Yes...that "hinge" problem: falling, shifting, breaking, chipping, tilting, spalling.
It may not
just be the ice at work. A raised dock is like a big sail, and should be "guyed" in at least two directions against strong winds. The trees that the guy wires are attached to will move independently of one another, too.
When one cable is used, it may imperceptibly — but strongly — "saw" back and forth in the wind, weakening the hinge base so the ice can assist in shifting it. It doesn't help when the lake goes "over-full" in the spring, either.
How about making the hinge adjustable with pre-drilled adjustment holes? Once the dock is lowered, it can be leveled at the hinge end.
Or clamp the hinge-end onto an 1½" diameter steel cable secured at two big boulders?
Or a railroad tie, secured the same way, but using very short cables?