Ice Out: Some lakes are ice-free a month earlier than 2 years ago
Ice out is running early this year. That's a big change form the past few years.
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Your favorite lake may be open for some quality socially distant boating earlier than usual this spring.
Ice out is already progressing across southern Minnesota. Many smaller lakes and bays on bigger lakes in the Twin Cities are already ice-free on the last day of March.
Here’s the latest map from the Minnesota DNR.
A week early
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Ice out is running about a week earlier than average across southern Minnesota so far. Iowa Lake on the Minnesota-Iowa border was ice-free on March 20. That’s 6 days earlier than average.
In the Twin Cities, many smaller lakes are already ice-free.
The bays on bigger lakes like Minnetonka are open. Here’s the view of Excelsior Bay from maynard’s on Lake Minnetonka. You can see open water in the bay, and the remaining sheet of ice on the main lake in the distance.
A month earlier than 2018
2018 was the record late year for ice out for many Minnesota lakes. Some Minnesota lakes are ice-free a full month earlier than 2 years ago.
This year Clear Lake near Waseca went out Sunday, March 29. In 2018 it held ice until April 29!
I see black ice on many lakes now. That’s a sure sign they're ready to give up their winter coats.
The weather pattern looks favorable for many of the bigger lakes to lose ice in the next week. We’ll be out enjoying our favorite Minnesota lakes earlier than the past few years.
Here’s a great explainer on how lake ice melts on our Minnesota lakes.
