Ice-Out Watch 2006

[Island Girl]

Amazing that it is time to start an ice-out thread... but it is happening. The Ice-Out 2006 page is up at www.rattlesnakecam.com/iceout.htm. View the webcams around the lake to watch it happen.

The Ice-Out Reports for Rattlesnake Island are that the ice rifts are showing areas of open water, The open water by Diamond Island is going much further across the broads, the Weirs open hole is extending further and further... all eroded by high winds. The wind is blowing the water under the ice creating storm surges against the breakwaters on the North west side of Rattlesnake.

A snowmobile hit open water last night at the end of Minge Cove... pictures of the rescue later. The driver swam to safety.

Yesterday was the first time I went snowmobiling and today will probably the the last for this year... It is getting unsafe in a lot of places around this end of the lake.

Please add your observations here link to pictures... It could be an early early ice out.

IG

[Mink Islander]

I hiked out to Mink Island on Saturday Morning. Cattle Landing was easily passable on foot but you had to navigate away from the areas where there's been frequent open water. Surprised I didn't see any activity related to the Snowmobile tragedy. Site further around the point of Meredith NecK? Plenty of ice from Cattle Landing through to Mark and then Mink Island. Returning Sunday, the open water at Cattle Landing had expanded significantly and large plates of ice were moving around a bit. I had to pick my route more carefully and almost resorted to the portage around the sketchy area over the corner of Bear Island that I used in prior weeks, but ultimately found a passable route. Even over by Mark Island, there were a few patches of open water developing. Once the wind gets to work, small areas seem to open up very quickly and expand. While 9-12 Inches of ice in the area I pass is more than enough to support even a truck, it is not nearly as strong as the 2+ ft we normally see and the wind and warm weather breaks it down much more quickly. With the warming trends generally, I suspect we're heading towards an earlier than usual ice-out.

[Blue Thunder]

Hey IG,
Over 26000 views of the Ice-In thread! Is that some kind of a record of thread hits? How many additional hits did you get outside of Winnipesaukee.com? That just seems amazing to me.

Blue Thunder

[Island Girl]

Don will have to tell us if that is a record. Last year's ice-out thread had 14,225 views... so you all certainly exceeded that. Let's go for a new record!

IG

[jaybat]

Hi All,

Not sure how long the Ice will last or be safe after this weeks weather in NH but, it's going fast here in Central Mass. I went swimming on sunday afternoon trying to get off the ice from a small ice fishing derby we had . Luckley I was only eight to ten feet from shore and only in about 2&1/2 - 3 feet of water. Still kinda scary. First time in more than 20 years for me. Anyway, I believe our ice activities down here in parts of central mass are just about done or, after this weeks weather they'll certainly be done.

All who use the ice on the lakes for the next few weeks be extra carefull and don't go out alone!!! No need to jeopardize good things ahead with Spring right around the corner just for a few more trips out this winter.

[upthesaukee]

Baywatch has started (the smallest of open water under the rte11 bridge at the end of the bay, plus a picture of the bay from yesterday from the bridge.

IG has the link for ice out on Rattlesnake cam in post #1 if this thread.

Baywatch is linked off of snake eyes cam, and can be reached here as well: http://knitpurlandbeyond.com/alton_bay_icein_2006.htm

Hmmmmm, a little typo when I set up the page...it really is alton bay ice out for 2006 . So much for proofreading!

[phoenix]

amazing how flexible we are at the lake when we can go from wishing for ice in to ice out over night. Looking forward to getting to the lake the end of April. Need a pepper lobster roll fix!!!!!!!!

[Island Girl]

This year we have a new contributor to the ice out page at www.rattlesnakecam.com/iceout.htm. It is Rattlesnake Watch and new forum member DBA will be taking the pictures and updating the page.

Just click on Rattlesnake Watch from the ice out page or go to www.rattlesnakecam.com/ice

The pictures are wonderful!

[Bear Islander]

I must have just missed Mink Islander on Saturday, I was at cattle landing around 1 PM.

On Friday I skied from Shep's to Bear, then skied around the island pulling a sled with 80 pounds of sand. The ice was great all the way with no open water. The wind was very strong, I dropped a glove and watched it head for Moultonboro at about 20 mph.

Spent the night on Bear then had a hard time getting off the island Saturday noon. What a difference a day makes! The temp was up and the ice had moved, pulling away from the island. I had to go around to the east side to get on the ice.

