Russ, Water seepage onto the ice is primarily dependant on two factors - ice thickness and the amount of snow on the ice. As the snow builds up on the ice it puts more weight and compressive downward force on the ice. If ice is not real thick the weight of snow will force water up through the cracks in the thinnest areas of the ice. This happens a lot on my pond when the ice is only 2"-4" thick. After our 8" snow, I am currently getting some water seepage onto the ice now around the edges where the ice is not as thick as in the main pond.
