Last Weekend

I've just begun my ice fishing career and, to date, have not caught a fish.  Skating a lap around the lake at a 6 minute a mile clip while drinking my coffee (seriously), I ran into Tom and Frank.  They are seasoned anglers and were having great success.

From top left to bottom right: yellow perch, white perch, sunny

 There's a real chance the skating may be great again this weekend, but we may have trouble accessing the ice on the edges.  Let's wait and see.  In the meantime, here's some video of last weekend.  It's kind of nauseating, but you can appreciate Jones Hill/Mohegan Highlands to the right of the screen--especially at the end.

A Little Zamboni Action And Then...Boom!

At least that's what I'm hoping for.  There's still 4 inches of ice under 3 inches of slush.  After this quick freeze is gonna give us another 6-7 inches of ice just in time for the Monday holiday.  The ice gods have been good to us this year (as opposed to last).  Get your blades sharpened and your wax worms ready.

Boom.

Mohegan Lake: 2/3/13

I don't have much to add.  It was very pretty Sunday morning.  Top of the lake looking south (Stay away from the East side[left in this pic], it's thinnest).  The other photos are of Ansonia Lodge and the condos.

Wow.

d

"Nature's Zamboni"

This photo was sent in by reader Abby from the south side of Mohegan Lake with the subject "Nature's Zamboni."  I love it cause's it's true.  That warm spell and heavy rain did us ice skaters a favor.  Sure looks choppy in spots, but I'm exited to explore this weekend and next--at least. 


Be careful on the edges.  Be very careful. Take some basic safety measures (life jacket and ice claws is a good start).  Be prepared for the worst. Never go near the Mohegan Ave culvert as that is moving water.  The east side edges of the lake are thinnest, in my opinion.  One more solid week of sub freezing temps and we should be at least 10 inches.

Keep thinking chilly thoughts.  It continues to work.

Conditions Are Perfect: 1/25/13

Are you ready for the First Annual Mohegan Lake Ice Fishing Derby and Skating Extravaganza that begins tomorrow?

Here's some video from Thursday evening.  There is some interesting ice on the lake; my sphincter tightens as I go over the starfish-octopus-blood vessel shaped black ice.  The previous ice never melted and the old fishing wholes opened up in that warm spell, creating those interesting shapes.  I reached my hand in an ice fisherman's hole (created late this afternoon) and it's 6+ inches in the middle of the lake.  The edges are thinner; the SOLE beach is just frozen so stay away. 

Hope to see you out there tomorrow.  I'm aiming to do a lap around the entire lake tomorrow morning with my cousin.  Under the bridge?  Maybe.

It's Colder Than A...

Keep thinking chilly thoughts.  The 1st annual Mohegan Lake Ice Fishing Derby and Magical Skating Party will begin on 1/26/2013.  It will continue as long as the weather cooperates.  The high of 31 we see today will be the highest temp through next weekend with a low of 6 on Wednesday night.


In researching lake ice,  I came across this great blog from a fellow from upstate [?].  I highly recommend you take a peek; if nothing else, at least check out the ice safety sections. This is a link to the ice growth section where I found the chart.

Many factors weigh into ice formation, such as lake flow, vegetation, the topography of the lake bed, etc...but this is a good rule of thumb for average temps. This puts us at least 5 or 6 inches of new ice (plus the existing) next Saturday.

                                                     Lake ice: It's science!

In the meantime brush up on your ice safety; if you need supplies like an ice auger to drill a hole to ice fish, shop local at the Mohegan Sportsman.  Bear Mountain will sharpen you skates for five bucks (great deal and they do a great job); a good edge is essential for a fun time on skates.

I leave you with this amazing video (also found on the Lake Ice blog) from Sweden.  It's on a lake  1.5 times as big as Lake Champlain and has underwater waves that creates this powerful display of ice sheets being crushed together like tectonic plates?  I really don't know what's going on, but check it out.

Weekend Wrap Up

Wow.  It sure is special when the lake freezes and--even if for just a few brief days--we have a very different and intimate experience of Mohegan Lake; from ice fishing to skating, it's a beautiful asset for the whole lake community. 

Alone with his thoughts, and some frozen fishes.  In the distance, the Holland Sporting Club property.

It's important that the Shrub Oak Lake Estates (SOLE) home owners are cognizant that, in addition to the parking at the SOLE beach, they have a permanent deeded right to park on another lakefront lot "at all times" and "at no cost."  When SOLE sold this parcel to the Lakeland Jewish Center (now Faith Bible Church [FBC]), it stipulated 5 permanent terms and conditions when they sold it to Lakeland Jewish, and those terms still carry the weight of law.   I only mention it because some of the legally required signage indicating the SOLE member parking seems to have gone missing.  The deed restrictions clearly state such signage should be present; just be aware it is available for SOLE members to use in addition to FBC members.   You can read the history of that parcel here.  [Click "read more" below to continue reading]

The One Hundred and Five Acre Ice Rink In My Front Yard

Can't get enough of the frozen lake.  Skating, for me, is very therapeutic and serene.  That is all for today.  Again, this is not an endorsement of the lake's safety.  Attempt fun activities on the frozen lake at your own peril.

Starting 'em early in their PJs, to boot.

Huzzah! Fish (and skate) On.

Fish on.

Spooky.

I got a good 30 minutes of skating in this morn.  Ice is perfect.  A bit thin(3"), but perfect.  Just a reminder: you take your own life into your hands when you step out there so know what you're doing and, it's a private lake--trespassing is bad.

Ice, Ice, Baby: Part Deux

It's surely been cold enough to make some nice clean ice. We just broached 32 degrees today (about 35) for the first time in over a week, I believe. Last week, the Mohegan Highlands Property Owners Association (MHPOA) made a last minute effort to retrieve our floating dock. We were too late and are now left to ponder how badly the ice will chew it up this winter.

The ice had just decended past the dock overnight.  We did note the new dock that seems to be dating ours.  If you're missing your dock, let us know, it's frozen next to our and we'll return it this spring.  Oh by the way, are you missing a boat?

Damn Geese.

Looking North.  You can see the ice descends from the north.  I sure love watching Deadliest Catch, and am reminded of the icepack in the arctic descending down and wreaking havoc on the crews' pots.  But I digress. (photo credit: Abby Luby)

We sure have a beautiful lake.  (photo credit: Abby Luby)

Just to the right of the Tulip Tree, and just below that first branch--above the two wires--you can see a couple wild and crazy guys ice fishing on Thursday.  A bit premature?  Possibly.  I'm going to take some ice cores tomorrow and report back.  Will probably break out my skates to do it.

In summary, don't go out on the ice unless you, a) have a legal right to be there--it is a private lake after all and, b) are prepared to die; it's a dangerous thing walking on ice.  It's not just the thickness of ice, but how it formed and many weather factors--not just temperature, plus the thermodynamics of the lake, vegetation, lake flow, blah, blah, blah.

Read up on New York State DEC guidelines on ice fishing safety here.  Let's pray for more, consistently frozen temps and we should have an awesome winter!