We took a pre-storm ice check today, 12/26/18. Santa brought us enough cold weather to help increase ice thicknesses lakewide since our last check. Because there is so much info to report, we are presenting it to you differently than most reports. We hope the impending storm doesn’t turn into a bunch of snow. We will be monitoring lake conditions once the storm has passed and will update when we know more. At this time, we are still only allowing ATV’s through our pay access.
Keep in mind, all of the below ice thicknesses are what we found today. We are unable to check every portion of every area/reef, even areas/reefs we are reporting on below. We always advise to check your own ice.
-Waconia Bay: 9 to 14 inches (9 inches where there is still snow. Most ice is between 10 to 12 inches, with a little mixed in 14)
-Under the Wires: 9 to 12 (We did find a somewhat large area of 9 inches in newer, clear ice, but most of it was 10 to 11 inches)
-Center Reef (where a lot of people fish): 9 to 11 inches
-Shallow part of Center Reef (in the duck/goose area that was open about 2 weeks ago): As little as 3.5 inches to 5.5 inches, with ice on the perimeter between 7 to 8.
-Pillsbury Reef: 9 to 11.5 inches
-West of Pillsbury as it drops off: We found a mildly active spring with as little as 3.5 inches in a small location. We marked it with lath board and flagging tape. Pay attention to this area in case it becomes more active.
-Western Part of Wagener’s Bay/Rock Dock: 10 to 13 inches
-Wagener’s Bay Deep Hole: 9 to 13 inches (9 under leftover snow, with a lot of it between 10 to 12 inches with a little mixed in 13)
-Harms Point: 9 to 12 inches
-South and West of Keg’s Reef: We stopped and marked with lath board and flagging tape 2 active springs that had as little as 1 inch of ice on top. These are generally small in size, but both areas need to be avoided. We haven’t made it to Keg’s Reef yet.
-East of Coney Island: We marked with lath board and flagging tape an active spring with less than 1 inch of ice coating it. Avoid that marked area.
-South of Red’s Reef: We marked 1 active and 1 mildly active spring with lath board and flagging tape. Avoid both areas we marked. We have not been on Red’s Reef yet, as we had to stop short and head back.
-Cemetery Reef: 9 to 12 inches
-Walleye Hole/Hump between the marinas: 9 to 12 inches
Keep your fingers crossed that we get minimal snow so we can keep making ice and get around on the lake easier! We’ll update conditions when we know more this weekend.
