Lake McDonald freezes over

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Lake McDonald freezes over

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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by daveparker »

It has indeed been a wild year, Flathead Lake is Froze over as well, been just a tad bit cold this winter!

:shock:
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by PeteE »

I sent my cousin the Interlake Link. She sent me this 8)
http://www.breakingburgh.com/punxsutawn ... d-charges/
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by ND »

How thick is the ice? Just wondering.
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by PeteE »

ND wrote:How thick is the ice? Just wondering.
Down at the foot of the lake the ice has been piled up by the wind. Hard to say how thick since it varies.
Up towards the head of the lake around Lake McDonald Lodge it's pretty thin. I wouldn't go out on it.
I was out there a few days before the wind stopped and there was a LOT of open water, 2/3 of the upper end of the lake.
Some of the protected little "coves" were iced over and that was all.

As the article pointed out, when the wind stopped it froze over.
It's been relative warm during the day lately, cooling off considerably at night.
https://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.p ... 2595521417
High sun angle along with warm(ish) days is likely to keep it from freezing over "solid"...in my uninformed opinion 8)

I took this picture on March 3rd. You could hear the waves underneath the ice. I could also hear "cracking" noises.
I took some video but the camera didn't pick them up.

I won't be surprised if some fool goes out on the ice and falls in.

pete :wink:


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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by ND »

Thanks Pete.

We got dumped on with another big snow last night. The problem is I have no place to put the stuff. My yard must have about 5 feet everywhere and higher along the driveway. It looks like we will at least warm up a little this week so I can let nature take it's course and shrink the piles down a bit. You can really tell the sun is more direct these days and helps the process. Thankfully!! :)
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by Jay w »

I guess I can stop asking Pete if Lake McDonald has frozen over. I'm always surprised it doesn't freeze over every year, and early. It's "mountain" water, so it starts cold. Lakes in MN froze over every year and the weather seems similar.

Jay (shoveled the roof today) W
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by PeteE »

Jay w wrote:I guess I can stop asking Pete if Lake McDonald has frozen over. I'm always surprised it doesn't freeze over every year, and early. It's "mountain" water, so it starts cold. Lakes in MN froze over every year and the weather seems similar.

Jay (shoveled the roof today) W
Lake McDonald is a pretty deep lake--over 400ft in places.
That's the main reason it doesn't freeze over more often.
The wind contributed to later freezing this year. Wind adds energy to the water by keeping it stirred up.
I bet most Minnesota lakes are much shallower than Lake McDonald and so freeze quicker.
Local area lakes that are shallow froze up pretty quick.

I did my roof shoveling a couple weeks ago 8)

I ski'd out to Round Prairie(~3 miles?) from the Polebridge Ranger Station today via the Inside Road.
AWESOME day. The snow could not have been better for skiing. I was ecstatic :D
:arrow: :arrow: :arrow:
Working on pics and video.
later
pete :wink:

ND!!
You're a healthy guy. You'll find a place to shovel your snow :)
Why wait on nature to melt it?
8)
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by PeteE »

Winter hasn't quite let go of the Flathead Valley.
Woke up this morning to this "postcard" scene out my window. :)
It'll all be off the trees by noon though. Temps are warming up.


pete :wink:

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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by PeteE »

We're not quite done yet with snow.


pete :wink:



Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Missoula MT
405 AM MDT Sat Apr 27 2019

...DANGEROUS CONDITIONS LIKELY ON MARIAS PASS TONIGHT AND SUNDAY
MORNING...
...WIDESPREAD GUSTY WINDS THROUGHOUT WESTERN Montanan AND LEMHI
COUNTY THIS AFTERNOON.

.DISCUSSION...Wide reaching impacts remain on track for today
through Sunday for much of the Northern Rockies. Gusty west to
northwest winds are still forecast to impact all of western
Montana and Lemhi County in Idaho this afternoon and evening.
Sustained winds of 20 to 30 mph with gusts reaching and possibly
exceeding 40 mph are expected. Any loose items not secured will
likely be blown around. Also, due to relatively saturated soils,
some tree falls will be possible, and creating power outages.
There is also a risk for the development of mountain waves in the
Bitterroot Valley and along I-90 from Garrison Junction to
Anaconda. Winds gusting up to 50 mph or higher will be possible in
those two locations. Several Wind Advisories remain effect for
various times and locations today. Details can be found by
visiting our website at http://www.weather.gov/missoula.


