A daily journal concerning Lake Vermilion and surrounding areas
Selected real estate, notes, stories, musings, and anecdotes
------------ Comments and links welcomed ------------
Monday, April 30, 2007
Ice Out 2007, The Final Installment.
LakeVermilion.com has ended it's 11th Annual Lake Vermilion Ice-Out Contest.
The ice is out so the Contest is over.
The Contest was won by 32 individuals who all guessed the correct date.
The Lake Vermilion ice pack has entered it's final days of existence.
Most smaller bays are now ice-free and much of the general shoreline has gapped with open water.
The locals are generally in agreement on the pending ice-out date. Most will quote a final day within a week and some will say the lake will open before the end of the weekend. That would make for a very typically ice-out year with the historical average date widely regarded as April 30th.
Continue to stay tuned for the eventual conclusion of "Ice Out 2007".
It looks like we're going to take another run at it.
The recent cold snapette has ended and we are once again converting ice to water.
One of the obvious and tell-tale indicators of ice quality is the ice color. The Lake Vermilion ice pack has started to darken. The winter whiteness has started to change to a light charcoal grey. The ice against the shore edges has, once again, started to recede. The sun exposed north shorelines have a head start on other areas of the lake. There is the suggestion of rain within a couple of days and that will accelerate the melt.
Stay tuned for the eventual conclusion of "Ice Out 2007".
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has delayed the annual Spring burning ban in the extreme northerly areas of Minnesota. Included in this area is St. Louis County north of County Road 16.
So... you can burn for one additional week at Lake Vermilion. (Please remember that yard debris can also be chipped, composted, or recycled.)
It's April 9th and we're making ice (the photo was taken yesterday). The last couple of nights have been down to only a couple of clicks above the zero degree mark. The shorelines have re-frozen and the bulk of the ice pack is light colored and, apparently, solid. There are thin spots (just ask our trusty lab Molly) so do not venture out. Again, the talk of additional snow is in the air. So be patient.
The road maintenance folks do their best to keep the enemy at bay. But it's really just a time of year when all they can do is persevere. The patching will resume after the forces of nature have had their way.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation is not, however, sitting back and doing nothing. They are monitoring driving conditions throughout the entire state. They are watching the frost and thaw depths on our highways. (Highway 53 near Orr, MN is monitored.) And they have a ton of web cams to watch us as we pick our way through the pot holes and frost heaves. (I was amazed at the number of cameras in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. Maybe 200+? There was not one camera in the Lake Vermilion area.)
Reader Robb recently wrote with a request. That's right.
He suggested a periodic report on the status of the lake ice. That's a good idea which might be of interest to other readers, as well!
So here's Installment Number One.
This photo was taken over the weekend and is it pretty representative of the overall situation. (This photo was taken from the waters edge on a typical rock shoreline.) Last weeks near 70 degree temperatures allowed for a very fast start to the ice-out process. The ice pack receded a fair distance from the shore edge. The overall ice pack is still very substantial and solid. (That is not an endorsement to venture onto the ice surface. It ain't safe!) It appears as though the progress will slow this coming week with much colder air on the way and the suggestion of a winter-type storm. (It's snowing as I type.)
Stay tuned for Installment Number Two of Ice Out 2007!
Most Recent
Buyers!
Ice Out 2007, The Final Installment.
Lake Vermilion/Niles Bay 
Ice Out 2007, Installment 4.
Ice Out 2007, Installment 3.
Ice Out 2007, Installment 2.
Ice Out 2007.