I then found the the ice ridges had pushed together forcing much of the ice down underwater. I was planning to go around Mark Island but by cattle landing I didn't like the ice so I called it a day.

[secondcurve]

From your post and a few others, it sounds as if folks are calling it a season because of weakening ice. That sounds good to me, as I can't wait for spring! It is just around the corner and there is no better time of year. I realized just today, that I have numerous things to do to get the boat ready for May 1st. Let's all start doing the ice out dance!!!! Open water, rainbow trout and lobster rolls......it doesn't get much better!

[upthesaukee]

Originally Posted by Island Girl

This year we have a new contributor to the ice out page at www.rattlesnakecam.com/iceout.htm. It is Rattlesnake Watch and new forum member DBA will be taking the pictures and updating the page.

Just click on Rattlesnake Watch from the ice out page or go to www.rattlesnakecam.com/ice

The pictures are wonderful!

Welcome to the Forum, DBA. And IG, you're right, DBA has given us some great pictures , with a whole new perspective of where the ice is and is not, and it will be interesting to watch the ice out progress from Rattlesnake Watch's point of view.

[emailmannh]

Any predictions yet when Alton or Paugus Bay will be open? Sounds like the ice is going fast. I'm one of those crazy jetskiers......can't wait to hit the water. Last year it was April 18th for the firstr ride......any bets it will be sooner this year? March?

[Merrymeeting]

FWIW, I've noticed over the years that the lakes and ponds here in central MA lose their ice about 2-3 weeks ahead of the lakes region. Over the past 2 weeks of cold weather, there has been a lot of reforming/melting between night and day. But despite the below freezing temperatures in the daytime, melting still occurs since the solar rays are becoming stronger.

Given the 10-day forecast, it would not surprise me if the lakes and ponds around here have no ice within a week.

But...we've had cold and snowy April's before. It is New England!

[phoenix]

noticed that the water temperature is up 2 degrees over last few days. It won't be long

[Weirs guy]

I noticed what looks to be a major pressure ridge between perchwood and govenors islands last night. not sure how big it is, but you can see it from the top of tower hill. Whats strange is the big spot of open water looked like it was still frozen over with a skimming of ice from the morning (this was about 5:00 pm). What a crazy winter, and maybe a very hard ice out to predict once the big chunks start floating freely.

Hey emailmannh, was that you out on Weir bay last spring breaking up the ice with a jetski? Seems to me it was around mid April on a Saturday afternoon.

[JTA]

Silver Sands Marina had a cam for a few years. The great thing about that site was that they showed the same view on comparative days to the one that was current. (They GOT me on April Fools Day a couple of years ago by showing a "no ice" pic when there really was ice). Anyone know what happened to that cam?

[Steveo]

It's still there at:

http://www.nhboat.com/daily_update06.htm

They already have some great shots and comparisons with previous years.

Won't be long now

[Island Girl]

I have added the Silver Sands ice out page to my ice out page at www.rattlesnakecam.com/iceout.htm

Thanks Steveo, I was looking for that link.

[DBA]

I do appreciate the kind words from Upthesauke and DRH and the super help and encouragement that Island Girl has given me. It has enabled my pictures to be shared and I count myself among the very excited about the proximity of Ice Out!

[Rattlesnake Gal]

Welcome to the forum DBA and thanks for the wonderful photos!
I am exceedingly anxious to get back to the island. Hopefully it will be very soon.
As always IG, thanks for your organization for these important lake events!

[Pepper]

Indeed another wonderful addition to the "views of change!" Thanks to each of you who make contributions to the Ice-in-and-out page!

The past few days the changes are incredible, and I imagine the warm temps will make their mark even more dramatically in the next two or three days!

Any day now I expect to see the crew from Thurston's and Channel out there doing their part to drive the ice down-bay!

[Lin]

Anyone else keep watching that ice crack on the Bear Cam? Looks wider every day. Saw ice fishermen out in front the other day. Just checked Mt. Washington and they were talking about how fast the temp had jumped upwards last night from 15 degrees to 38 degrees melting the 2 1/2" of snow they had received.

[OVIDGSD]

Howdy all Pulling the shanty off the ice tomorrow....

Can anybody give me an "on the ground" report for aprox. how much water is currently on top of the ice in winter harbor or 19 mile bay or what the surface is like?

Most thanks!

[Diamond Isle]

DBA, Can you see if the ice looks safe from the Gilford side to get onto Diamond - or do I wait a week and take a boat?? Thanks for the pics showing Diamond - that's the side we are on!

