Lake Erie Ice Facts and Info

[West Basin]

Ice Fisherman,

Love reading the ice fishing reports, which most of the discussion seems to be about ice conditions. I've been wanting to look into info on Lake Erie Ice, so now's a good time. I'll post any interesting and helpful info I find on this forum.

First thing I found out today is there are many "trenches" or gashes all over the lake bottom from ice sheet subduction at pressure ridges. Evidently they look like giant plow furrows when viewed underwater. The ice apparently can go down 60 feet or more and act like a huge monsterous ice plow.

More to come.

West

[jam]

how can the ice be down 60 feet, when the ave lake depth is 18 feet? where are all the perch?

[thehunter]

I appreciate the ice conditions report for our Western Basin of Lake Erie (for me Brest Bay to Catawba). THANKS! We at this end of the lake do tend to think of Lake Erie as only what we see sometimes. I for one am not familiar with any of the Lake west of the islands ! Here are some facts that should help...........AND I'd like to hear more about these "trenches" and where to find such information. TK


Lake Erie is the smallest of the Great Lakes in volume (119 cubic miles) and is exposed to the greatest effects from urbanization and agriculture. Measuring 241 miles across and 57 miles from north to south, the lake's surface is just under 10,000 square miles, with 871 miles of shoreline. The average depth of Lake Erie is only about 62 feet (210 feet, maximum). It therefore warms rapidly in the spring and summer, and frequently freezes over in winter. The drainage basin covers parts of Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Ontario. Because of its fertile soils, the basin is intensively farmed and is the most densely populated of the five lake basins.