Mille Lacs Lake Ice Is Out

Apparently the heavy winds of the last couple of days have done the job.

Ice Out By Easter Update #8

Ice Out Platte LakeIce Out Sullivan LakeIce Out Bulldog LakeThe picture is the view from the Platte Lake public access. Yes there is ice there, but you could launch a boat because somebody did just that today. I didn't take a close look at Sullivan but it looked to be all the way open from the GOMH. Today's ice out makes this the 2nd latest ice out on Platte since I moved North in 2003.The

Ice Out By Easter Update #7

Platte/Sullivan Area Lakes:Rock- Ice FreeLong- Ice FreePlatte- 99% Ice FreeBulldog- 80% Ice FreeSullivan- Maybe 50% or more, not sure.The wind today was enough for Rock. I would call Platte Open but the only remaining slab of ice is right out from the Platte Lake public access and for me to call the lake open I have to be able to get from the Public Access to our place on the East end of the

Ice Out By Easter Update #6

Platte/Sullivan area lakes.Platte 80% Ice FreeSullivan 35% Ice FreeRock 90% Ice FreeBulldog 20% Ice FreeIt got cold last night and only got to 46 today with overcast skies and light winds. Tomorrow it isn't even suppose to get to 40 but it is suppose to rain/snow with a 13mph wind out of the East which will probably be enough to open up Rock. I suspect it's going to take a least until Wed. for

Ice Out By Easter Update #5

Well it's gotten cool windy and kind of nasty out with very light rain. We might get a couple of inches of snow tonight. I checked out some area lakes today. On Platte the Bay with our lake place looked about 80% open. The big West public access Bay and the big middle bay still have lots of ice. Rock looked to be mostly covered however, the area by the access had enough open water that I

Ice Out By Easter Update #4

Minnesota Climatology has added a new map (Google Map). It's a step up in terms of showing all the lakes they track, but visually I don't think it looks as nice as the other one. Right now the other one's page isn't working so I can't get a screen capture.Anyway as of April 13th here are the new lakes I haven't mentioned yet.Shaokatan (Lincoln)out 4-13Waconia (Carver)out 4-13White Bear (Ramsey)

Birds, No Bullheads

Today I headed out to the Grumpy Old Man Hole early because I wanted to watch Survivor and I had to tape American Idol. It was in the low 50's with sun and about a 10mph breeze out of the North. I got out around 3PM and fished to about 6:30. No luck on the bullheads. However I got multiple close up looks at Loons. A couple of times they came up right by my bobber. In addition to the loons

Ice Out By Easter Update #3

I'll start out with today's view from the GOMH out on to Sullivan.Next is the view on to Platte Lake. I am surprised to see such a big area on Platte open, the ice hasn't even pulled away from the shore elsewhere around the lake.This is the updated map from Minnesota Climatology.Here is the current score from Minnesota Climatology, lots of action over the weekend thanks to warm temps and

Spring Note- Lilah is Shaking

No they are not dropping bombs at Ripley. First Thunder of the year.Went outside to work the sump pumps and there was a muskrat in the window well with the water. Glad it wasn't a skunk or bear. Eventually the little guy made an escape. Hopefully he will not find his way into our house like the one last Fall.Hmmm I could have sworn I blogged about that muskrat last fall. Must of only

Spring Note- Frog ON!!!

Tonight I heard frogs calling for the first time.

Ice Out By Easter Update #2

Minnesota Climatology Reports April 7th:Lake Pepin (Wabasha County) 4-3 Ice OutBudd (Martin County) 4-6 Ice OutSt. James (Watonwan) 4-7 Ice OutPartial Cover:Albert Lea LakeFountain LakeCannon LakeZumbro LakeWeather is suppose to be above average temps with some rain. New lakes should be popping up every couple of days.

I Did Go

OK this isn't getting posted till the AM of the next morning, but the date reflects the day I was out Thursday April 7th.I headed out to the Grumpy Old Man Hole(GOMH)There was about a football field worth of open water on the Sullivan side.I was actually surprised to see Platte this open.As I promised I brought a few rods and did some fishing.The water level is up about a foot from where it was

SON-OF-A...

Actually by the time this posts this afternoon it should be all gone, but darn it if I can't see my driveway again, if just for a little while.

2011 When Will I See My Driveway? #8

TODAY!!!Last night we had a bit of rain and it didn't get cold and it was in the upper 40's today, and that did the job. I am calling the driveway clear today even though there are a couple of spots where snow is on the side of the driveway.Last year it took 7 editions of "When will I see my driveway?" over 8 days and the driveway was declared clear on March 13th 2010. This year it took 8

2011 When Will I See My Driveway? #7

At this point I think the driveway has 2 more days to be clear, 3 MaxSpring Note- Today the cat murdered Theodore. Simon better be on his guard tomorrow. (Click to Enlarge) March 24th 2011 When Will I See My Driveway? #1March 28th 2011 When Will I See My Driveway #2March 29th 2011 When Will I See My Driveway #3March 30th 2011 When Will I See My Driveway #4March 31st 2011 When Will I See My

2011 When Will I See My Driveway? #6

If I would have taken pictures this morning the driveway surface would have been all white thanks to the 1/4 inch of snow last night. I figured it would be all gone by later in the day and as you can see in the pics. I was right.Spring Note-Smokey aka Meow Meow our cat murdered Alvin today. It was the cats first "large" kill of the year. Kitty doesn't seem to be much of a bird killer, but if

2011 Ice Out By Easter Update #1

Yes it's that time of year again, time to monitor the ice going off lakes across the state of Minnesocold. As you may know from my previous posts this week ice was off my area lakes by this time last year. What a difference a year makes! A cold Winter combined with a cold March has all MN Lakes locked up as of April 1st this year. Normally ice is off some lakes in the Southern part of the

2011 When Will I See My Driveway? #5

Well March comes to an end today and as I write this post, it is currently snowing outside. Weather.com says "no significant snow accumulations" so that's nice, tomorrows edition of WWISMD will tell the tale.Spring Note- Today I saw my first robin of the spring. It was a round fat one right outside the bathroom window. I got to witness first hand why it was a little chub; As I watched it the

2011 When Will I See My Driveway? #4

The drive way is now about where it was before we had the snow storm last week, but not on the driveway it seems like there is double or more snow currently on the ground. We got to 40 today and tomorrow it is suppose to hit 45, which is now the average temp, with showers in the evening.Note- Today I witnessed two sandhill cranes flying around in circles at a pretty high altitude before they

A Year Ago Today....

Shocking Development My how things change from year to year. At this point I think we will be in good shape if Platte Lake is open by April 20th. (Note- that is 5 days later than my previous hope date) Hopefully I'll catch a fish this year before ice is totally off the lakes.I think I can also say it's official: I will not have done any ice fishing this Winter.