No Safe ice yet

Took a short walk out onto Tivoli South Bay Monday (2/15)  afternoon. Only found 3-4 inches of ice. Surface wan't too bad. Since then though, we have had over 2" of snow which will soon turn to sleet, then rain. Upcoming temperatures aren't looking too good to build any more ice. Orange Lake also had minimal ice thickness and a few holes still not frozen over. Will continue to monitor the ice.....

UPDATE 2/18 - torrential rains Tuesday and temperatures in the 50s did real damage to ice surfaces. News from Orange Lake as of Thursday 2/18 - the ice there is still unsafe. some drain holes have healed but there are still cracks, ridges and holes scattered about. Even with a few cold nights upcoming there will be temperatures this weekend in the 40s and nights that might not go below freezing. Not a good outlook for the next 5 days... I haven't been back to Tivoli bay,, but don't imagine that can be safe either)

(check new posts along the right side of this page on Club membership books and books on Ice boating; also see new post on a vintage Rudder magazine below)   

Ice checking crew...  2/15/16

A dusting of snow on surface of Tivoli South Bay.
3 cold nights only built 3-4 inches.

Had a nice skate today on my favorite local spot - Heron Swamp. It's just 3 miles from my house and I love this quiet little secluded piece of ice. This ice will be a mess by the morning...

Lots of dead trees, but it is a fun obstacle course to skate through.

Great Blue Heron nests toward the south end of this small swamp.