dc51
Level 2 Rank
Posts: 97
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Post by dc51 on Jan 9, 2010 15:21:37 GMT
It's 30 years since I've been able to walk on frozen water, so this brings back memories of my youth. But the lakes I live near now are different to the canal I grew up beside. Out on the lake this morning, (about 25 hectors) I drilled through, found it to be about 5.5'', but got a bit uneasy when we heard loud cracking noises?
Anybody any thoughts on this?
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Post by sigurdur on Jan 9, 2010 15:32:26 GMT
It's 30 years since I've been able to walk on frozen water, so this brings back memories of my youth. But the lakes I live near now are different to the canal I grew up beside. Out on the lake this morning, (about 25 hectors) I drilled through, found it to be about 5.5'', but got a bit uneasy when we heard loud cracking noises? Anybody any thoughts on this? Smiling..... This is normal as the water freezes and the pressure lines crack. IF you have 5.5" of ice, you are safe. The main thing is to watch for current areas. The ice will be a lot thinner in those areas and subject to break through from weight. |
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Post by woodstove on Jan 9, 2010 16:35:41 GMT
It's 30 years since I've been able to walk on frozen water, so this brings back memories of my youth. But the lakes I live near now are different to the canal I grew up beside. Out on the lake this morning, (about 25 hectors) I drilled through, found it to be about 5.5'', but got a bit uneasy when we heard loud cracking noises? Anybody any thoughts on this? Smiling..... This is normal as the water freezes and the pressure lines crack. IF you have 5.5" of ice, you are safe. The main thing is to watch for current areas. The ice will be a lot thinner in those areas and subject to break through from weight. The following link (pegged to Boston and its environs) provides a reasonably complete discussion of ice thickness: www.citysource.com/Seasons/ice.htmlI make a point of not being the first person on any ice  After I have skated a particular body of water during a particular winter, though, I will skate on it alone (and have many times). The best skate ever: early-season, smooth ice on a 20-acre lake, by myself, with light snow falling, the quarter-inch of snow making my skates silent on the ice. The ice on that lake, during warmings and coolings, resounded like a huge drum with God rubbing his thumb across the surface: mwaaaaaaaaaa. (Crackings, too.) This was in Southern Rhode Island. Joy. |
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Post by aj1983 on Jan 9, 2010 18:58:48 GMT
Smiling too..
That sound can be as loud as thunder. I've been skating on lakes together with my dad, and when dusk fell (rapid cooling) we produced one hell of a crack which went all the way to the horizon. It must have been at least a few km long. Quite scary but exiting. We have many small and relatively large lakes which are connected by canals, so you can almost skate indefinitely if it freezes long enough. (The Elfstedentocht is an ice skating tour (circle) which is about 200 km long, for example.)
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dc51
Level 2 Rank
Posts: 97
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Post by dc51 on Jan 9, 2010 19:28:28 GMT
I'm a bit long in the tooth for skating myself, but my sons want to go out tomorrow. There are some distinctive lines stretching out along the ice, so I think I come along with a long rope!
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nikmb
New Member
Posts: 10
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Post by nikmb on Jan 12, 2010 12:14:22 GMT
Take a small wooden ladder or plank as well so you can lie on it to spread the weight evenly across the ice if you have to take emergency action to get someone out of the water.
You can tie the rope to it and drag it behind you.
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