Freeze-up 2012

Not quite yet....

Most of Kukagami Lake was frozen over by the middle of December, but the main body of the lake remains open.  Warm temperatures and heavy snow predicted this week will likely keep the ice from forming for perhaps another week.

Ice Out 2012

 

            March 20^th, first day of Spring!  Or is it?  Spring seems to have come weeks ago, and there is no better place than the lake to see how deeply we are into the season.

            Just two weeks ago we were skiing on some of the finest snow of the winter.  Three days later it had all turned soft.  A few days after that, all the snow on the lake had turned to slush. Yuck.

Another few days later the weather turned cold again and the top layer of slush froze.  Not enough to walk on, mind you.  Just enough to hold me up for a sec, then crash, I'd break through to the slushy water that lay above the good ice. Trying to take a walk was a chore.   Step, crunch, step, crunch.  Exhausting!

Then of course the weather warmed again, and it hasn't gone below freezing since.  That top crust is gone, and all of the soft top-ice has gone back to slush.  But now, just 17 days after the biggest snowstorm of the year, even most of the slush is gone.   Walking on the lake is easy, and very interesting.

Three decades of watching the ice melt away has taught me many things about the process, the first of which is that it is different every year.  If you scan through the articles I've written each spring, you'll see a different story each year. (Some of these are posted at northenlife.ca.)

This year the ice will be going off earlier than most, maybe even earlier than it did in 2010, which was the earliest recorded, on April 3^rd.  That year was the first time ever that the ice became unsafe in the month of March. This year is the second time that March ice becomes unsafe.

How do I know when to stop travelling on the ice?   By watching it very carefully.  Every day for the past week I've walked on the lake, observing and taking notes.  Shallow areas at the edges of islands became watery.  The white ice on top all turned to slush, and slowly drained through cracks in the clear ice below.  The drain holes widened ever so slowly, until some were wide enough to push a ski pole through. 

I've measured and marked the ski pole so I can see how thick the ice is.  By measuring at the same hole each day I can see how fast it is melting.  It's not surprising that it is melting very fast this year.

So far, nearly all the thinning of the ice has been the loss of the white ice and slush.  The hard, clear ice hasn't melted much at all.  But it won't take long for it to go, because it is only a foot thick this year.  Most years it would be nearly two feet thick.

It's always a guessing game to figure out when the ice will be gone.  It is very much dependant on the weather, warmth, wind, sun and rain.  Given that it's been ages since the nights have cooled to below zero, and that the prediction is for more of the same, I'm guessing the ice will be out on April fool's day. 

 

 

Still Skiing........

Well, we just had to get out to do some trail work! After 27 years of taking care of ski and snowshoe trails, we could't quit just because we retired. Allan has been out brushing and grooming and track-setting the trail on the west side of the lake. These are trails he designed and built 30 years ago! He has a couple of loops to take care of this winter, and plans for longer, steeper trails for next year.

I've just spent the last 2 days working on some small snowshoeing trails, with hopes that some of the neighborus will take up the sport.

Mostly we are both having a wonderful time working outside.

Kukagami Ski Trails!

 

Here Comes the Sun!

January is a most wonderful month. Because of the LIGHT! Gone are the dark days of November and December. It is colder, yes. Minus 31 C at my house sometimes, but brighter than those grey days of late autumn. At long last, the SUN returns!

At 6:30 in the morning there are already hints of daybreak on the eastern horizon. This early dawn brings a spark of optimism for the longer days to come. Very faint pastels of creamy yellow and blue give promise of a sunny day.

As the minutes tick by, a smattering of clouds can be seen. Their bottoms turn pink near the eastern sky, and fade to a deep blue-grey across to the west. Slowly, slowly they drift in the high northern breeze.

By seven it's bright enough to go out for a walk on the lake. I love winter! With lots of ice underfoot, I can step out my door and go anywhere – everywhere! The only downside is the 10 minutes it takes to get dressed in layer upon layer of wool and down, mitts and boots, coat and scarf.

These really cold mornings bring new beauty to the landscape. Moisture from the warmer air of yesterday precipitates on each and every needle of the pines along the shoreline. Lovely frosted trees grace the islands. And frost crystalizes on my eyebrows as my breath freezes in the morning chill.

By 7:30 the sky is brilliant. The skinny clouds overhead are salmon-pink. To the west they remain furry-grey, waiting for the sun to reach across the sky. Ravens waken, and call out to each other, breaking the silence of the day.

Yellow turns to white as the clouds in the east catch the sun. The creamy-salmon-pink spreads across the sky to the west, where the thin popcorn clouds become a brilliant pink and blue. And beyond the clouds, the western sky is a deep blue curve – the Earth's shadow on the atmosphere as the sun rises slowly, reaching toward the horizon behind me.

Soon the top of the sun appears between the trees on the eastern shore. A deep yellow-orange ball of light slowly, slowly moves higher and higher, as though it was hiding in the forest, and just now came out to stay for the day.

On the coldest days of January, the sun will shine for 9 hours and more. Each day now brings us two+ more minutes of sun. And the long dawn and dusk will give us a couple more hours of daylight. Whoohooo! The dark days are gone!