Ice conditions

[DoubleD]

Take a look at the pictures on this web page. You an see it breaking up nicely at the Toledo shipping channel lighthouse.

http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/metdata/tol2/

[jiginitis69]

Hopefully clouds stay away this afternoon & we get a good satillite pic from Modis. Weather forecast sounds favorable for ice break up. Temps in high 40's, Rain, & South winds shifting to west and increasing. Hopefully current thaws out launches & gives some access. Don't need much this time of year.

[West Basin]

If any lakeshore locals have a visible report on the ice I'm sure many folks here would love updates, including myself. Yes, the NOAA shipping channel light webcams show some open water and the ice has been moving around that lighthouse, but the latest Satellite photo without cloud cover still shows the Western Basin around 90% ice coverage. The cold temperatures this week have slowed the melt and maybe even increased the ice cover, or stabilized it.

One look at the latest Satellite image with the entire Lake at around 75 - 80% ice coverage means the Western Basin will probably be locked in for at least another few days. The water temperatures are still 33 degrees across much of the lake. Once the melt and breakup begins again it will probably take weeks for the ice to clear completely. It all depends on the temperatures and rainfall.

At this point I wouldn't plan on any safe open water fishing until at the earliest the week of April 07 - 13. Even if the ice has broken up and a lot of it has melted, one north or east wind could push flow pieces back into the Western Basin and make boating hazardous.

It's going to be a late start to the open water fishing season, no matter what.

[tinkertoy]

Was fun to see the icebergs flow thru the shipping channel, wont be long.
Not sure but I thought I saw Jignitis sitting on an iceberg jigging going past the camera, was that you Jiggy??? LOL.