Today our access is open to walking only. After last night, conditions firmed up enough to allow people to walk across most of the frozen slush on our frontage. It is not frozen enough for ATVs or other vehicles. We will let you know as soon as conditions allow that.
We’ve had many people asking about conditions on the main lake. Avery was out on the side-by-side and provided an update. Fortunately, the main lake is in better shape than the shorelines, including most accesses. Most of the snow is concentrated near shorelines, especially where winds pushed it in—around points and the island. Areas with little or no snow have firmed up completely.
There are snow drifts scattered across the lake, but many can be avoided if you prefer not to encounter the slush beneath the deepest drifts. While we wait for our access to firm up enough for ATVs and side by sides, those choosing to use other accesses should expect bumpy conditions with water and slush near shore.
Avery also checked ice thickness, He found in the 9- to 12-inch range where he checked on Cemetery Reef, Waconia Bay, Center Reef, Pillsbury Reef and Wagener’s Bay, with much of it measuring 10 to 11 inches.
In some areas, water is coming up even where snow drifts appear minimal. Do not expect Waconia’s current ice to be floating as high or be as strong as the typical 10 to 12 inches of early ice we see most years.
Avery marked a large hole (6 ft) that opened up in Wagener's Bay near a permanent fish house. More than likely it was a drain hole that swirled heavily during the strong winds the other night. Avoid areas that had a permanent house on them because draining and swirling did affect ice under and around many of those houses before and during the wind of the blizzard.
