Real Ice info wanted...no warning or rants please!!!

[Swill]

We all know "Ice is never safe" and when Ken doll on Kare11 news says "stay off the ice" I would guess he hasn't been on a lake like ever let alone this year. I have read too many posts that have good intentions but get all wound up with messed up stories and situations that make you go "huh"

So I would like to know...what signs or condition can someone watch for or be cautions of when on the ice? Like yesterday i was walking out on the ice and noticed the huge white bubble pockets on the ice and was wondering "should I avoid em" but the ice was really think so I pushed on. Or how does ice break up? Does it crack all over and think chunks break off everywhere or does it thin away until it is only 1-2 inches until melted.

Just looking for some real ice info for a fishermen has still been heading out and feel that the ice must be safe if you use a little common sense..
Thanks-Swill

[ghotierman]

Swill...I'll offer a few observations I've made over the last several years watching ice go out...

sometimes it will break up in thick chunks...sometimes it will shift and blow to shore, pushing along like a big glacier....it becomes porous, honeycomb like...not much thinner...and slowly sinks and melts like a giant icecube...or it will vanish completely in one 90 degree day...(like last april!)...

Dark, clear ice is considered structurally more safe than cloudy gray ice...less air trapped. One of the main safety issues are ice heaves or pressure ridges...these are cracks in the ice where pressure forces water up from below...these area are very unstable and may have thin ice on one side or the other. think of them as a fault line...where the ice moves as it expands and contracts...like the san andreas earthquake area....

the only other real advice is CAUTION....you really can't discern the safety factor until your feet are on the ice...and then it may be too late if you misstep...

keep fishing...
but be careful...

[Surface Tension]

Here are some things to be aware of. Narrows, Bridges, outlets, inlets, dams, presure ridges, shallow boggy areas.
Springs holes usually dont open up till theres some insulating snow cover.
Another thing to remember with early ice is lakes dont freeze all at once. There can be open water for weeks while bays and shorlines are froze.

[Guest]

If you have ever went in through the ice on a lake or a river' you would soon become a avid believer no amount of ice safety is Too MUCH.

A basic rule is any ice that appears different then the bulk of the surrounding ice, is suspicious. It could be a clear blue patch on a white ice sheet or the other way around.

Unfortunately besides avoiding high Risk areas like was previously mentioned, you really do not know tell your wet if you $#%^ up.

Never assume, test by drilling or with a spud bar, especially this season.

We have poor ice sheets now, as the days get longer they will tend to crystallize further with the increase in light penetration.

I assure you, you fall through, and live, you may rant a bit yourself!

------------------
Ed "Backwater Eddy" Carlson..><sUMo>

Backwater Guiding
"Ed on the RED"
(701)-281-2300

[email protected]

http://ed-carlson.fishingbuddy.com

[Guest]

Mostly this time of year I hear more people driving into open water or thin ice.I would assume most get lost or are drunk. Never drive on a lake that you dont know. There have been many lakes that I have fished on 12" ice and yards away it is open most places named above.Ask local bait shops or people coming off if there are any known weak spots. Stay on the path well traveled.
When walking I never go with out the chisel
usually early ice or new lakes I havent been on...

[icehousebob]

I have to say amen to the wisdom of Edward von Backwater. As a dumb kid, I went through the ice while running a trapline. Up to my armpits; below zero; a mile and a half from home. I ran the whole way [i was young]. For the last half, I couldn't feel my feet. I'd like to add another tip. When I walk on questionable ice, I use a chisel as a walking stick, hitting the ice in front of me. If it goes through the ice, DO NOT turn around. That puts extra weight on the pivot foot. Instead, just carefully walk backwards. I learned that lesson on a slough that was fortunately only thigh deep.