[Lakegeezer]

We went by Center Harbor today and there are still cars, and even a camping trailer, on the ice. In M'boro bay, the ice pushed up on the rocks is solid and about 1 foot thick. Where there are cracks, its about 6" thick. So still safe in many spots - we have a ways to go before ice-out.

[Island Girl]

The north, north east side of Diamond is completely open water. I just went for a walk with DBA to look.

Amazing as it may seem... we are watching the ice melt. The big open area off Diamond has large white caps which are beating against the ice line and coming this way (Rattlesnake Island).

There are lots of very wet gray areas that we expect to see open up today or tomorrow.

Coming out on the ice boat.. it broke throught the ice a few times. The ice was quite thin in some areas...and getting punky.

It's coming folks!!! Get those boats ready.

IG

[Merrymeeting]

The last few years the magic water temp seems to be about 38 degrees. It's rising fast and the weather over the next few days won't slow it down any.

I hope folks plan on getting those vehicles and bob houses off the ice this weekend.

[upthesaukee]

Originally Posted by Island Girl

...Amazing as it may seem... we are watching the ice melt. ...
IG

It amazes me how much ice has melted this week. I wish I had taken a picture on Tuesday looking up the Merrymeeting River from the Rte 11 bridge. The river was solid ice at that point.

Here is a shot from 3-10-06:



And here it is on 03-11.



And the ice is out to the end of Downing's and Gillan's docks already!!!

[ghfromaltonbay]

Great shots showing what a difference 24 hours can make. You're making me homesick. Hopefully I can make the forum fest in 2 weeks for my NH and lobster roll fix. Save one for me, Pepper. It's a long way from Joisey, but worth the trip.

[RLW]

Originally Posted by Island Girl

It's coming folks!!! Get those boats ready.

IG

If I remember correctly, you were one of the many that was doing the snow dance just a few weeks ago so we could have a bed race. Gee, what a few warm days do to some people more especially when the ice shows signs of melting like yesterday and today.

[JTA]

Island Girl ... how about a picture of this ice boat that you are traveling around in?
I'm curious (and jealous?).

[Lakegeezer]

Originally Posted by JTA

Island Girl ... how about a picture of this ice boat that you are traveling around in?
I'm curious (and jealous?).

Is this one of the hovercraft gang? Four or five went by today.

[Island Girl]

Originally Posted by JTA

Island Girl ... how about a picture of this ice boat that you are traveling around in?
I'm curious (and jealous?).

I usually ride in a different boat, but here is today's ride. Somewhere in photopost, Lakegirl has a picture of the other one.

[DBA]

Hi to all the Ice Out Fans out there....
Just a reminder that the http://www.Rattlesnakecam.com/iceout.htm has updated pictures and webcams daily. Thanks to Upthesaukee for the latest pictures on the ice status there. The temps today were instrumental in changing the color, quality and "wetness" of today's ice. One of my late afternoon pictures today shows how much water has been absorbed by the ice. The next two days with their warmer temps and possible rain will help to further dissolve that ice barrier.
Here's to the earliest ice out ever!
DBA

[DRH]

That ice looks like it's ready to melt away anytime now! Thanks for the great shots from the northwest part of Rattlesnake, DBA.

[upthesaukee]

Here's a few pics besides what was posted on ice out today.

First is a shot from the town docks looking at the gazebo. Notice the debris left behind by bobhouses in the middle right and also just in front of the gazebo. Today's on-ice debris = tomorrow's boating hazard .



And here's a shot of the boat ramp. Notice the water coming right up to where vehicle go on and off, and notice the open water on the Shibley side. (truck did not go on the ice).



And a bob house off Sandy Point. Looks like open water around it!



and finally, more bobhouse out by Echo Point and also over on the Loon Cove side. The dot to the left of the bob house at Echo point is actually a snowmobile crossing the bay very slowly.



In those immortal words..."Th-th-th-tha-tha-that's all, folks!!!!"

[FLboater]

Can anyone get a picture of the Wolfeboro town docks ice conditions? I miss the WolfeCam.

[Island Girl]

The ice around Rattlesnake, Sleeper's, Cub and Treasure Islands has deteriorated much in the last 24 hours. It is very pourous and weak in most places. The airboat broke through the ice around the tip of Rattlesnake and was breaking the ice in others. That grey color that indicated punky ice is everywhere with a lot of very very wet places.

As you can see from DBA and Upthesaukee's ice out pictures there is a lot more open water.

