cleared the pond for the first time this year! Saturday had very thin rim of ice on the edges where ground heat and the leaves were insulating the ground and the edge of the shallow water ice. About 3" in the middle but too shaky to go on it. I flooded the ice with a hose from shoreline Sat night. Sunday snow, bitter cold, light fluffy snow and by mon night about 4" on the ice.
I didn't dare take the quad or the tractor mounted snowblower so got to hoof it around and around and around the ice with my little 7hp paddewheel snowblower. It got it done but it was a long process. Ice was very smooth for skaters thanks to the Sat night flooding. By Monday night a good solid 4" of ice wherever you check.
Then last night around 10 all night, today up to around 20 and sunshine. I think the ice will be fine for quad/plow for clearing until the next warm snap comes.
I thought of all you ice fishermen last night but the kids are too excited about skating to risk cutting holes in the ice.
Thrilled that my pond is huge this winter due to soilfloc seal and no ground water loss since fall. Took a lot longer than before to clear the snow though!
I was considering the crayfish which have taken out my vegetation and wondering if the clear ice, plenteous sunlight, and little vegetation would get me healthier fish, less winter stress?
It would be tempting to get a some under the ice optics and watch those perch cruise around. I'd love to check my mattress pile under the ice and see how fish are relating to this structure (about the only structure in the pond outside of the pallet piles here and there)
