Ice-in Watch 2006

jaybat · 02-03-2006, 01:06 PM

Hi Folks, Hope the weather in the lakes region is better than it's down here. Sitting in my office down here in Attleboro MA looking out the window and it's pouring and the temp is 55 degrees.

I'm thinking about going home and uncovering the bass boat and heading down to Cape Cod to do some pond fishing. No ice at all down there. Only problem is cleaning the boat after traveling down the highway. Lets all pray mother nauture sends us a nice long cold spell to freeze up the lakes up in your region. I'm truly looking forward to spending a few weekend up there doing some fishing. Enjoy the up comming weekend and the Big Game.

FLAG! · 02-06-2006, 10:09 AM

18 of us were on Winnipesaukee this Firday, Saturday and Sunday ice fishing in the wolfeboro area. We have a little "mini-derby" of our own. We fished in the rain on friday, Saturday was very nice but warm, and yesterday it rained until about 10:00 then it cleared up for the last 2 hours of fishing. I have to be honest, if we had planned to fish today we would have had a big challenge getting on to the ice. As it was we had to assemble a makeshift "bridge" consisting of planks, boards & plywood just to get on to the ice. However once on the ice there was a solid 6 inches of black ice. Then we headed out to set up a tent over about 22 feet of water and we had 8 inches of black ice. The ice around the shore was poor. All of the incoming run off has been melting ice and preventing it from freezing up at night. Unfortunately I think all of that run off may be adversely effecting the fishing. We only managed two lakers, one perch, two rainbows and I think three salmon (which of course were all very nice fish because we can't keep them). The two rainbows were very nice also. The first was 1.9 pounds and the second was 2.2 pounds. Full of smelt. The lakers were both over 2 pounds. I will post some pictures from the weekend in the next day or so.

Grant · 02-06-2006, 10:18 AM

Looks like this week will help the ice a bit, and the long-range forecast for the next week (leading up to the re-scheduled Derby) will be quite frigid. I'm heading up for the 10-11-12 weekend, but won't do much fishing...

jaybat · 02-06-2006, 10:48 AM

Hi Flag, You must really enjoy ice fishing to go through all the work getting on the ice and then dealing with the rain. I'm sure the tent helped. Did you folks have much wind yesterday?

FLAG! · 02-06-2006, 03:59 PM

other than a gust or two the wind was a non-issue. The challenge was staying dry. With up to 4 inches of slush & water on top of the ice at times the waterproof-ness of your boots was a big factor.

Weirs guy · 02-10-2006, 08:43 AM

Looks like we made some progress last night!

DRH · 02-10-2006, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Weirs guy

Looks like we made some progress last night!

Yes, it's 7 degs here in West Alton this morning.

Merrymeeting · 02-10-2006, 01:33 PM

With temps the way they have been for the past few days/nights, why does it seem that the open water on the Broadview camera is getting bigger?

Island Girl · 02-10-2006, 01:35 PM

I suspect it is the wind.. we need some calm.

Alsobig · 02-10-2006, 01:59 PM

Remember "The Year with out Santa Claus..." Well this is "The Year With Out ICE!"

Rick · 02-10-2006, 02:20 PM

Wind certainly is a big factor. Many wonder why ice doesn't form right away when it hits 0 degrees (C). It is all chemistry and thermal energy. Once the water reaches 0 degrees (C) it takes a very large loss of energy in order for the molecules of water to change to a solid. This is known as Heat of Fusion. For example it takes the loss of 1 calorie to drop the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree (C). This is true until water reaches 0 degrees(C). Water must now change from a liquid to solid and this takes an additional loss of nearly 80 calories per gram of water. If you placed a thermometer in the water and watched as it cooled you would see a steady decline in temperature until it reached 0 degrees (C) then the temperature would remain at 0 degrees until all of the liquid had changed to a solid (ice).
If you have trouble understanding this don't worry my chemistry students had trouble also!

Quilt Lady · 02-10-2006, 03:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick

If you have trouble understanding this don't worry my chemistry students had trouble also!

Very well stated and understandable. It's a much better answer than . . . "it gets very cold and then a miracle happens"!

FLAG! · 02-10-2006, 06:10 PM

so here's how we prepared ourselves for fishing last weekend when the ice was questionable...

Rope, life jackets, and UV protection sunglasses...

pparisi133 · 02-12-2006, 10:37 AM

Does anyone know how Minge Cove looks as far as snowmoblile access from the marina off 11D out to Rattlesnake Island? We were going to come up today and take a look but mother nature changed our plans. I'm worried we're not going to get a good picture of what's going on now that there going to be 6"+ of snow on the lake.....Thanks!

DRH · 02-12-2006, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pparisi133

Does anyone know how Minge Cove looks as far as snowmoblile access from the marina off 11D out to Rattlesnake Island? We were going to come up today and take a look but mother nature changed our plans. I'm worried we're not going to get a good picture of what's going on now that there going to be 6"+ of snow on the lake.....Thanks!

When you refer to the "marina off 11D", are you referring to the Minge Cove Marina? That's actually off Minge Cove Rd., not 11D.

