Residents keep watch on yearly ice patterns

Whether for recreation purposes or simple curiosity, a few longtime Whitefish residents have been keeping an eye on Whitefish Lake during the winter.

Opinions vary on whether the freeze and thaw cycles of the lake have changed over the years. Some have said there doesn’t seem to be a noticeable change in when the lake freezes. Still, others say the lake is freezing later in the winter than it has in the past and for a shorter period of time.

The winter of 2012-13 the lake remained mostly open and this year the lake has frozen over completely.

Charlie Abell grew up on the lake. He remembers his father clearing off the snow in Monks Bay so folks could come to build a bonfire and ice skate. Abell graduated from Whitefish High School in 1958 and returned home in 1965.

“In my memory, nearly every year it has frozen,” he said. “Last year was as open as I’ve ever seen it.”

Last winter the lake only froze some in the bays, he noted, something he never recalls happening before. Generally, he says, the lake seems to be frozen over by early January. Usually the lake water is open by the end of April.

“I remember teasing my boys on April Fool’s Day that the ice was gone and we could go fishing,” he said. “There was a time or two that it didn’t go out until May 1, but that wasn’t usual.”

Abell said last winter seemed to be warmer and this winter has been colder than normal.

“This year has been different and last year was different from the last 20 years,” he said. “But I don’t think either is part of a trend.”

Jim Stack has lived on the lake for the last 28 years. For many years, he and wife Lisa served on the Whitefish Lakeshore Protection Committee. They have had an interest in the lake, but keeping an eye on the lake in winter came from their desire to ice skate and cross-county ski across the frozen surface. They began to keep a diary of their observations in an attempt to predict when the lake might freeze each year.

“The freezing is almost unpredictable for when it will happen,” Stack said. “The earliest I’ve seen it freeze is Dec. 20, but I’ve also seen it freeze as late as February.”

Stack has observed some factors that he says are key to whether or not the lake will freeze. The lake water has to be at 39 degrees or less, there needs to be a couple of days of sub-zero temperatures, and there can’t be any wind blowing, he said.

“Sometimes the lake tries to freeze four to five times during the winter, but the weather just doesn’t stay quite calm and cold enough,” he said.

Stack said thawing generally occurs between April 1 and April 20, but even that is dependent on spring temperatures. How the ice thaws is highly variable — sometimes as a solid ice pack, sometimes as ice crystals and sometimes it disappears overnight.

“The ice can go out in a very short period of time — in a 12 to 24 hour period,” he said. “It’s not unusual for it to be gone over night.”

Based on his observations over the years, Stack doesn’t think the freezing or thawing of the lake has changed.

“The perception is that with global warming it might be freezing less, but that doesn’t seem to be the case,” he said. “Some years, it just doesn’t freeze. Not freezing doesn’t seem to be more frequent now than in the past.”

Steve Thompson also watches the lake so he can lace up his skates and head out when it has safely frozen. He’s lived in Whitefish for 20 years and currently lives along the lake. He says he can usually count on the lake being frozen over by New Year’s Day.

“The ice on the lake is a good indicator of the winter temperature,” he said. “There will be good ice if it’s been very cold.”

During the time he’s lived here, Thompson said the date the lake is freezing appears to have shifted two weeks later than it was in the past. While he doesn’t specifically watch for a thaw date, he has noted that the lake seems to be frozen for a shorter period of time each winter.

“The lake seems to be an indicator of what’s happening with the weather,” he said. “It seems to be melting out faster.”

Thompson said that the winter weather has been changing. He pointed to the fact that Whitefish Lake remained in open water last winter and this year has frozen over completely.

“Typically there’s a January thaw where we get three days above freezing,” he said. “Now we seem to be having that in January and February. We’re getting warm temperatures along with cold, arctic spells.”