We could literally watch the ice melt!

Stay tuned...
www.rattlesnakecam.com/iceout.htm

[emailmannh]

The jetski you saw in Weirs Bay last year was not me. I generally put in on Alton Bay because ice out is earlier there. It looks like ice out will be in other parts of the lake this year. Some of these pictures are unbelievable for this time in March. Should be on the water on or before April 1st!

[Weirs guy]

man, at this rate you may be on the lake tomorrow. we lost an awful lot of ice this weekend, and now the flows are starting. I'd guess its 2 or 3 weeks ahead of last year.

[JK47]

Are my eyes decieving me, or is this all water in the foreground?

[Orion]

That's all water....It was almost half water most of the season.....water to the left and ice to the right, but now all water. Get them boats ready!

[Zee]

I was amazed to see five bob houses still on 19 Mile Bay last evening. All bob houses are off Winter Harbor, Wolfeboro Bay and 20 Mile Bay. There was still one trailer out on Center Harbor on Saturday evening. It looked like one wheel was sunk down in the ice. The ice is turning dark everywhere, I sure hope they get them off in the next couple of days. Wolfeboro Bay has a lot of open water. I think we are still two weeks away from ice out but that is still real early. Time enough to wax up the boat.

[Resident 2B]

It looks like it will be turning cooler in a few days, but the wind will be up and stay up for about a week. Although it will be cold at night, the wind should keep working on the ice, so it is looking like a early April ice out to me.

Time will tell, but all the signs I know are pointing to that time frame. Ice out usually happens two to three weeks after the water gets to 36 degrees and that happened a few days ago. If you look at the Silver Sand's web site and go backwards from past ice-out dates to what the ice looks like today, you also get this time frame.

One concern I have is with even more ice damage to docks. There was a lot of open water and area where the ice got think. If the wind breaks the ice up into large chunks which is likely and these large chunks get driven by the wind across the open water onto shore, there will be a lot of momentium when these "mini-icebergs" strike land and docks. I hopeI am wrong on this, but it is looking more possible every day.

R2B

[RI Swamp Yankee]

Originally Posted by FLboater

Can anyone get a picture of the Wolfeboro town docks ice conditions? I miss the WolfeCam.

Here is one I took Feb 22, there wasn't much ice then, I expect less now.
Wolfeboro Town Docks

[JK47]

Does anyone know what the earliest ice out ever recorded is? It will be interesting to see if this year is competitive for the title...

[Island Girl]

Here is the list http://www.winnipesaukee.com/iceout.htm

[JK47]

Thanks, IG. It looks like March 28 is the date to beat. That's only two weeks away...

[ghfromaltonbay]

Usually they say that ice out occurs a week after the ice disappears from Lily Pond. Has anyone been by there lately?

[upthesaukee]

Went by there yesterday. No activity on the pond, still ice covered, but not looking all that safe, which is probably why no one was on the ice...duhhhhhh David!!!!

[DBA]

You are right on Resident 2B! We have left Rattlesnake Island as of about noon today (in the pouring rain) rather than stay and experience the winds that are predicted. I am also expecting some dock damage unless the winds just break the ice completely.

When we came across in the airboat today, the ice was firm enough to hold us most of the way. The western end of Rattlesnake was icebergs and open water. The rest of the trip was firm ice. It cracked under the weight, but it held. The rain will help and the winds will chew it up.

So sorry to say there will be no more daily picture postings from Rattlesnake. We expect there to be water by the time we will be returning (2 weeks).

Thanks for all the wonderful comments and we'll see you at the Forum Fest!
DBA

[Resident 2B]

DBA,

Thanks for the great photos and good luck with your dock. Hopefully the wind will break it into small pieces.

I just do not have a good feeling about this.

R2B

[Lakegeezer]

My back yard, where the boat is kept, is a soup bowl of mud on top of a frozen tundra. Here it is, looking like its time to pull the boat out of the back yard and get it ready to splash. But I can't, yet. To do so now would dig tire tracks that would never go away all summer. I'm hoping for one more freeze later this week, and the forecast is with me. Then I'll yank the boat out to the driveway, early some morning while the ground is still frozen. Not only will I get the boat ready for the early ice-out salmon fishing, but there is a side benefit. With the boat out from under its winter tarp, its bound to snow at least once in March or maybe on April fools day. Maybe one more ski day??

[Skip]

Another story on the ice-out with a gracious mention once again of the now famous Winnipesaukee.com!

When will the ice be out????

