Ice In Ice Out
In the summer of 1981 Lake of the Woods cabin owner Mike Meunier found a wood board while cleaning his shore line in Morson. The board was inscribed with the ice in and ice out dates from 1935 to 1964. The origin of the board was never found but Mike believed that it came from a nearby closed fishery building that had belonged to John Kreger.
The board also has a diagram for a building project. Mike stated, “After I found the board, I became very interested in continuing the history and seeing what each year would bring. I also kept track of the years where the lake water level was high or running over my dock.” When Mike ran out of room on the board he made another one. He hopes his kids will continue the record keeping as Mike is now 84 years old.
There are many others living near the waters of the lake that have recorded this annual event. One local legend states that when the ice goes out of the Rainy River which feeds Lake of the Woods, that ice on many parts of the lake is still good for snowmobiles and ATVs for approximately one week and the ice being out in another week. At other times the ice on the lake is no longer good for travel and yet the Rainy River has not opened. Ice conditions change daily as the ice nears the “do not travel due to poor ice conditions” mark.
Many locals determine the stability of the ice each day before traveling very far on the lake. One can determine ice stability by the consistency, color and thickness. The surface ice color is blue then changes to white, to dark blue then white again during winter. Spring ice that is several feet thick starts to honeycomb or allow water to pass through and will no longer hold weight. By drilling holes in the ice, this condition is verified. This is not the same as a crack in the ice where water flows to the surface yet the sheet of ice is still stable as is often seen during the winter season. Safety should always be a concern when traveling near a break in the ice. Often breaks in the ice create pushed up ice called pressure ridges. These ice ridges can tower many feet and be hundreds of yards long. These pressure ridges can be very picturesque and vary in location each year depending on the wind and weather conditions. The wind often pushes water onto shores creating streams of ice hanging from trees and rocks. The wind can also pile slabs of ice onto shorelines pushing everything in the way such as dock pilings and large boulders.
The Rainy River Record newspaper has been recording ice flow since 1934. Their earliest recorded date of ice movement on Rainy River was February 27, 1998. This date corresponds to April 12, 1998 for ice off of Lake of the Woods on Mike’s record. Mike’s earliest date for ice off is April 7, 2000. In general, ice is off the Rainy River the week of April 8 – 15 and off Lake of the Woods April 29 to May 5. This supports the general rule of a two week period of time between when ice is off on the Rainy River and ice off on Lake of the Woods. The exact date for ice off each year can vary as much as 4 to 6 weeks. The disclaimer is that ice conditions vary each year so the exact date of ice in and ice out each year is not precise. The late “ice out” years have seen snowmobile groups able to travel across the lake in May. At other times late March is the latest ice travel is safe.
Ice travel can be dangerous at any time within the season not just near ice breakup and there is usually a full month between the time when ice is no longer safe and when you can see open water. There are problem areas due to water currents and narrow areas that never have good ice. Some locations have open water even when the temperature is -30 Fahrenheit. The Norman Dam in Kenora and the Falls in Nestor Falls are examples of places that have open water year round. Using a local fishing guide is always best if you are not familiar with the area. Following vehicle tracks is never a good idea because the tracks may have been made in February when the ice was stable. Even the experienced ice traveler can be surprised because ice stable in the morning, will break by afternoon. One island cabin owner related his experience. “I’ve been ice traveling to the cabin for more than 30 years. In 2002 while following my son’s vehicle back to main land, he passed over a reef. My vehicle went through the ice. I escaped with my life and my truck had to be retrieved from the water after the ice was out.”
The fascination of waiting for the ice to go each spring isn’t just for the anglers awaiting open waters but other activities are also determined by this annual event. Island cabin owners and resort owners must wait till there is open water to navigate from mainland with supplies. A wind barge can travel on ice and water is sometimes used during this period. Some fly-in outpost resorts will have a delayed spring opener due to lingering ice preventing float planes from landing. At the beginning of ice out on the main part of Lake of the Woods, ice still remains by island shorelines and some water channels. The latest ice opener was recorded May 22, 1950. Some resort owners still tell stories of all the problems that happened when anglers came for the Walleye fishing opener and there was too much ice on the lake to launch a boat. Even in recent years, resort owners are found shoveling fresh snow off of the guest cabin decks just before the arrival of anglers.
Problems don’t just exist at spring, they also happen in late autumn. There are many stories of people that have taken to the water by boat, only to be stranded because the wind moved the remaining ice. There are duck hunters, deer hunters and resort owners that have been stranded at island cabins because freeze-up occurred while they were using a boat to navigate the lake. Whether you enjoy ice fishing or fishing from a boat, the two time periods each year that one cannot travel on Lake of the Woods, is always too long.
Note: Lake ice is deemed unsafe at all times.
By Nancy Miller