We saw several snowmobiles going between Minge Cove and Treasure Island yesterday. The ice thickness in that area is reportedly about 6" on average, but the thickness varies widely.

HOWEVER, there are still some large areas of open water along the Gilford shoreline between Ellacoya State Park and the Belknap Point Motel. As of yesterday, the largest area of open water stretched from the shoreline near the Belknap Point Motel more than 3/4 of the way out to Welch Island. That large area of open water is visible in the following photo, taken yesterday from Lincoln Park:

Further up the lake, yesterday there was a large area of open water between Meredith Bay and Governor's Island, and extending over toward The Weirs, which is visible in the following shot:

Moral of the story ... while certain sections of the lake may be safe for snowmobiling, many areas are not safe at this point. If you decide to venture out, make absolutely sure the ice you will be travelling over is safe. Today's snowfall will make that determination more difficult, so be VERY careful out there.

ghfromaltonbay · 02-12-2006, 12:17 PM

The Babes on Sleds and the rest of us snowdancers finally got the right steps. We have over a foot of snow here in northern NJ, heading toward the 18" mark. Hope this much makes it all the way to the lake. Looks like it is supposed to stop here in the late afternoon, although the snowfall has tapered off a bit. We even had thunder + lightning overnight. According to the newscast the storm is following Rte. 95 up the coast toward New England. Can't wait to get to Alton Bay next Saturday and see the Babes on Sleds in action!

upthesaukee · 02-12-2006, 12:39 PM

Forecast for the lakes region is approx 3-6 inches. Long range has temps on Wed Thurs Fri in the 40's with rain on Friday

.

DRH, here's a similar pic taken from just west of the Condo's.

DRH, we must have travelled the same road at different times

ghfromaltonbay · 02-12-2006, 12:43 PM

I feel your pain, UTS. The temps are supposed to hit the 50's here by Thursday. I'm hoping that the long range forecast is wrong -- a lot can happen between now and Friday.

DRH · 02-12-2006, 01:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by upthesaukee

DRH, here's a similar pic taken from just west of the Condo's. ... we must have travelled the same road at different times

Excellent shot, upthesaukee. It really shows how large that area of open water is.

Skip · 02-12-2006, 05:04 PM

DRH,

What's the weather over your way today? Not seeing much talk of the storm here, wondering how or if it is building up on the ice at all?

Skip

Weirs guy · 02-10-2006, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Merrymeeting

With temps the way they have been for the past few days/nights, why does it seem that the open water on the Broadview camera is getting bigger?

Yeah, that hole is disheartening. It keeps freezing over at night only to open back up durring the day. All the bubblers along the shore aren't helping either, the ice out there seems to move around a lot.

02-03-2006, 01:06 PM	#1
jaybat Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upton MA Posts: 6 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Thinking of Getting the Bass Boat Out Hi Folks, Hope the weather in the lakes region is better than it's down here. Sitting in my office down here in Attleboro MA looking out the window and it's pouring and the temp is 55 degrees. I'm thinking about going home and uncovering the bass boat and heading down to Cape Cod to do some pond fishing. No ice at all down there. Only problem is cleaning the boat after traveling down the highway. Lets all pray mother nauture sends us a nice long cold spell to freeze up the lakes up in your region. I'm truly looking forward to spending a few weekend up there doing some fishing. Enjoy the up comming weekend and the Big Game.

02-06-2006, 10:09 AM	#2
FLAG! Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Upton, MA Posts: 112 Thanks: 44 Thanked 14 Times in 6 Posts	Believe it or not... 18 of us were on Winnipesaukee this Firday, Saturday and Sunday ice fishing in the wolfeboro area. We have a little "mini-derby" of our own. We fished in the rain on friday, Saturday was very nice but warm, and yesterday it rained until about 10:00 then it cleared up for the last 2 hours of fishing. I have to be honest, if we had planned to fish today we would have had a big challenge getting on to the ice. As it was we had to assemble a makeshift "bridge" consisting of planks, boards & plywood just to get on to the ice. However once on the ice there was a solid 6 inches of black ice. Then we headed out to set up a tent over about 22 feet of water and we had 8 inches of black ice. The ice around the shore was poor. All of the incoming run off has been melting ice and preventing it from freezing up at night. Unfortunately I think all of that run off may be adversely effecting the fishing. We only managed two lakers, one perch, two rainbows and I think three salmon (which of course were all very nice fish because we can't keep them). The two rainbows were very nice also. The first was 1.9 pounds and the second was 2.2 pounds. Full of smelt. The lakers were both over 2 pounds. I will post some pictures from the weekend in the next day or so.

02-06-2006, 10:18 AM	#3
Grant Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Pennsyltuckey, Tuftonboro, Moultonborough Posts: 1,501 Thanks: 377 Thanked 231 Times in 125 Posts	Looks like this week will help the ice a bit, and the long-range forecast for the next week (leading up to the re-scheduled Derby) will be quite frigid. I'm heading up for the 10-11-12 weekend, but won't do much fishing... __________________ "When I die, please don't let my wife sell my dive gear for what I told her I paid for it."

