Ice Safety is for Everyone

PANCAKE ICE ON LAKE SUPERIOR – Pancake ice is a relatively rare sight, forming only along shorelines with enough wind and waves to agitate the water at a time when the temperatures just below freezing. This picture was taken out on Sand Point by the boat launch on January 8, 2024. Erin Putvin

As ice begins to form again in the Upper Peninsula, don’t allow your enthusiasm for outdoor adventures to get the better of you. Remember, every year someone falls through the ice, sometimes with fatal consequences.

How can you keep safe? The state of Michigan’s Department of Natural Resources has put together several important tips to keep in mind as you enjoy the outdoors this winter.

Taken from DNR website at https://www.michigan. gov/dnr/education/ safety-info/ice

• Your safety is your responsibility! There is not a reliable “inch-thickness” to determine if ice is safe.

• You can test ice thickness and quality using a spud, needle bar or auger.

• Strongest ice: clear with bluish tint.

• Weak ice: ice formed by melted and refrozen snow. Appears milky.

• Stay off ice with slush on top. Slush ice is only half as strong as clear ice and indicates the ice is not freezing from the bottom.

• A sudden cold front with low temperatures can create cracks within a half-day.

• A warm spell may take several days to weaken ice, and cause the ice to thaw during the day and refreeze at night.

• Ice weakens with age.

• If there’s ice on the lake, but water around the shoreline, be extra cautious.

• The stronger the current on the lake, the more likely the ice will give to open water.

• Avoid areas of ice with protruding debris like logs or brush.

• Keep an eye out for dock bubblers or de-icers as the ice near these mechanisms will be unsafe. Always check the ice and be aware of your surroundings.

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