Big ice

[Sammconn]

So this will be where I document the big ice breakup.
The next few days will be pretty boring but once things get better it will be more active.



Somehow this view became my go to picture and this will be the bulk of it until more interesting things occur.


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[Flyin6]

So, closeup of the ice please.
What's actually happening?

[Sammconn]

Ok chief.



This crack is close to shore. The point where the white meets the blue is the depth of the candling.



This one shows two completely different pieces of ice. The top is candled, where the bottom half has yet to start. It is more crystals.



And out on the ice it is still large crystals.
Really other than getting on and off the ice it is still quite safe at this stage.


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[Sammconn]

Out to the drain holes.

So as the snowpack melts, the water from melt accumulates on the ice surface. As gravity does it’s thing, the water finds low spots, generally there is a crack or fracture at near low points.



They start small, this one is only a couple inches, but flow through to the bottom of the ice.



Larger ones look like someone was ice fishing.
This one is 8-10” across. A lot of water flowed through this one.


Shoreline access becomes the issue as water replaces the shore ice.
Being were a reservoir increases the difficulty.


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[Sammconn]

This is the marina side a couple days ago.
Likely two or three feet or more to get on the ice.





Drone photo from a buddy last Sunday. About a mile east of here in a high flow spot.

I was still travelling across then, just not there.


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[Sammconn]

Out for a walk an hour-ish ago.



Candled ice, you can see the candles where I stepped.



An old fracture opening up. About 6” in the fat part. Clear to the bottom, about four feet down.



Here would be some of the pops I’ve been hearing. The white lines are new fractures. They will most likely be full thickness.



This is down one of the above cracks.
About three feet of ice here sitting on the bottom.



So this is new. The drone photo is about 3/4 mile farther than the open at the top of this picture. 
The dark spot near the horizon is open water.


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[Flyin6]

It's actually happening faster than I would have thought.
Seems pretty unsafe for a novice, but you folks who know the ice, I guess can still get about...

Don't know why, but this sure is interesting!

[JR]

Bet those "pops" are something to get used too if big.

[Bigdave_185]

I’m with Jr.  the sound has to be unique every time.   

I still am baffled at ice that thick!! Iv see ice on the The Great Lakes but it was usually violent enough we never ventured onto it to look that close

So awesome!


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[Flyin6]

Sam,
This has to be happening like right now.
What does it look like,
and
Any budding of trees yet?

[Sammconn]

Ok Chief,
This is from close to 07 today.



The birch may be trying to push bids but If I recall they are not new. I’ll update that one.
Grass is starting to think it’s time where water has run on it.

But…


Yestertag. The pile doesn’t indicate well, but the sleigh was near to full. I did walk the path prior but there was no need on this part of the ice.


Close up of the surface. Two days of rain did a number on it. Fully candled now. And wow what grip the peaks provide.



The thaw is slowly moving along. The ice here I likely could have still drove onto the lake over. I’m keeping me safe and mama sane however. My adventures forward are all land based.



Open water in one of the channels. Around the end of the island from me.



And it is getting rotten at the shoreline. I stopped to take this and all of the candles fell without me needing to break them off.


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[Bigdave_185]

What’s the pile of stuff behind the slay?

What would happen if you started a fire on it and just kept feeding it until it falls in and completely falls in?

I guess ya would need a drain hole maybe from the melting water pooling under the fire?


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[Sammconn]

What’s the pile of stuff behind the slay?

What would happen if you started a fire on it and just kept feeding it until it falls in and completely falls in?

I guess ya would need a drain hole maybe from the melting water pooling under the fire?


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Was a bunch of scrap flooring, the old flooring and a bunch of other burnable crap.
When I rebuilt my shed, the old one got used as a dumpster. It was 8 x 12 and I filled it to the lid.
I pulled it out onto the ice that spring before everthing melted but snow was gone enough to do it.
It burned for a week and a few days. There was a moat around it a couple feet deep.

It didn’t bust through or burn through.
The water level is where it is though.
So it won’t drain empty. Will only drain to the water level if that makes sense.

[Bigdave_185]

That makes sense


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[Sammconn]

Ok, big quad ride today. Well about 10k or so.  It did take close to two hours though.

We’ll start with the map.



The island is about 2 1/2 miles wide and a mile or so thick.



Too thick to just go, so we have a few trailers cut.



The view Chez Chris. On the north side and sealed up tight still like I am.



Next stop was at Corinne’s. Lots of loose floaters and wobblers at shore and wide open out to pickerel point. The small island front and Center.





Over to Clint’s, and the front end of the open water.



Looking back from the corner by my place to Tony’s.
It has opened a bit since yesterday as well.



And what is my stock picture for the eventual time lapse from 07 this morning. Across the way to the clump of two islands where I placed my targets, it is I open between the main island and the bigger left one.


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[JR]

Great looking, nice ride. How big is the island and whats a DOD?

[Sammconn]

About a mile by two and a half miles. Give or take.

The dod was a spelling mistake. Lol. Did.

[Sammconn]

So. This just ain’t changing.



So we’ve been low 20’s the past few nights.
This crack has almost an inch of new ice.

We’ve had some sun the past couple days but now snow is called for tonight. So here I is.



A touch of a colour change back towards gray but nothing substantial.


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[JR]

 

[Flyin6]

I can see grass just wanting to pop!

[TexasRedNeck]

95
Here
Today


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[JR]

95
Here
Today

Same here.