Another impact due to this system, will be a late season snow and
wind event in the Glacier National Park region and Highway 2 from
Essex to Marias Pass. Heavy snow in addition to winds gusting up
to 50 mph will create dangerous conditions at times, especially
over Marias Pass tonight and Sunday morning. 5 to 8 inches of
snow is expected, with isolated higher amounts over Marias Pass.
The Winter Storm Watch has been replaced with a Winter Storm
Warning starting later this afternoon and continuing through noon
tomorrow.


Tonight/Tomorrow for West Glacier/Belton area
Rain and snow showers, becoming all snow after midnight. Low around 27. Windy, with a west northwest wind 14 to 24 mph becoming north northeast 29 to 39 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 55 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches possible.
Sunday
A 30 percent chance of snow showers before noon. Partly sunny, with a high near 43. Windy, with a north northeast wind 25 to 30 mph decreasing to 18 to 23 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 41 mph. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.


Snow is not only expected for the mountains and areas mentioned
above, but also in most valleys of western Montana. Even though we
are not expecting accumulating snow, the atmosphere will be cold
enough to support potential snow squalls. These squalls will move
in fast, and could make traveling difficult for short periods of
time. If you end up in a snow squall, slow down as visibility will
be greatly reduced due to blowing snow.

But truthfully speaking, the ensuing potential for record
breaking low temperatures on Monday morning could bear the
greatest or most widespread public impacts. A quick look at the
late April and early May records reveals that cold like this has
only happened 2 or 3 times in the past 20 years. So this late
season hard freeze is certainly an exceptional event. The typical
factors which may inhibit cold, such as clouds and wind, will be
in play and could keep some locations from reaching their lowest
potential temperatures. But even so a widespread hard freeze for
all of Western Montana and a good part of North Central Idaho
seems quite likely.

Temperatures next week will be very slow to recover as a baggy
upper level trough maintains a much colder than normal air mass
across the Northern Rockies. While there may be some light showers
about the area on Monday afternoon and Tuesday, the next best
chance for precipitation seems to be on hold until late next
week.
"If you are not curious, you will learn nothing" -Goethe-

"When you're born in this world, you're given a ticket to the freak show.
And when you're born in America, you're given a front row seat."

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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by Ear Mountain »

I already saw fresh snow on the Rocky Mountain Front. Looks like down to about 5,000 feet. The greatest impact of this storm appears to be predicted for Saturday night and Sunday April 27-28. Blizzard warnings are posted for areas east of the continental divide from the Canada border to south of Great Falls and east to about Harlem and Lewistown.

I've learned to never put away my snow shovels until July. Even then I keep them handy cause you just never know.
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by teapot57 »

I am on the northern end of this front, and am currently listening to the wind howl and watching the snow blow sideways. The wind is gusting 50-80 km per hour and we are expecting up to 20 cm (8 inches) by morning. There are road closures and accidents all over the city. I had my snow tires removed last week so haven’t driven anywhere since this afternoon before it started. We need the moisture so I’m not complaining, but I haven’t seen a storm like this in a long time!
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by PeteE »

Another missed call for those of us on the West Side.
A dusting of snow here in WF. And judging by web cams, not much more in West Glacier.
No big wind event here in WF either.

pete :wink:
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by Ear Mountain »

The Rocky Mountain Front and North Central Montana did not get missed by this storm. Near zero visibility this morning north of Choteau. Friends in Shelby and Browning report the same. Winds gusting to 60 mph and temps falling to about 20 F so far. Heavy snow fell and is blowing all around. Best to stay home and hunker down with a cup of coffee and a good book. The mountains will probably look beautiful once the sky clears and the sun comes out.
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Re: Lake McDonald freezes over

Post by daveparker »

Woke to about an inch this morning, but it was cold, pretty much thawed out by about noon and starting to clear up some. Not to bad at all, pretty normal for spring at our place.
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