Thin Ice

torisspacedog · Post by **torisspacedog** » Tue Mar 04, 2008 8:33 pm

So how dose a person know when it's not safe to venture out on your favorite kiting lake?

steveb · Post by **steveb** » Tue Mar 04, 2008 9:24 pm

When you fall in.

tyson · Post by **tyson** » Tue Mar 04, 2008 10:30 pm

make sure its windy so when you fall in you can fly out

i suggest always riding ~5m too big.

haha.

JRN · Post by **JRN** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 7:02 am

Borrow your neighbor's car....

But seriously, feel safe when heavier stuff went out first: pick-ups, sno-mo's, ice fishers. Last season, I carried a cordless drill to check ice thickness: " OMG, its only 1/2...SPLASH!"

P R Key · Post by **P R Key** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 8:26 am

Send your friend out first.

Tighe · Post by **Tighe** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 9:58 am

wow, you guys aren't being real helpful.

Usually there are ice fisherman out in portable shelters or solo and they are some of the best at knowing how thick it is. I think you need at least 12inches to drive a car on it.

As we get later in the year, not a bad idea to ride with ice picks. Most outdoor stores carry them. They go around your neck and if you go in you can use them to pull yourself out. While half in jest, the idea of riding powered up is a good one. The kite can help you get out of a tough situation.

I think we easily have at least 3 weeks left.

P R Key · Post by **P R Key** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 10:52 am

I don't know much about the ice picks and have been kind of scared to carry them thinking that they could impale me. Could this easily happen??

Dave Z · Post by **Dave Z** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 11:03 am

I have a pair and I just cover the ends with a wine cork....I keep seeming to lose the corks so I have to buy more wine. Safety First!

Tighe makes a good point. I use ice fisherman as the barometer for ice thickness during the fringe months. If they aren't out thick twice.

steveb · Post by **steveb** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 12:47 pm

Seriously the ice melts at the edge of the lake first, if you have to walk on water to get to the ice, it's usually time to call it a day.

Tom L · Post by **Tom L** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 1:01 pm

Once, I used waders to carry my ice surfer out onto the ice. Climbed on and had a very bumpy sesssion but beautiful 50° weather. Ice went out soon after.

I know there are a few people here who have ridden on ice & water in the same week.

BTW....get the ice picks that snap together. The sharp parts are then hidden inside each opposing handle. No chance of impaling.

Protege Menace · Post by **Protege Menace** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 12:28 am

When i go test ice depths, I just grab a cordless power drill, and a 1 foot long 1/3rd inch or so drill bit and drill through the ice every 20 feet or so in the area I will be.

Worked great last winter when I was on bush lake, and knew it was safe.

sekollera · Post by **sekollera** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 12:40 am

First rule you have to put in your head is that ice is never considered "safe".

Case in point: at the DN nats in January we had 100+ boats on Lake Pepin. You could sail many miles from Pepin to Frontenac. It was a huuuge arena and it all looked great. But there was one small area near the point in Frontenac that did not look so nice. I found myself there thinking, "Hmm, ice looks a lot wetter here, I am near a point of land, say, are those channel markers? Oh crap, this CAN'T be good!" I immediately tacked over the the WI side and got away from the channel/point. We reported the area during the skipper's meeting and the regatta went off without a hitch.

The day after the regatta a cruising DN went in and one very unlucky fellow spent 30 minutes in the water. Guess where he fell thru?

Carry the spikes, never sail alone, talk to the fisherman, and stay in a known arena and your chances of a cold water immersion accident are minimised.

More on extracting yourself from a cold water immersion event here:
http://www.iceboating.net/node/2323

Dean Rizer · Post by **Dean Rizer** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 10:31 am

I'm always aware of the color of spring ice. With snow cover the color remains white and the ice is solid under the snow. Once the sun's rays hit the ice directly, rapid changes take place. The color changes from white to light green it's still safe. You may need to jump across open water around the shore to get to the main sheet. The color then goes to dark green to nearly black and the ice is now completely "honeycombed". It might be 12" thick but it's not safe. Ice picks don't help because once broken the honeycombed ice crumbles there's nothing to grab. Wearing a life jacket or a floater should keep you on the surface. The good news is that once the ice goes dark green or black, with a good wind, the water will be soft in 5-6 days.

JBailey · Post by **JBailey** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 2:33 pm

It's been pretty toasty this week...are the recent high temps going to affect the amount of remaining days we have, or the safety of being out on the ice in the next week or 2?

Jon

sekollera · Post by **sekollera** » Fri Mar 14, 2008 11:23 am

Icefishing buddies tell me there is over 36" of ice on 'tonka ....Avg ice out is April 11...OK for a few more weeks but read the disclaimer above!

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/ice_out/index.html

LAKAWA

Thin Ice

Thin Ice

CAR