Ice-In Tease

November 24th through December 2nd
Early last week, the ice started to grow. It had appeared and receded in the past few weeks, but this looked and felt different. Some thought that the open water might make the weekend. Others felt that a November ice in was assured. All agreed that ice in was near. No one skied. All also agreed that the optimum time to pull the last pier out was past. Overnight the simple task had become a project. Step one in the project was to free the pier from the new, yet surprisingly strong, ice. We thought that wapping around the perimeter with a small I beam would be the most aerobic phase of the project. We were wrong. Pulling the frozen slab of legged wood on shore without going into the water was uglier than planned. Eventually it was rotated 180 degrees and slid out. Ta-da! A day after the de-piering, the ice growth accelerated. Two days after the de-piering, a few small patches were all that remained of the open water. Later in the day, many of the patches froze over and The College of Loons was ready to call it. A last check of the lake in front of Water's Edge surprised the lake's not so secret secret society. There was a long strip of open water filled with waves and ducks. The official call of ice-in was delayed. Eighteen hours later, the weather turned slightly warmer. Small pools of liquid popped up all over the lake. It was clear that Ice-In 2018 would not enjoy a November date. The low clouds that accompanied the warmer air dusted the tree tops leaving a frosty coating. By the weekend, that frosty coating was joined by a few inches of snow. Some observers took a rest when it became clear that the lake would not freeze over before the weekend ended. Lake Lucerne did not freeze over last week. Currently there are ducks swimming around in front of Water's Edge, but the forecast has many confidently predicting an ice in before next weekend. The College of Loons remains in closed session and has requested the latest drone images and sandwiches. We're thinking grilled cheese.<br><br>-Nemo: Surprised and resting.