Pond Safety in Whites

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erugs

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Are any ponds safe yet? My gut reaction would be, Not Yet! but we saw some people out on the middle of Lake Chocorua on Sunday, including a person with a huge kite/sail in the late afternoon. Maybe he had gotten his start on a summit somewhere?
 
Are any ponds safe yet? My gut reaction would be, Not Yet! but we saw some people out on the middle of Lake Chocorua on Sunday, including a person with a huge kite/sail in the late afternoon. Maybe he had gotten his start on a summit somewhere?

A lot of factors go into the ice safety question. Spring-fed, wind, shoreline, sun, etc. Here's one reference:

http://www.nodakoutdoors.com/ice_fishing_safety.php

thin-ice-chart.gif


Just because you have 4" at this spot, doesn't mean there will be 4" at that spot. NH Fish and Game recommends 4-6" as well. These recommendations are for clear / "blue" ice. Not for white, hex, or otherwise crispy ice.

Tim
 
Carter Lake up in the notch has a foot of solid ice on it.
Lonesome Lake is more questionable ... while it appears solid, walking near the edge there were many spots of open water right along the shore, some of which showed a few too many ripples in the water for comfort as we walked past.
 
Are any ponds safe yet? My gut reaction would be, Not Yet! but we saw some people out on the middle of Lake Chocorua on Sunday, including a person with a huge kite/sail in the late afternoon. Maybe he had gotten his start on a summit somewhere?

Possibly in training as a late entrant for the 2008 Darwin Awards? ;)
 
A lot of factors go into the ice safety question. Spring-fed, wind, shoreline, sun, etc. Here's one reference:

http://www.nodakoutdoors.com/ice_fishing_safety.php

thin-ice-chart.gif


Just because you have 4" at this spot, doesn't mean there will be 4" at that spot. NH Fish and Game recommends 4-6" as well. These recommendations are for clear / "blue" ice. Not for white, hex, or otherwise crispy ice.

Tim
Every year, it seems I read about a person who drove their truck out onto Lake George, and now they no longer own that truck! :eek:
 
Thanks for starting this thread! And actually, before I realized this thread had been posted, I asked a similar question today when responding to a reply to a TR that I posted about Kinsman Pond. So, I’ll add my question to this thread.

My question is this. Short of schlepping an ice auger or a probe with you to make holes for measuring the ice thickness, is there some other "tried & true" method for determining when it’s reasonably safe to walk on a frozen pond/lake?
 
My question is this. Short of schlepping an ice auger or a probe with you to make holes for measuring the ice thickness, is there some other "tried & true" method for determining when it’s reasonably safe to walk on a frozen pond/lake?

Sure, let your hiking partner go first.
 
And another question, 1HappyHiker:

When do you or do you not interfer with what you see others doing? I had a sinking feeling in my gut when I saw what looked like a family on the pond in the morning, but didn't stop because I saw the car in front of mine pull over quickly. ("They'll take care of it," I hoped.)
 
Last edited:
Thanks for starting this thread! And actually, before I realized this thread had been posted, I asked a similar question today when responding to a reply to a TR that I posted about Kinsman Pond. So, I’ll add my question to this thread.

My question is this. Short of schlepping an ice auger or a probe with you to make holes for measuring the ice thickness, is there some other "tried & true" method for determining when it’s reasonably safe to walk on a frozen pond/lake?
Last winter I had to cross a questionable pond. I eased out on the ice, and crawled for a while, spreading my weight out. When it did not make any noise, I stood up and walked a few steps. All was well. I slowly proceeded across the pond. I didn't fall in. YMMV...
 
Ellen - the reason the vehicle may have stopped might be related more to trespassing than safety. The locals won't even let you stop your vehicle on the dirt road near that lake/pond, so maybe the stopping vehicle had more to do with that.

I recall being accosted by an exceptionally rude woman as I waited one fall day for a hiking friend to show up as we used that spot (it's pretty obvious) to hook up for the hike to the peak. I can only imagine what her reaction might have been if she saw someone ON the lake!
 
