Soft Ice And Messy Weather
This weekend we finally had enough time in our schedule to go fishing – yay! Unfortunately, Mother Nature didn’t think it would be nice to cooperate with our plans. The temperature got warmer yesterday, and between the rain and freezing rain, Darrell and I knew it would be difficult to find safe ice. We packed up the truck anyway, and headed out to Fairy Lake, hoping that we might get lucky, but knowing that the weather made that unlikely.
Generally speaking, when the drive starts like this, you don’t get your hopes up.
My hopes were dashed as soon as I saw the ice. I wasn’t walking out there. Sometimes it’s that easy, to just look at the ice and know, based on the colour, the slush, and it’s overall appearance, that you won’t feel safe on it. Tracks from earlier in the day showed that some anglers had made it out, but my guess is that they noticed it getting soft around them and decided to leave before we arrived. Darrell took the spud out and found the ice near shore was extremely soft, often giving way in one or two blows. We checked at both Prospect Park and the Legion, finding soft, quickly rotting ice wherever we looked. A few cold days should pull it back together, but Fairy was a no-go for this weekend.
Looking out on Fairy Lake from near the boat launch.
A birch near the Legion.
Looking out on Fairy from the Legion.
Although we now knew we would not be fishing any lake near home, we decided to have a look at Guelph Lake, just to see how it was holding up. With water on the ice, slush everywhere, and softening ice beneath, we were not surprised to find the south side of the lake empty. However, we were a little surprised to find people fishing on the north side. Darrell took the spud out to have a quick look, but neither of us wanted to trust that ice. It was just another good example of how safe ice for some is not safe ice for all. Some people found that ice safe enough for their liking yesterday, but we did not. It’s always personal preference. We didn’t feel like taking the chance with the way the ice was looking, and the way the weather was shaping up. Never assume that other anglers being out there means that the ice is safe. Always test it and decide for yourself.
We gave Guelph Lake a pass, others didn’t. Doesn’t mean anyone was right or wrong, just shows that you need to test and decide for yourself.
Since our fishing plans were ruined, we decided to finish our Saturday off with some Christmas shopping, and returned home as the freezing rain really began to fall.
We woke up this morning to no power, a chilly house, and trees buckling under the weight of the ice. The spruce trees were drooping onto the paddock fence, the horses were hiding in their sheds for cover, the maple trees were already losing branches, and the yard was like a skating rink.
The poor Norway spruce trees found their boughs dragging on the ground.
That’s a lot of ice!
This blue spruce was a pretty solid sheet of ice.
At times like this, a camp stove comes in handy. Breakfast and lunch were made on the little stove, and we planned to make dinner that way before our power finally came back on (thank you to the power company for getting it fixed early than they projected!). It has been a day of hiding in the house, which isn’t so bad, except that I constantly worry about the horses. There is a good amount of clean-up to be done, with branches continuing to break all day long.
Making tea on the camp stove.
Since we were both in need of a fishing fix, and some general entertainment from being cooped up inside all day, we decided to fish for kittens. It’s pretty fun and a good way to practice your skills. The cats really seem to enjoy it.
Maybe we’ll get out fishing on Christmas Day!
argosgirl
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I, too, was unable to get my fishing fix on the Solstice, so I know the feeling. We had rain and temps into the 50s, oddly enough, but I’m glad to have missed the ice storm. I tried, but the slush and rising water told me to forget it. As you say, better to play it safe, and fish for kitties.
I am all for playing it safe!