| To the right is a photo of the lake in early February showing my friend Sam on top of an ice ridge. The lake freezes only about every other winter and rarely to a distance of more than a mile or two from shore. Occasionally though the lake will freeze most of the way or all the way across. About once every 10 or 15 years a gale from the North will drive large ice flows together along the South shore as in this photo. In such cases the edges of the ice sheets are crushed as they collide to form pressure ridges. These photos show an unusual freeze which occurred around 1993 which produced the highest ridges I have ever seen. Some of the ice mounds in these ridges are over 20 feet (7 meters high). |
|
. |
|
. | To the left is a photo taken from the top of such a pressure ridge. This one was about 15 feet (5 meters) high along much of its face. In the distance the ridge can be seen running to the horizon far out into the lake. It is possible to walk safely for miles on such ridges since the ice there is extremely thick. The real danger is that a wind can arise from offshore. In such a case, cracks will begin to appear in the ice and the plates will begin to move. At first the motion is nearly imperceptible. But in a short time the ice can accelerate leaving wide gaps of open water. |
| To the right is a picture of me standing at the edge of the ridge. Despite the fact that this photo was taken in late afternoon when the sun was already very low in the winter sky, the light reflecting off the ice and snow was blinding. It also led to a warm head and cold feet. Fortunately I had the foresight to wear black. |
|
. |
|
. | Although these ridges appear to be solid, they are actually full of fissures and ice cavities. To the left is a picture of an ice cave I had photographed the previous day. I crawled inside to take this photo. It's strange to think that in a few months people would be swimming and boating at this spot. |