1HappyHiker said:
My question is this. Short of schlepping an ice auger or a probe with you to make holes for measuring the ice thickness, is there some other "tried & true" method for determining when it’s reasonably safe to walk on a frozen pond/lake?
Sure, let your hiking partner go first.
Guess it’s safe to assume that you’re not volunteering to be the “partner” who goes first?!:D
 
Well it IS one of the safest ways to test -- the few times I've been ice fishing in the early part of the year, we always sent the lighter guy out first, roped to the heavier guy. You can also make a pair of spikes (nails in a wood dowel) which are connected up and through your sleeves, which would help you pull yourself back up. Walking in a S tests a wider area before you get too deep.

Or you can cut a test hole every few feet with a chisel, drill, or pry bar. All heavy options for the back country, but they work fine if ice fishing.

For a really good time, go out on tidal ice, like in the Great Bay estuaries (smelt!!! YUM!) - the ice rises and falls on the tide like a big ice cube. People throw 2x10s from shore to the thick ice because the edge buckles from the tide changes. As the tide falls, the water level in the holes decreases until the ice "falls" and the water comes up out of the hole. On a rising tide it works the other way -- the water comes up out of the hole, then the floating ice berg gets lifted up and all the water drains back down into the hole.

Tim
 
Tom - your experience of starting off crawling reminded me of the first time I walked across a pond. It was Lonesome Lake in mid January and I was a novice and taking part in a "try your new snowshoes" trip. When we first arrived at the pond, the leader said, "This pond is never frozen enough to safely cross." We walked the trail around the edge and when we were getting ready to return, the leader said, "Well, let's try it. Keep a distance of 15 feet apart and if you fall in just call out. Spread your arms and I'll try to come and rescue you." I followed across the pond with my heart pounding loudly enough to break the ice yet we were safe. I should have realized he would never take a chance, that it had been very,very cold for a good length of time.

Yet I also remember being a kid and jumping across open water on the pond in the woods so I could get to some ice to slide on. I'm grateful to be here to write about it all these years later.
 
There have been several threads about this. I am always very conservative on this. There are VERY few objectives that really "require" the hiker to cross frozen water. You can almost always walk around. For those few trips that really require the frozen crossing, I don't plan those until the dead of winter after extended cold, when I'm sure the water's solid. Why risk it? Just schedule the trip when it makes sense.
 
Well it IS one of the safest ways to test -- the few times I've been ice fishing in the early part of the year, we always sent the lighter guy out first, roped to the heavier guy.
But Tim, maybe it would be better to let the heavier guy go first . . . might float better than the skinny guy . . . easier rescue?
(Obviously, just kidding . . . thanks the for info!!)
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The kite might have been for kiteskiing. This is like kite surfing except you use skis or a snowboard on your feet and do it on frozen lakes or open fields.
 
Another use for an ice axe. Much lighter and you might even have one any way...

Doug

How big a hole would you have to make to get to water? Assuming you are using the adze, it would be a fairly large hole to get either 4" deep or to hit water, as it would need to be bowl-shaped. Would the pick work?

When ice fishing, we take a 20 pound pry bar and chop straight down in an X pattern. Takes 30 seconds to go down a foot. When smelting on the tidal estuaries, we would cut a 3 foot long, 4" wide hole and fish 2 rods x 2 or 3 guys. 4" wide is "hard" to fall into.

Tim
 
How big a hole would you have to make to get to water? Assuming you are using the adze, it would be a fairly large hole to get either 4" deep or to hit water, as it would need to be bowl-shaped. Would the pick work?

When ice fishing, we take a 20 pound pry bar and chop straight down in an X pattern. Takes 30 seconds to go down a foot. When smelting on the tidal estuaries, we would cut a 3 foot long, 4" wide hole and fish 2 rods x 2 or 3 guys. 4" wide is "hard" to fall into.

Tim

My old Bill Forrest metal ice axe has sharp corners on the adz, so it works really well for chipping and prepping the surface for my ice augers to get a better bite. You can also use the ferrule end of the axe for downward chipping, but obviosly that is not going to work as well as your heavy crow bar, which is what the Innuit use with a neatly wrapped thin rope with lanyard around the top end in early season before the lake ice becomes more than a couple of meters thick, at least those folks who not own a Jiffy drill. :)
 
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