Between Black Cat and Three-Mile yesterday I measured about 4 inches of "snow ice." Very low quality ice. Very fluffy composition. Took only 10 or 12 chops from the mountaineering ax to get through it.
The zero-degree nights have brought a lot less cracking and booming than there would usually be on zero-degree nights, which I presume is a result of the ice composition not being as solid as it could be (i.e. "black ice".) It's all white ice formed from December's 42 inches of snow, melted and re-frozen during that warm spell we had earlier this month.
This white translucent ice holds lake heat much better than clear ice and therefore doesn't thicken as readily. We need an extended period of extremely cold weather - longer than just a few days. Until we get it, continue to distrust this year's ice.
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