Skip

[Steveo]

OK, I will admit this may be a weird (if not irrelevant) question but how did they know when “Ice Out” was in 1888 or even 1921 (earliest ice out)? The official ice out criteria is when the Mount can navigate all of its ports. What was the criterion in 1888? They certainly didn’t have the good work of Emerson Aviation, let alone planes. No cars, no phones to coordinate sightings at each port. Did they telegraph each other? Was there some guy going around the lake on a horse everyday (?!?). Probably take a few days just to make it around the lake.

I told you it was a weird question; I was just wondering.

[Diamond Isle]

Originally Posted by DBA

So sorry to say there will be no more daily picture postings from Rattlesnake. We expect there to be water by the time we will be returning (2 weeks).

Thanks for all the wonderful comments and we'll see you at the Forum Fest!
DBA

I just wanted to say thanks for the great pictures around Diamond, sure beats the 30 mile drive over there! Looks like it's time to cut the shrinkwrap and get the boat ready!

[MAXUM]

Shoot last weekend I pulled mine out of the garage and fired her up! Man I love that sound!

[Resident 2B]

Originally Posted by Steveo

OK, I will admit this may be a weird (if not irrelevant) question but how did they know when “Ice Out” was in 1888 or even 1921 (earliest ice out)? The official ice out criteria is when the Mount can navigate all of its ports. What was the criterion in 1888? They certainly didn’t have the good work of Emerson Aviation, let alone planes. No cars, no phones to coordinate sightings at each port. Did they telegraph each other? Was there some guy going around the lake on a horse everyday (?!?). Probably take a few days just to make it around the lake.

I told you it was a weird question; I was just wondering.

I think back then they just used the NASA Images from Space found on the web. They kept things simple back in the old days.

On a bit more serious side, I had the same question.

[upthesaukee]

Originally Posted by FLboater

Can anyone get a picture of the Wolfeboro town docks ice conditions? I miss the WolfeCam.

Here you go!!!! Not often I get over that way with a camera...today was one of those days, and the weather cleared off before I got there (rained this morning).

Enjoy!!



Ice is not that far out from the docks. You might get a better look in the gallery:

Here's that link: http://www.winnipesaukee.com/photopo...php?photo=9026

[Weirs guy]

Originally Posted by ghfromaltonbay

Usually they say that ice out occurs a week after the ice disappears from Lily Pond. Has anyone been by there lately?

I thought the airports new runway lights screwed that up?

[GWC...]

Originally Posted by Merrymeeting

The last few years the magic water temp seems to be about 38 degrees. It's rising fast and the weather over the next few days won't slow it down any.

It would seem that the Lake is approaching the magic number:

http://www.winnipesaukee.com/tempcal/index.cgi

[Rattlesnake Gal]

For those who were not present for last year’s ice-out fun, here is a recap of my water temperature and ice-out correlation:
(With last year's numbers added.)

RG's 4/8/05 post

Here are the water temps preceding and at the time of ice-out.
Not sure of they have any value to anyone, but it kept me busy for a few minutes.

April 20th 2005 – 41 degrees two days before ice-out. (No recorded temps on 19th – 23rd. )

Temperature hit 39 degrees on April 10th – 11 days to ice-out.

April 20th 2004 - 42 degrees at ice-out.

Temperature hit 39 degrees on April 10th – 11 days to ice-out.

April 25th 2003 - 40 degrees at ice-out.

Temperature hit 39 degrees on April 19th – 7 days to ice-out.

April 5th 2002 - 41 degrees the day after ice-out.

Temperature hit 38 degrees (Doesn’t show 39) on March 28th – 8 days to ice-out.

May 2nd 2001 - 45 degrees at ice-out.

Temperature hit 39 degrees on April 24th – 9 days to ice-out.

No water temperatures for the preceding years.

http://webarchive.unionleader.com/ar...?article=53381 (April 15, 2005 article)

[Island Girl]

Thanks RG for the correlation.. I had about 41 degrees in my mind based on past years... Now if only we knew what the temp was in 1921 at ice-out!

[Quilt Lady]

Originally Posted by Island Girl

Now if only we knew what the temp was in 1921 at ice-out!

How about we go with "Dr. Who" (Sci-fi Channel Fri.@ 9PM) in his time machine (Tardis) and take our own readings! The only problem is that he never ends up where he thinks he's going! Ultimate Road Trip!!!

[Mr. V]

I'm curious as to whether there is a record of the Lake having had "ice out" declared, only to be followed by a deep freeze resulting in a second "ice in?"

