It’s Been Over 100 Years Since Ice-Out Happened This Early On This Minnesota Lake

After the past couple of really cold and snowy winters, it was about time Minnesota caught a break. And, this winter, we apparently did, with ice-out having just been declared Thursday on one big Minnesota lake-- the earliest it's happened in over 100 years!

Seeing as our own Silver Lake never ices completely over in the winter, we have to look a little further north to get a vibe on that sure sign of spring: ice-out on Minnesota lakes. And, sure enough, ice-out was declared on the Twin Cities' Lake Minnetonka Thursday.

The St. Patrick's Day official ice-out declaration was the second-earliest in history, according to the Hennepin County Sheriff's office in a story on BringMeTheNews. In fact, you have to go back 138 years, to 1878, to find a year when the ice-out came earlier than this year. (Back then, it happened on March 11.)

The story says our recent warm weather, along with rain and wind, all combined to help the ice break up early. The median date for ice-out on the lake is April 14th, so we're well ahead of the average this year.

Back when I worked in Wisconsin, I lived near Lake Wissota, which is located just east of Chippewa Falls. I'd drive around the big lake everyday on my way into the radio stations in Eau Claire, and I was always curious to see when the ice-out would happen. I apparently wasn't organized enough to note when it did occur, because I don't have any official notes, but I was still fond of noticing when the ice was out-- because that was a sure sign warmer weather wasn't too far off.

Of course, just because ice-out was declared on Lake Minnetonka doesn't mean the ice is out on every Minnesota Lake. Certainly, lakes farther north are no doubt still ice-covered. The Minnesota DNR has a full index of ice-out dates on lakes throughout the state HERE. But Lake Minnetonka's ice-out is just another sign, along with the Saturday's spring equinox, that we've made it through another Minnesota winter. And, thankfully, this one wasn't too long or snowy!