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	February 11th through 17th, 2014

All this year, on still mornings, bands of wood smoke dance above the lake as those on shore struggle to keep their cabins warm. This week was no exception.

By the end of the week the ice covering Lake Lucerne was thicker than last week. The twenty inches can be divided into two regions. There's six inches of airy top ice and 14 inches of clear, hard ice under that.

Earlier in the week, it was deemed time to again throw ourselves down the slopes at Brule. Don't be fooled by the sun. It was -18 F during the first run.

The only other person we saw for the first few hours was the guy that helps people onto the lift. He looked cold.

On the shores of a lesser lake than Lucerne, near the Apostle Islands, there are some ice caves that were judged interesting enough for a visit. On the way, there is a giant loon (seen here), giant apple, giant fish, and a giant cork screw. They had us at giant loon.

It turns out that these ice caves are not a local secret. There were more people than at Brule and no lifts. It's about a 2 mile icy hike to the holes.

Most of the caves were not designed for the claustrophobic.

All of the caves had varying amounts of ice in them.

The air temperature inside the caverns seemed about 10 degrees (F) cooler than on the shore of the lake. The ice color ranged from brownish to white to blue. Floors were slippery.

Eagle River's ice castle was less attended but better lighted than the caves.

The practice of donating money at the ice castle by sticking coins to the walls amused all. The coins floating above the ground seemed to defy the laws of nature. Take that gravity!

Late in the week, young visitors to Lucerne discovered the forts on the north end of the lake and used them as a good way to test their balance.

You win again gravity.

Warmer! It's supposed to get warmer next week. Then colder after that, but in the short term warmer! Huzzah! Along with the more seasonal temperatures will come snow. We still have not been pelted with a really big storm yet, but all the little ones combined with no mid-Winter thaw are really adding up. More snow could be fun. Last year, tree tapping was about 3 weeks away. This year, I don't think we will be joining tap to maple for five weeks or more from now. If then. This lateness could lead to spot shortages of maple syrup this Spring forcing the good people of northern Wisconsin to endure dry pancakes or even eggs (*shudder*).<br><br><br>-Nemo taunts the weak nuclear force, but never gravity

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