[Mee-n-Mac]

Originally Posted by Quilt Lady

How about we go with "Dr. Who" (Sci-fi Channel Fri.@ 9PM) in his time machine (Tardis) and take our own readings! The only problem is that he never ends up where he thinks he's going! Ultimate Road Trip!!!

I don't think we can use 1921 as an indicator for ice-out purposes. It's been said that there was some Dalek plot to heat up the Earth that year. Can't say I've followed the good Dr much since Tom Baker (#4) left. Hopefully this incarnation is a good one Since BSG is on hiatus, I'm thinking this will be the new Friday night taping.

FWIW : http://uplink.space.com/showflat.php...&o=0&fpart=all

http://uplink.space.com/showflat.php...b=5&o=0&fpart=

ps - maybe Misty Blue will quiz us on what a tardis is ?

[Merrymeeting]

There is a very small retention pond near my house that I always use as my personal barometer for lake ice-out. It is usually about 2 weeks ahead of the lakes.

I was out of town for a few days. When I left on Sunday, it was still mostly ice with melting on the edges. When I returned yesterday, it was completely ice-free and the ducks who return to it for a brief time each Spring were swimming around. This morning it was skimmed over with a thin layer of ice once again.

With the cold weather of the next few days, I'm sticking with my early April forecast.

[Bizer]

I was looking at Don's Ice-out page. For those of us that like statistics:

Historicly, for the past 119 years, the average ice-out date has been April 20th with a standard deviation of 9 days.

For 285 guesses for the 2006 ice-out contest:

• The average date was April 9th
• The standard deviation was 10 days
• Nobody guessed May even though ice-out has occasionally occurred in May.
• 28 people (10%) guessed that the 2006 ice-out would occur before March 28th, the earliest ice-out on record.

[mcdude]

Nice Monet-like shot of sunset over the ice from Snake-Eyes tonight...

[DRH]

Originally Posted by Diamond Isle

DBA, Can you see if the ice looks safe from the Gilford side to get onto Diamond - or do I wait a week and take a boat?? Thanks for the pics showing Diamond - that's the side we are on!

As of this morning the entire area between Ames Farm and Diamond Island is open water. In fact, the open water area goes almost all the way to Rattlesnake. We've had gusty winds for four consecutive days now and the open water area by Diamond had white caps this morning.

[Steveo]

If you want to see sonmething really cool check out the Weirs cam and watch it clear in front of your eyes

[Rattlesnake Gal]

Can you add sound to a webcam?

[Steveo]

That would be cool too. Weirscam has the live video feed now so you can actually see it move. I am watching the Abekee live feed also to see it that big ice flow will head there next.

[wildwoodfam]

Anyone know when they'll start fly overs to do the real checks? Would be great to start seeing the progression of the lake from above. Oh and a Happy St Patrick's Day to ya!

[DRH]

We drove past Lily Pond this afternoon and it now has some areas of open water.

Also, the open water area between Belknap Point and Ellacoya State Park is huge now.

[Cal]

I just saw the Weirs cam and all the ice is GONE....WOW that was quick

[Resident 2B]

I was up at the lake last night and earlier today. Last night, the ice was making some deep groans so I knew something was up.

Early this morning, you could see the ice that was in front of the Weirs breaking away from the ice that covers Meredith Bay as the wind was blowing fairly strongly from the west-northwest. Once seperation was complete, the ice really started to move towards Governor's Island. Then, the wind shifted more northerly and it directed the ice towards the shore across from the Weirs. When I left, it had stopped moving, or slowed down a lot, due to engaging the breakwaters protecting the docks in that area.

The size of this is huge! It is at least a ten acres in area perhaps larger. If it wasn't for the stone breakwaters, the docks would not have a chance. If the wind shifts more westerly as it is forecasted to do, and this thing gets away from the shore and gets moving again, watch out!

It is amazing the tempature at the Weirs was in the mid 20s as this was happening. Many will think the ice melted. In this case, it is still ice, it just moved.

R2B

[Paugus Bay Resident]

I was driving down Cherry Valley this afternoon and was surprised by the amount of open water (over the last week). I'm sure the nasty, irritating, not welcome winds have something to do with it. I'll take some pictures from that vantage next week.

[Good N' You?]

