following day with help, Sherman said. The wings were taken off the plane, it was loaded onto a trailer and transported back to Indian Lake.

Sherman said Mahoney was extremely appreciative for the tow.

“He told us, ‘You guys got a free, white water rafting trip coming,’ ” he said.

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