Approaching near-record ice cover for Great Lakes

[Slipkey]

Only about 5% left across all of the lakes to break the record. Hope we have open water by C&R opener...  

— Lake Erie, 95.8 percent.

— Lake Huron, 95.5 percent.

— Lake Superior, 94.6 percent.

— Lake Michigan, 82.3 percent.

— Lake Ontario, 43.4 percent.

[dartag]

Should be some good views today with the clear skies.

http://coastwatch.glerl.noaa.gov/modis/region_map.html

[Slipkey]

Should be some good views today with the clear skies.

http://coastwatch.glerl.noaa.gov/modis/region_map.html

That's way cool!  I had never seen that site before. You're right.  There was some great imagery from today.

[MSURoss]

Our lakes will really benefit from this ice I hope!

[Slipkey]

I think so.  I'm looking forward to seeing how much water levels have risen after the ice and snow melts.  The lakes are overdue for a "refill."

[gmetime24]

I read that at this time last year the Great Lakes were 12-14 inches lower. This winter will help the water levels but I'm ready for some warm weather ASAP

[dartag]

Just think all that ice from port huron to mackinaw has to come down the st-clair river.

[gmetime24]

I remember reading an article last winter by the so called "experts" and they said the Great Lakes would be the lowest in history by 2015-2016. Must be the same experts that invented the idea of global warming, or whatever they call it these days 

[djkimmel]

Like playing the stock market - long term trends are more sure if you can stick it out compared to trying to figure out what exactly is going to happen in the next 6 months, or year, or two years.

I think we're going to have to get used to weird swings in out weather from year to year. I won't try to predict exactly what those swings will be but I feel pretty comfortable guessing we'll have lots of weird swings. Being a redheaded fisherman, I've been ahead of the curve on that for a long, long time. I have had the power to make it rain for big chunks of my life. People started scheduling their vacations around any major tournaments or practice trips I had scheduled. I even started to get calls from people who needed rain and heard I might be able to help out!!!

I feared, that if I had become a professional angler fishing twice as much or more than I was already at the time, the whole world would have flooded under a deluge of constant rainstorms. I couldn't have that on my conscience. So I started a website... I do have to apologize to the ice anglers for starting the ice fishing website (www.greatlakesicefishing.com). I screwed up winter for 2 whole season on that one! Sorry... 3 years later the pendulum has swung back. A little too far maybe... but it will even out. Next year. Or the year after. I bet.

Regardless, the last two years across the globe were still real hot compared to long term trends. Real hot. As in major droughts and wicked, giant wild fires. As in whole island nations possibly having to relocate to somewhere else in the world or build giant walls around their whole country because the rising oceans are putting more and more of their land underwater... we get thicker ice. They go swimming.

One piece of good news I heard (besides the ice fishing companies finally moving some decent product again before it was too late!) is that the solid ice on Lake Superior may allow that inbred wolf pack on Isle Royale to get some new blood out from Canada! That's how they got there in the first place in the 1940s.

[djkimmel]

PS: MODIS Satellite Imagery from NOAA coastwatch is just one of the many, many links available on the GreatLakesBass.com Weather links page. Look under Buoys, Lake Levels, Temps & Satellite Links for the link to NOAA coastwatch Great Lakes - MODIS Satellite Imagery.

Want to see something really cool - check out the GLCFS Great Lakes Coastal Forecasting System link under Great Lakes coastwatch Satellite Imagery. Takes awhile to load it up. All kinds of interesting things available on that page.

[MSURoss]

Global climate change is a more acceptable term. Extreme weather is becoming more common.

[djkimmel]

It should keep fishing exciting - changing all the time. Different every year!