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Kawagama, Kennisis and Redstone


FishHog

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I am wondering the same

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Check out Mountian Trout House Marinas site, they have great video updates and have just posted some pic.s showing how slushy Kawagama is.

 

You will have to google it, either their home site or FB page is good, every time I try to post a link it freezes and I loose the whole post :headbang:

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slush will be an issue with all the deep snow we are now getting onto the lakes...

 

here is Mountain trout house youtube channel(Kawagama TV)

 http://www.youtube.com/user/thedabels

 

 

Dan

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there is currently NO slush on Kawagama, way too cold for slush!    its the ruts Don is talking about, not the slush.    I didn't encounter any slush on any lakes on Saturday; road kawagama, Raven, Kushog, St Nora.   Although as things warmed up on Sunday I heard there certainly was some on the smaller lakes that are holding a lot more snow.  Not much snow on the big lakes as they have only been frozen over since the middle of December.  Some of the smaller lakes have been frozen over for over 5 weeks now!

 

they are going to try and stake Kennisis this weekend.  guys have been running these big lakes since at least the weekend after Christmas, so 2 weeks this coming saturday.    Sleds are safe at 5" btw, as per MTO/OFSC, we can't stake until 8".  hope this helps.

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there is currently NO slush on Kawagama, way too cold for slush!    its the ruts Don is talking about, not the slush.    I didn't encounter any slush on any lakes on Saturday; road kawagama, Raven, Kushog, St Nora.   Although as things warmed up on Sunday I heard there certainly was some on the smaller lakes that are holding a lot more snow.  Not much snow on the big lakes as they have only been frozen over since the middle of December.  Some of the smaller lakes have been frozen over for over 5 weeks now!

 

they are going to try and stake Kennisis this weekend.  guys have been running these big lakes since at least the weekend after Christmas, so 2 weeks this coming saturday.    Sleds are safe at 5" btw, as per MTO/OFSC, we can't stake until 8".  hope this helps.

 

Hello, 

 

things have changed sense your report. From the tall pines website

- We drilled test holes in both Raven and Kawagama Lakes on Jan 5th . Both lakes did not have the necessary 8 inch min thickness or the quality of ice to allow for staking. They are both slushy as well and with recent snow likely to get worse. If and when the lakes are considered safe they will be staked.In the mean time we recommend staying off . 

 

I can assure you that with the recent snow and warming temps, the lakes will be VERY slushy this weekend. Also, kawagama only has 3'' of ice in the middle. STAY OFF THE LAKES! Check kawagama tv's latest update and you will see where he describes the 3'' of ice and very slushy conditions

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Hello, 

 

things have changed sense your report. From the tall pines website

- We drilled test holes in both Raven and Kawagama Lakes on Jan 5th . Both lakes did not have the necessary 8 inch min thickness or the quality of ice to allow for staking. They are both slushy as well and with recent snow likely to get worse. If and when the lakes are considered safe they will be staked.In the mean time we recommend staying off . 

 

I can assure you that with the recent snow and warming temps, the lakes will be VERY slushy this weekend. Also, kawagama only has 3'' of ice in the middle. STAY OFF THE LAKES! Check kawagama tv's latest update and you will see where he describes the 3'' of ice and very slushy conditions

Hi Aaron,    Like I said, I didn't find any slush, but I also didn't stop to check like Gary and Steve did, how do you think they went and checked the ice on Raven? no hovercrafts in the budget currently, but I bet Gary could fab one up out of an old tin boat!  :)    people were all over the lakes this past weekend and the ice was inconsistent.

 

Many years past the lakes were never staked, or staked only with branches.   I didn't find any slush personally, but like I said I don't doubt there is some where there is more snow and things can change very, very, very quickly.   With the recent snow, this deep, deep cold which will make great ice, possibly heave, and then this warm front moving in this weekend, it could get really slushy, but honestly I hope it takes care of the horrible rutting thats currently out there.   Some of the most dangerous ruts I've come across in my 25+ years of riding up here.

 

Its an interesting year though, in an average season these 3 lakes are being run in the 2nd week of January, this year they were being run in the 3rd week of December, unheard of really.  Most people who are familiar with freezing patterns consider the lakes to be rideable after 3 weeks of sustained cold -10 to -30 weather when frozen. 

 

With that said, there will always be unsafe areas of lakes, whether they are staked or not.     This is my opinion only, not the Tall Pines snowmobile club, or the ofsc. ;)

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Hi Aaron,    Like I said, I didn't find any slush, but I also didn't stop to check like Gary and Steve did, how do you think they went and checked the ice on Raven? no hovercrafts in the budget currently, but I bet Gary could fab one up out of an old tin boat!   :)    people were all over the lakes this past weekend and the ice was inconsistent.

 

Many years past the lakes were never staked, or staked only with branches.   I didn't find any slush personally, but like I said I don't doubt there is some where there is more snow and things can change very, very, very quickly.   With the recent snow, this deep, deep cold which will make great ice, possibly heave, and then this warm front moving in this weekend, it could get really slushy, but honestly I hope it takes care of the horrible rutting thats currently out there.   Some of the most dangerous ruts I've come across in my 25+ years of riding up here.

 

Its an interesting year though, in an average season these 3 lakes are being run in the 2nd week of January, this year they were being run in the 3rd week of December, unheard of really.  Most people who are familiar with freezing patterns consider the lakes to be rideable after 3 weeks of sustained cold -10 to -30 weather when frozen. 