Hello Everyone,
I am new here....Sort of! I have been reading and following along, but have had nothing really to say. So I thought I would "Break the Ice" no pun intended, and say Hello! I do wish all the ice was broken though. I don't go a day without thinking about boating season now. I love it on the lake! Especially early season!!! It can be sooo nice and calm!
I have been coming here (Paugus) for the last 7 years and my wife has been for the last 20 years. She was 10. I grew up on a lake and was on it every day of the summer...Sometimes in the rain and lightning So I thoroughly enjoy this wonderful lake. We have a new 7 month old who we can't wait to bring out on the boat and show him all this lake has to offer!
Sorry to ramble, but I thought I would give a little back ground too!

Calm seas ahead!
Good N' You?

[Rinkerfam]

Let me be the first to welcome you to the forum. I hope that you, your wife and your little one have a wonderful season in '06. My oldest was 4 months when he took his first ride on the big lake, and my little guy was 7 months. I suspect that once you get out on the water, we will be hearing from you more and more

[hazelnut]

A couple years ago we introduced our then 7 month old TWIN boys to boating/ Lake Winni/Island Living etc. It was a bit rough at first.... (took them while to get used to their life jackets) However, I am happy to report that once they got used to their Jackets everything was great. The hum of the engine is a GREAT nap inducer. Now when we are on the lake both boys can't WAIT for a boat ride. They jump up and down and say "boat ride, boat ride, boat ride, boat ride.... " until we cave and say "ok." They are now 2 1/2 years old and ready for their third boating season on Lake Winni.

[Grant]

Originally Posted by Good N' You?

Hello Everyone,
I am new here....Sort of! I have been reading and following along, but have had nothing really to say. So I thought I would "Break the Ice" no pun intended, and say Hello! I do wish all the ice was broken though. I don't go a day without thinking about boating season now. I love it on the lake! Especially early season!!! It can be sooo nice and calm!
I have been coming here (Paugus) for the last 7 years and my wife has been for the last 20 years. She was 10. I grew up on a lake and was on it every day of the summer...Sometimes in the rain and lightning So I thoroughly enjoy this wonderful lake. We have a new 7 month old who we can't wait to bring out on the boat and show him all this lake has to offer!
Sorry to ramble, but I thought I would give a little back ground too!

Calm seas ahead!
Good N' You?

Welcome. Always good when a "lurker" emerges from the shadows and says hello! This is a great forum.

[Pepper]

Welcome "Good N' You"!

Glad you've gotten past the "lurking" stage, and jumped in to join all the fun. You're now a part of the friendliest forum family in the free world!

[upthesaukee]

Originally Posted by Paugus Bay Resident

I was driving down Cherry Valley this afternoon and was surprised by the amount of open water (over the last week). I'm sure the nasty, irritating, not welcome winds have something to do with it. I'll take some pictures from that vantage next week.

And as I was coming home from the Alton Masonic Breakfast Buffet this morning, I snapped these two pictures of Merrymeeting River and the end of Alton Bay with new ice forming due to the cold temps. Current temp as I type this is 21 degrees, with a low of 17 forecasted. I would expect more ice to form overnight .

Here is the river:



And the bay:



If you go to the gallery, you can click on the picture and get a larger view showing the ice a little more clearly, especially on the river shot.

The good news: after Monday, the first day of spring by the way, the high temps for the next week will run between 37 and 45 degrees. The bad news: lows are forecasted below freezing each night during the same period.

[RLW]

Upthesaukee, is that signs of rebuilding in your picture of Downings gas dock? It looks as if I can see some new 2 by stock piled up and a few of the bumper blocks removed?
I don't believe the cold nites will hurt any as the sun is high enough during the days to remove ANYTHING the nites put on the lake/river.

[Merrymeeting]

Looks like we'll have status quo for awhile. Melting during the day, refreezing at night.

I couldn't believe it when I saw people on the ice on the Pine Island cam yesterday. Hopefully the ice is still safe out there.

On another note, anyone know what it is on the ice just to the right of the tree in the Pine Island cam? It's been there most of the winter.

[Pine Island Guy]

On another note, anyone know what it is on the ice just to the right of the tree in the Pine Island cam? It's been there most of the winter.

We were wondering that too, but found out on our walk a few weeks ago with Misty Blue that it's a raft that must have broken loose last fall...

Also was surprised to see people out on the ice over the weekend... the new Pine Island South Cam shows a lot of open water in the area these days... http://mysite.verizon.net/pineisland/PineIslandGuy2.jpg

cheers!

