Spring Watch 2026, Part 2

 

As of right now, the possibility of a pretty good mid-February thaw is looking likely this upcoming weekend. Will there be open water at the Grumpy Old Man Hole a week from today? I wouldn't bet on it, but maybe. I think the snow will be mostly gone by then. The days are getting longer, and the sun is getting stronger.

Spring Watch 2026, Part 1

 

We will see if it holds, but consecutive 40℉ days are a good sign that Spring is right around the corner. It will be interesting to see how much snow remains after the upcoming warm stretch. I will probably do the first When Will I See The Driveway? post soon.

First Spring Has Arrived (2/24/25)

 

The past two days exceeded expectations for warm weather, with temps jumping into the high 40's. The mild weather and melting look to continue. If this forecast is accurate we will be snow-free around here by next week. No snow means the ground heats up when there is sun and the ice melts from below. I am ready for Spring.

Warmer Weather On The Way... (2/13/25)

 ... after one more cold week. I'll be giving my annual Platte Lake Ice Out February Spitball in a few days.

When will the first three consecutive 40℉ days be? 

Feb. 13th at the GOMH(2/13/25)

 

Cold, but sunny day. I had PT in Onamia. I went and visited with Bean and Bella for a couple of minutes. Checked out the Grumpy Old Man Hole and Platte Lake Access on the way home. There were fewer houses out on Platte than a week ago.  It is going to get close to 20℉ the next couple of days before another Polar Vortex moves in for a few days, but the final 7 days of February are all supposed to be above-average.

Spring Ahead! No Fooling

 After one final blast of winter and snow next week, the outlook finally turns to Spring. I think it's 50/50 on the ice going off Platte Lake by May 1. Hope to have the backyard plowed out by Monday evening.

Penultimate Day of Winter @GOMH

That is ice, not open water. I am guessing once it opens up again, it will be forward progress until ice-out by day's end until the ice is totally gone. 

 

Spring Watch! Episode 4, 2023

 With this latest cold dip and last weekend's snow things have taken a step or two back. More winter coming this weekend. It does kind of look like there may be a slight bump up in temps to close out the month. There is a lot of snow to be melted from all directions, so it's possible we may not see 50℉ this month.  I hope to start the countdown to "When Will I See My Driveway?" by this time next week and have the backyard snow blown out by the end of next week. 

Spring Watch Episode 3, 2023

Definitely not an early start to Spring this year. If this forecast holds, I will not start the When Will I See My Driveway? Posts until the second half of the month. Ice out date on Platte Lake now looks to be somewhere in the mid to upper teens in April. 
 

Spring Watch, Episode 2, 2023

 

Spring will wait until March this year at a minimum. When does Spring start, according to the BP?

Either 3 consecutive days in the 40's or me doing major outside Water War prep because it will spike into the mid to upper 50's. (Gotta move that snow)

Spring Watch 2023

 Groundhog Day has come and gone, and I've gotten a case of Wuhan Flu. Seeing as how I haven't been fishing, this winter has dragged on. I am ready for Spring. Looks like we are in for a bit of a warm-up next week. I will just have to wait and see if I am up for a little bit of fishing early next week.

Spring Watch 2022, It's Coming Soon

 

It definitely looks like we are about to get off of the roller coaster of low temperatures. As of today, the average high temp is 37℉. Daylight Savings Time Starts in a couple of days. Spring is on its way, and if the forecast is correct, we are in for a controlled snowmelt. I will probably start the When Will I See My Driveway posts on Tuesday and will snowblow the backyard on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Spring Watch 2022, Breaking News!

Don't want to count the chickens quite yet, but the long-term forecast looks like an ideal soft landing for spring with all the snow around here. Temps in the mid to low the 40s and below freezing at night is the sweet spot for steady snowmelt. A straight week of weather like that, yes, please!

 

Spring Watch 2022, Where Art Thou?

 This forecast is concerning. More snow next weekend and no warm-ups in sight. We have a ton of snow out there right now. I nearly bottomed out my auger tonight before I hit water. Any thought I had of an early ice out is now over. We may have ice up here on Easter this year, which falls on April 17th. Probably going to be a nasty water war this Spring.

Spring Watch 2022, Not This Week

 The forecast from the Spring Watch I did on the 11th was dead wrong for this week other than today. Instead of Spring-like weather starting today, we are getting "False Spring" today with a snowstorm and polar vortex tomorrow that is supposed to last all week. Looks like we are going to get significant snow in this area. That bites for multiple reasons.  

On the positive, I understand that Winter SW of MN has been on the mild side. They have said on the local news that the SW corner of the state doesn't have any snow right now. The snowless ground absorbs heat. Having the snow line just a couple of hundred miles away is good, giving us a few extra degrees when winds are out to the SW.

Spring Watch 2022, Looks Like A Longer Wait...

 ... for the first sign of Spring then what they were forecasting a couple of days ago. Almost all the 30-degree days have been wiped off the board.

Spring Watch 2022, Encouraging Sign's On the Horizon

 

I could be wrong, it could very well be this Saturday will be the last dance with Arctic Air this winter. 

Next Watch: February 20th

Spring Watch 2022

 Not on the horizon yet, Sir!