 

With that said, there will always be unsafe areas of lakes, whether they are staked or not.     This is my opinion only, not the Tall Pines snowmobile club, or the ofsc. ;)

 

great info thank you. For now, I will stay away from the lakes.  And yes, kawagama tv showed the ruts, they looked quite terrible. 

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great info thank you. For now, I will stay away from the lakes.  And yes, kawagama tv showed the ruts, they looked quite terrible. 

yup, plenty of great trails to ride.   I will say that both Kushog and St. Nora's are staked from the sherborne road (64) at St. noras to ox narrows where the firehouse restaurant is. 

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Kushog is staked for the B trail coming from Carnarvon.

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with yesterdays new snow, and now mild temps on the way for fri and then above zero on saturday there will certainly be DEEP slush on many lakes on the region.   The lakes that get the most traffic and pounded down will have the least slush on those beaten tracks.  

 

The warmup this weekend will end up helping the lakes actually, once they slush up and settle all the deep snow down on them, and then refreeze by mid next week all lakes should be great by then.  

 

You cannot compare lake ice from season to season, or by air temps...that is not smart IMO.   On My lake we always take out the auger and start cutting holes, and always measure clear ice thickness along with total ice thickness.  Assuming ice thickness from outside air temps or how many weeks it has been cold outside is a  no no.

 

either way we are well ahead of many previous seasons!!

 

Dan

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with yesterdays new snow, and now mild temps on the way for fri and then above zero on saturday there will certainly be DEEP slush on many lakes on the region.   The lakes that get the most traffic and pounded down will have the least slush on those beaten tracks.  

 

The warmup this weekend will end up helping the lakes actually, once they slush up and settle all the deep snow down on them, and then refreeze by mid next week all lakes should be great by then.  

 

You cannot compare lake ice from season to season, or by air temps...that is not smart IMO.   On My lake we always take out the auger and start cutting holes, and always measure clear ice thickness along with total ice thickness.  Assuming ice thickness from outside air temps or how many weeks it has been cold outside is a  no no.

 

either way we are well ahead of many previous seasons!!

 

Dan

no doubt you need to know the thickness, but I'd rather be on my sled running down the lake than walking on thin ice.   In 30 years on these lakes, and living on Kennisis lake (over 70m deep and last to freeze behind LOB, usually within a day of Kawagama), and in knowning people who have living in the Haliburton area for much longer I believe the theory to be broadly accurate, and generally provides a safety net as well.  Guys were running these lakes after only 2 weeks of freeze up and didn't encounter any issues.  I waited an extra week.  

 

Many years (like last year), the lake was only frozen for 10 days before there was 5" of clear blue ice, and 2 weeks from freeze up to staking.  Currently Raven lake which has been frozen for almost a month, with guys running it on Dec 14 only has 5" of clear blue ice in some spots, which is safe to ride, but not stake.      You never know, springs pop up where they may never have, heaves form and the lake can open up in a matter of hours.    Yet I've been out on the ice to check it using this theory and survived, never gone through yet  knock knock...    when is it safe to go out with an auger Dan? there has to be some way for you to determine its safe to walk and drill holes...

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  when is it safe to go out with an auger Dan? there has to be some way for you to determine its safe to walk and drill holes...

 

What i do here in my lake infront of my place is check things close to shore to start(sorta a no brainer)

 

Here at my place we have a shallow sand beach area which goes out several hundred feet and only gets to about 3 feet deep before it drops off...So this is the perfect place to start measuring thickness for me.

 

We all know sleds will go across less then 1" thick ice AT HI SPEEDS without even breaking it, this is proven time and time again when running water as there is always thin ice near the edge that does not break cause the sleds are travelling at hi rates. So if you ask me do I want to walk out to the middle of lake and auger it, or ride across it ONCE, id ride it first!   Mostly cause ive been riding this lake and running open water for years, not as much these days as im older and wiser..lol  

 

But in the end for my own peace of mind I like to see 6" of decent ice at least before i head down the lake.  And even at that I wont be out there stopping to chat, its more to get across it at a good rate of speed without too much speed incase of heaves or chunks.  

 

HGR is my club, and we wont stake til we get 8-10" of ice or see a good thickness of CLEAR ice, everyear seems different with regards to clear ice VS white ice, this year there is less good clear ice and more white ice as the lakes froze while we kept getting snow on a daily basis which mixes in.  Once you get a foot or more of powder ontop, you will not see clear ice making underneath for the most part.  instead the ice thickens ontop by forming slush as the heavy snow weight pushes down and forces water up through all the tiny cracks making slush.  White ice can be strong too but is not uniformly connected across like clear bottom ice is.

 

As you know, growing up and living on these lakes for over 50 yrs ive seen it all, and learned alot about how it freezes and thaws, each year slightly different then the next but similar overal for the most part.  Its always tough to hear about a sledder going through the ice, which is why i often try to measure first or ask local fish hut operators if youre not familiar with the lake.  River and streams are the biggest problem when it comes to sledders going through.  

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Little Redstone was staked last Saturday.  They started to stake Big Redstone and did not finish.  There was some traffic running Big Redstone last Saturday.  I ran the Big Redstone last Sunday and did not like the slush...since then I have taken the long way round. 

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Welcome to the forum!

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Welcome! I love riding redstone and little redstone, on my way over to the forest trails!

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Thank you for the interesting posts about ice conditions and the procedures for assessing ice conditions.

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