"Wild" Ice occurrence

That is rare to have such calm, cold conditions for freezing. I think it would still make me nervous to skate on ice so clear you could see through it.

EDIT: We spent 4 years in Wisconsin at grad school and skated on Madison’s lakes a few times but it was always hard to find smooth ice that wasn’t snow crusted and wind whipped. And then there were the big lifts where freezing ice would buckle overnight 😬

Lovely experience seeing the ice, lake and beautiful music. Perfect for the season.

That really is wild. I can't believe the ice is that thick this early in the season! We're even further north, and it usually isn't safe to be on the lakes until much later.

Whoa! This is just beautiful. Thanks for sharing Tom.

CJean: This lake is just a bit south and west of Thunder Bay. There's not a lot of inhabited Ontario north of this latitude.

Mona: Indeed, lake ice is usually very rough, opaque, and covered with snow. The lack of snow at this latitude in December is almost as remarkable as the smooth, clear ice. Also, if your years in Madison were more than 30 years ago, you would likely not recognize what current winters are like.

Here's another video from Island Lake, just north of Duluth, MN. Looks wonderful. https://www.twincities.com/2020/12/13/watch-skaters-enjoy-snow-free-ice-cover-on-island-lake-near-duluth/

What fun! Excellent links from both of you. The one Nancy linked made my hair stand on end when I read the caption that he had on a life vest. Yikes.

Thanks!

Thanks for posting! The video was really well done. I've never heard of this phenomenon and it's nice that conditions were "right" this year, as a lot of people will be enjoying it.

Growing up in North Dakota I spent many hours ice skating but never on clear, smooth ice like that shown in the videos. I’ve never seen that phenomenon. Thank you for the links!

Wow. Thanks, Tom. Beautiful, but also terrifying.

Thanks, Tom. That was beautiful, just beautiful!

Really nice. I've always envied people who can skate (ice or roller) or ski. I need friction with the ground at all times. A video of me on that lake would be an unbroken series of faceplants. But in such a beautiful setting! ;-)