I thought Charlie was joking when he said "In case there are any doubters I will get an official portrait done today of Hugh Statten, dressed in his chiefly robes and holding a copy of yesterday's Globe in front of the vast expanse of water that is now Canoe Lake."
But no! Here's the most official ice out call we've ever had...
Hugh Statten, the Chief of Ice Out - Sunday, April 4th, 2010. Photo by Charlie Plant
Wow!
It looks like the ice went off Canoe Lake last night before midnight which makes it Saturday, April 3rd, 2010 and blows away the previous record of April 14th set in 1953.
Two of my official field correspondents, Hugh Statten and Charlie Plant, reported that it was "blowing like mad and raining" yesterday afternoon, and the ice was already off Smoke and Joe Lakes and was going out on Canoe Lake as they watched. It was pretty much all gone by 10:00 pm last night and I received confirmation from Charlie at 8:00 AM this morning:
"It is official. The ice is gone. In case there are any doubters I will get an official portrait done today of Hugh Statten, dressed in his chiefly robes and holding a copy of yesterday's Globe in front of the vast expanse of water that is now Canoe Lake."
I expect to be receiving more emails and photos from several people on Canoe Lake today and will post again tonight.
Another record was set this year in that no one chose April 3rd as the ice out date and so we have no winner. But I am happy to give credit for being closest to John and Sandy Churchill who picked today, April 4th, and also to Doug Yandala who said "Early this year...April 1st...no joke!" (I hadn't even had time to update system to include dates before April 6th -- so you don't see them on the predicitons!)
I had several emails today (including photos) from people on Canoe Lake who are confident that the ice is going to go out tomorrow (Sunday, April 4th). Unfortunately I can't be there, but I will collect all the intelligence I can and post here when I know something for sure.
But it is certainly looking like we're headed for a record-breaking early April ice out at the moment.
Stay tuned!
With record temperatures expected again in Toronto this weekend it is hard not to think that we're going to see a record early ice out this year. It was pretty cold up in Algonquin last week, but it'll be well above zero even at night for at least the next week.
If anyone has news (and photos!) from Algonquin, please shoot me an email so I can post it here.
I have posted all the date choices received over the past couple of weeks. There was a sudden surge of interest in April 10th for some reason, with 9 people choosing this date in the past 10 days!
The Matthews Clan enjoying a little spring hockey on Canoe Lake - Sunday, March 21st, 2010. Photo by one of the Matthews Clan
I have finally posted the 113 date selections I have received so far over on the 2010 Predictions page. A few observations about this year's guesses:
Time for bed... I'll try to get another post up later this week.
We were up on Canoe Lake for a couple of days last weekend. It was absolutely beautiful, sunny, and warm! But there was a lot more snow and ice than I expected, especially after the non-winter we had here in Toronto this year.
We cut a hole in the ice (see below) and it looks to me like there is about 20" total. There is a 2" layer on top with about 1" of water underneath, and then about 17" of solid, clear ice. In my experience these are pretty much average conditions.
I have already received a pile of dates and should get around to posting them this week. In the mean time, here are some photos from our weekend...
Heading for the cottage under a big blue sky on Canoe Lake - March 6th, 2010. Photo by Jefferson Ridpath
We ran into some other Canoe Lakers in the parking lot and headed out together - March 6th, 2010. Photo by Jefferson Ridpath
The star of the show! - March 6th, 2010. Photo by Jefferson Ridpath
Yep -- it's that time! Unlike last year, it seems (in Toronto at least) like we haven't really had winter at all this year. It was cold, but I can count the number of times I had to shovel the driveway on one hand.
Once again, it was John Manson who was the first to email me (on January 20th no less!) with a date for this year. The 2010 ice-out season began with these words: "Anyone can predict once spring starts, real men give it a try when the ice is still forming!"
I'll be up on Canoe Lake again soon and will bring back a full report and photos. When those are posted, and I've cleaned things up around here, I'll send out an email to the list officially announcing the 2010 ice-out pool.
Stay tuned...
Making tracks on Canoe Lake on February 12th, 2010. Photo by Debbie Ridpath Ohi
