Platte Lake Ice Off(4/12/26)

 

MN Ice Out's Started A While Ago

 The DNR finally got around to updating the 2026 Ice Out webpage and dumped a bunch of them. Most of the lakes in the Twin Cities are now open. Looks like we are going into a cold stretch with snow. The shorelines in the Platte/Sullivan area were just starting to pull away. Platte and Long Lake have been looking pretty dark. I think Platte will go out after the April 10th, but it wouldn't shock me if it is ice-free by the weekend as well.

 

Just Discovered MN Lakes Thaw Tracker

 

Apparently, this has been around for a couple of years, and I just got wind of it. It is a website that tracks weather conditions and makes ice-out forecasts for most MN lakes. Here is the prediction for Platte Lake:

And for Rock Lake:

I don't know why there's a discrepancy between the two lakes, especially since Rock was forecast earlier. I think Platte goes out first in most years.

MN Lakes Thaw Tracker

BP's February Ice Off Platte Lake Spitball For 2026

 

This winter has not seemed super cold to me, but the ice thickness in the Platte/Sullivan area tells me it has been plenty cold. I have been drilling from 24-26" this past week. The warm-up and sunshine the last few days have been nice, but I don't think the sun is quite there yet to really kick the snow melt into high gear. I am pretty sure we have reached peak ice depth in central MN. I have been following long-term forecasts for a few weeks now, and they have been saying cooler-than-normal weather is on its way, but the temps keep getting revised upward rather than sustained cooler than normal temps.  Snow is the big X-factor in March and April. We haven't really been dumped on in 2026, yet. I've maybe had to use the snow blower once this year. By the end of this warm trend we have been in, there should be a lot of bare ground. Bare ground heats up in sunny weather and gets the ice melting process started from below, from the shallows to the depths. Ok I'm going to end my waffling now.

My spitball for ice off in 2026 has moved up from April 15th to April 12th for Platte Lake. I am counting on there being few March and April snows and near normal temps. Spring is in the air, I can feel it.