PIG

[Loon E. Tunes]

Thanks for the new cam site Pine Island Guy!!! That would have come in very handy last weekend when I was walking out to Three Mile. Found a safe approach from Leavitt Park though. The ice seemed to be pretty thick with some pickup trucks out on the ice!

[trfour]

Hi Pine Island Guy,

I noticed the Moxie bottle over there on the railing behind the Ice Out speedomeater, on the left in this clip. When does the recycle truck get by over there?

Reason for asking is, would'nt want that bottle to get blown into the Lake.

Back in the day, I did some bare foot'in, would'nt want to stub my toe on it. .... course, I still got rounded shoulders, from where my butt hit me after a crash or two, while learning!!

Anyway, I'm a big fan of all the webcams and just wanted to thank you for yours.
T.

[upthesaukee]

Originally Posted by RLW

Upthesaukee, is that signs of rebuilding in your picture of Downings gas dock? It looks as if I can see some new 2 by stock piled up and a few of the bumper blocks removed?
I don't believe the cold nites will hurt any as the sun is high enough during the days to remove ANYTHING the nites put on the lake/river.

If you check out this link:

http://www.winnipesaukee.com/photopo...t&limit=recent

That will show the large version of the picture. It is indeed stacks of wood that I guess will be used to repair the docks. Downing's docks appear to have suffered from some ice damage this winter. Hopefully they can get it fixed before opening day of fishing season.

[GWC...]

Originally Posted by trfour

I noticed the Moxie bottle over there on the railing behind the Ice Out speedomeater...

If you take another and closer look, that Moxie may be a bottle of home brew

That ability and the label were mentioned in a prior thread, past my memory span, though - a search might do the trick.

[trfour]

Thats okay GWC,


I'm always mindful of potential site sponsors. I just thought Moxie had a better ring to it, than Kelcy's 150 proof shine.

[Pine Island Guy]

Originally Posted by trfour

I'm always mindful of potential site sponsors. I just thought Moxie had a better ring to it, than Kelcy's 150 proof shine.

The bottle is indeed a home-brew, one of Misty Blue's I believe, which would be "Red Hill Ale"... or it could have been a "Pine Island Brown Ale"... believe me, both have plenty of "Moxie"!!!

As the tag-line says "Stop by for a brew or a few"... and enjoy the view on the webcam

PIG

[trfour]

Thats very interesting P I Guy,

Does Misty or yourself make a nonalcohol version Ale? I don't drink the high test anymore.
I'd like to take a ride over there this summer some time and check out the cam setup and have a drink with you.

I've been watching Ice in and ice out all winter, a fantastic job!! Keep up the great work.


T.

[dogboy]

It didn't have fancy labels or even any label at all, but in the mid-90s the one-man East Bear Island Brewing Co. made some good Altbier and Kolsch with springwater hauled from the Douglass spring. But then children appeared and the local micros prevailed.

[Skip]

Here's the latest scoop on ice-out according to the fine folks over at the Citizen

[Grant]

Originally Posted by Pine Island Guy

The bottle is indeed a home-brew, one of Misty Blue's I believe, which would be "Red Hill Ale"... or it could have been a "Pine Island Brown Ale"... believe me, both have plenty of "Moxie"!!!

As the tag-line says "Stop by for a brew or a few"... and enjoy the view on the webcam

PIG

Good one. I once messed with an IPA recipe and named the resulting brew "Laughing Loon Lager" (it was an IPA-ish recipe that I brewed with Lager yeast). Don't know if I still have the recipe, but your post puts me in the mood for brewing a batch, and if I start now, I'll have a case of home brew to bring up for the "opening up" weekend.

Perhaps I'll call it "Black Fly Bogus IPA"...

My friend Eddie Stebbins, of "Gritty McDuff's" brewpub in Portland has a beer called "Black Fly Stout"...good stuff.

[spotsink]

Just noticed that Snake Eyes is back up and sending real time images of the lake.

[Island Girl]

Yes, Snake Eyes is back. The Snake Eyes repair team set out in the airboat this morning, braving the icebergs, water and thin ice to restart the cam and modem. She started right up and sent her first picture within a minute.

The team was happy to help... and took a nice ride over lots of open water and lots of ice and a couple of fields of the funniest looking ice and ice bergs we have ever seen. Pictures later... tomorrow maybe.... after PepperFest.

IG

[upthesaukee]

I noticed the ice from about the pavillion to the band stand is really getting gray and could just disappear at any time. The slightly warmer weather scheduled over the next few days could end up getting a bunch of this ice outta here!!!!