Keep in mind the ice thickness varies substantially early in the season from one spot to the next, especially if the temperature varies a lot as it did last November.
My first trip last year I went out and scouted a local stocked pond on a Friday afternoon, spudding my way to my spot to make sure it was safe. Temps were mild that evening (as they were in general early last year). The next morning I was the first person to arrive at the lake, in the dark with my little headlamp on following the trail I scouted the previous day. All was going good until I got about midway to my spot in 10 fow and the ice chisel went through in one whack. I slowly turned my sled around and went back the way I came and fished there for the day. I did have my Striker Predator suit on and the ice picks equipped. But who wants to go for a swim in the dark all alone at 6am...not a good start to the day.
TLDR: It's going to be a long time before quads can go on the ice. While I'm often the first to walk out on a body of water, I almost always let someone else try with a truck/car/UTV/quad first. Too many variables (varying ice thickness, underwater vegetation shallow, travelling speed on the ice, etc.) come in to play when you start taking a vehicle on the ice. Stay safe.
And WOOHOO!!!
Back to ice fishing season. Open water angling is just a means to bide time waiting for the real season to start.