02-06-2006, 10:48 AM	#4
jaybat Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upton MA Posts: 6 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Ice Fishing in the Rain Hi Flag, You must really enjoy ice fishing to go through all the work getting on the ice and then dealing with the rain. I'm sure the tent helped. Did you folks have much wind yesterday?

02-10-2006, 08:43 AM	#6
Weirs guy Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Weirs Beach, NH Posts: 1,067 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Looks like we made some progress last night! __________________ Is it bikeweek yet? Now?

02-06-2006, 03:59 PM	#5
FLAG! Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Upton, MA Posts: 112 Thanks: 44 Thanked 14 Times in 6 Posts	other than a gust or two the wind was a non-issue. The challenge was staying dry. With up to 4 inches of slush & water on top of the ice at times the waterproof-ness of your boots was a big factor.

02-10-2006, 01:33 PM	#8
Merrymeeting Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Merrymeeting Lake, New Durham Posts: 2,226 Thanks: 302 Thanked 800 Times in 368 Posts	With temps the way they have been for the past few days/nights, why does it seem that the open water on the Broadview camera is getting bigger?

02-10-2006, 01:35 PM	#9
Island Girl Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Central MA Posts: 2,352 Thanks: 18 Thanked 535 Times in 179 Posts	Wind I suspect it is the wind.. we need some calm. __________________ Island Girl ....... Make Lemonade

02-10-2006, 01:59 PM	#10
Alsobig Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Merrimack, NH Posts: 30 Thanks: 11 Thanked 9 Times in 1 Post	Remember "The Year with out Santa Claus..." Well this is "The Year With Out ICE!"

02-10-2006, 02:20 PM	#11
Rick Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 11 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Wind certainly is a big factor. Many wonder why ice doesn't form right away when it hits 0 degrees (C). It is all chemistry and thermal energy. Once the water reaches 0 degrees (C) it takes a very large loss of energy in order for the molecules of water to change to a solid. This is known as Heat of Fusion. For example it takes the loss of 1 calorie to drop the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree (C). This is true until water reaches 0 degrees(C). Water must now change from a liquid to solid and this takes an additional loss of nearly 80 calories per gram of water. If you placed a thermometer in the water and watched as it cooled you would see a steady decline in temperature until it reached 0 degrees (C) then the temperature would remain at 0 degrees until all of the liquid had changed to a solid (ice). If you have trouble understanding this don't worry my chemistry students had trouble also!

02-10-2006, 06:10 PM	#13
FLAG! Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Upton, MA Posts: 112 Thanks: 44 Thanked 14 Times in 6 Posts	when fishing on questionable ice... so here's how we prepared ourselves for fishing last weekend when the ice was questionable... Rope, life jackets, and UV protection sunglasses... Attached Images

02-12-2006, 10:37 AM	#14
pparisi133 Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 8 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Minge Cove Does anyone know how Minge Cove looks as far as snowmoblile access from the marina off 11D out to Rattlesnake Island? We were going to come up today and take a look but mother nature changed our plans. I'm worried we're not going to get a good picture of what's going on now that there going to be 6"+ of snow on the lake.....Thanks!

02-12-2006, 12:17 PM	#16
ghfromaltonbay Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Clifton, NJ, Alton Bay Posts: 829 Thanks: 255 Thanked 225 Times in 131 Posts	Woo-hoo, bring on the snow!! The Babes on Sleds and the rest of us snowdancers finally got the right steps. We have over a foot of snow here in northern NJ, heading toward the 18" mark. Hope this much makes it all the way to the lake. Looks like it is supposed to stop here in the late afternoon, although the snowfall has tapered off a bit. We even had thunder + lightning overnight. According to the newscast the storm is following Rte. 95 up the coast toward New England. Can't wait to get to Alton Bay next Saturday and see the Babes on Sleds in action!

02-12-2006, 12:39 PM	#17
upthesaukee Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Alton Bay Posts: 5,602 Blog Entries: 2 Thanks: 2,468 Thanked 1,983 Times in 1,083 Posts	not much in the lakes region Forecast for the lakes region is approx 3-6 inches. Long range has temps on Wed Thurs Fri in the 40's with rain on Friday . DRH, here's a similar pic taken from just west of the Condo's. DRH, we must have travelled the same road at different times __________________ I Live Here... I am always UPTHESAUKEE !!!!

02-12-2006, 12:43 PM	#18
ghfromaltonbay Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Clifton, NJ, Alton Bay Posts: 829 Thanks: 255 Thanked 225 Times in 131 Posts	Long range forecast I feel your pain, UTS. The temps are supposed to hit the 50's here by Thursday. I'm hoping that the long range forecast is wrong -- a lot can happen between now and Friday.

02-12-2006, 05:04 PM	#20
Skip Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Dover, NH Posts: 1,615 Thanks: 256 Thanked 514 Times in 182 Posts	Ice & Snow.... DRH, What's the weather over your way today? Not seeing much talk of the storm here, wondering how or if it is building up on the ice at all? Skip