January Rerun

The start of the week had a high of 18°F and a low of 1°F. That was one of the warmer days. Sub-zero lows and highs that clawed into the double digits gave the week a distinctive January feel. Strong winds amplified the Januaryness to Deep Winter levels.

With extreme cold settling into the area, post Bottle Rocket War cleanup proceeded without much concern for the thickness of the ice.

In a normal year, there's talk of tree tapping around now. This year, the men only speak of propane levels in the tank and the latest in snow pants tech.

It was noted that the deer shaped suet feeder on Knott Lane is getting pretty empty.

There seemed to be more squirrel last week. It had to be due to the longer days. It sure didn't have anything to do with warmth.

During the entirety of last week, the north end's wild turkeys were big, active, and seemingly immune to the cold.

It got a little warmer on the weekend. Along with the warmth came 4 inches of fluffy snow.

We have not had a major snow event (8+ inches) this year, but the little ones are adding up.

After the snow, the forts were dusted off in an effort to preserve their aesthetics into spring.

While doing fort maintenance, a few more sticks were picked up, too.

One of the last events of the week was to check the ice thickness. With 8 inches of snow covering the lake, I did not expect it to be much thicker than last week. Mrs Nemo thought it would be much thicker.

The 17.5 inches measured was 2 inches thicker than last week's check.

The lake ice remains unusually clear. In an effort to image its uncloudy nature, a water proof camera was lowered into the hole.

The water was as clear as crystal, too.

One of the last events of the week was watching the Crandon Water Shows' second land practice of the season at the community center.

The first show of the year is scheduled for June 4th. The temperature during that show should be a tad warmer.

The trails around the lake are open and the snowmobilers are a happy bunch. From the forecasts, it looks like we have another week of January left before we get a real thaw. With that heaping helping of cold and some following snow/thaw/freeze weeks, we could be looking at a yard of ice by Saint Patrick's Day. The horribleness of drilling a hole through 3 feet of ice will be offset only by tapping maples, green beer, and a lack of mosquitoes.

-Nemo prefers open water to a yard of ice.

January Rerun

February 10th through 16th, 2025