[Sammconn]

Let it snow let it snow let it snow…



No real changes on the ice today.
Hauled a lot of rock on it and it’s still pretty good here.
Now if Mother Nature would just smarten up and let spring roll on in…


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[Sammconn]

Well it snowed last night. Not a lot and not total ground coverage but none the less it snowed and melted where I suppose more heat was in the ground.

I have intel coming from both sides that it’s moving at both dams either side of me.

But here:



Is the 08 picture from today. Must have been tired as I slept in apparently.
Way across, appears to be opening more each day as well.



But it is also slow going.

Oh, and imagine that, our weather folks missed the mark again. Looks to be the start to a glorious day. Full on sun, and hardly a cloud to be seen.


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[Sammconn]

So to not see the Forrest for the trees, things have started to change since I got up.

Out across the way has changed.




Off to the west.





I may begimg taking a few more pictures from my spot now. Will see how the day progresses.


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[Sammconn]

So stuff started happening today.
I noticed it this morning when I was starting to fix the crib up.
Well I ended up doing the tour again.



This was at Clint’s.



At Corinne’s.

Considerable change at both places.



Chris, still locked up solid.



And from the cabin not a lot looks different.


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[Sammconn]

But…

By taking a walk down to the crib…



Everything to the east is starting to open.



Not as much to the west but it’s more than this morning.


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[Sammconn]

Ok morning update for ya chief.



To the east things are getting rotten. I believe the brownish spots are taking on the river water and nearing their end.



Looking straight across. The normal window view.



Looking west.


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[Sammconn]

Oh and as I sit on mamas sittin chair I see a small berg had calved.



There will be a few more shortly by the looks of things.
I think I’ll sit and enjoy my quoffee here.
And the starlink wifi router is the bomb. I had service out on the ice probably 150 odd feet from shore. My whole yard is one giant hotspot. A happy camper I is.


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[Flyin6]

So, I see it changing color in places. I assume those are areas where it is melting or covered in water?
Other places I am still seeing the frosty white stuff that looks like shaved ice. And of course the open water.
What is the water temp there now? I'm guessing somewhere in the mid upper 30's.

[Sammconn]

So, I see it changing color in places. I assume those are areas where it is melting or covered in water?
Other places I am still seeing the frosty white stuff that looks like shaved ice. And of course the open water.
What is the water temp there now? I'm guessing somewhere in the mid upper 30's.

Fairly accurate observations.
All getting greenish now but not a lot of wholesale change.

Water temp will still be around 33-34 until the ice cover is gone.

[Flyin6]

So, it seems one degree is all it takes to get things moving. Using that logic, 36 -40-degree water would kill the ice pdq.

I recall having to break thin ice to jump into off the ramp of the Chinook when training with the Mustang suit. I want to say you still wouldn't last very long in water that cold.

I wonder how cold salt water can get and not freeze. Below 32 I'm guessing

[Sammconn]

Minutes in 32 degree water. If you don’t drown from the deep breath caused by the shock of hitting the water.
Salt water freezes so where in the vicinity of zero. Will depend on salt content etc.
that stuff really hurts.

[Sammconn]

So yesterday things changed.



All the ice had turned a greenish hue. As the day progressed I noticed brownish areas. Out water is very turbid and I’m assuming this is river water saturating the ice.









An hourly time lapse from 1900 - 2200.



And todays 0800.

It’s very windy today. Things could change a lot again.


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[Flyin6]

That was a big change yesterday, biggest I've seen

From the looks of it you are going to have a bunch of open water by days end

So why the white frosty stuff near the shore? Pressure crushing the bigger stuff and piling it up, or some of the candling being shoved higher up?

[Sammconn]

That was a big change yesterday, biggest I've seen

From the looks of it you are going to have a bunch of open water by days end

So why the white frosty stuff near the shore? Pressure crushing the bigger stuff and piling it up, or some of the candling being shoved higher up?

Some of it will come down to the river current. To the west I have a point blocking most of the current. Flow is to east.
Some of what’s at shore is sitting on the bottom.
Short of that I really don’t know.
But it’s changing by the 5 minutes currently.
And my big camera is dead. Both batteries.
I have a feeling I need new ones as I charged them recently.
At least I’ll find out now. As I have something different to do this July.

[Sammconn]

Spoiler alert. Ice moved on out.



Exhibit 1: fully candled ice. I waded into about a foot of water to grab this chunk. Then proceeded to smash it so y’all can see the candles. This piece was about 10” tall for some perspective.



Another piece I busted in the water.



Oh and then around 11:30 - 12:00 the cool stuff started.



And started movin along.



And then moved on out.
Yes the deck at the dock has moved.
It’s currently pogo-sticker on a five foot wrecking bar. Hope the frost holds out.



Needless to say I did zero none zilch today other than watching Mother Nature do her thing.


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[Flyin6]

There be open water!

[Bigdave_185]

That ice looks familiar

Pardon the poor quality but it’s a piece of glass from the Corning museum of glass may 2011 probably on my first smart phone


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[Bigdave_185]

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[Flyin6]

So, is it mostly all gone now?

[Sammconn]

So, is it mostly all gone now?

Honestly I’m not sure.
I doubt it as I think only the main river channels have cleared.
There is still ice locked between the islands across from me.
There are many square miles of lake surface that are still ice covered based on info from people on land.

I’m still seeing ice pass by but the big show for now is done.
We’ve got a few nice days ahead and then some rain so that may unlock the rest.

[Sammconn]

A pretty boring ice day.
Started still locked in between the islands this morning.



Not a lot changed since.



It looks almost clear in the picture, however I can still make he sheets of ice out just below water surface.

But all in all a slow day.
Still blocked solid at the marina so no real rush.
I also had planned to be here at least the weekend.


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