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CanisLupusArctos · 02-15-2008, 10:35 AM

I have not been out on the ice since the last storm, but yesterday I got a good idea just by looking at it (and judging by what's on shore.)

There has been 31 inches of snow in the past 10 days, very little of which has melted. The last storm produced mostly freezing rain rather than regular rain (after 9 inches of snow). While some of this trickled down into the snowpack, several inches of it remained powder while another several inches of it was wet. The freezing rain created a 1/4-inch crust that water has not been able to penetrate easily.

Yesterday I noticed that the snowpack on the lake ice didn't budge, even when 30 mph NW winds blew. It held the same exact formation it's been in since it fell. This indicates the crust on top. I saw a few places where the weight of the crust caused a section of it to fall into the powder below, creating a white sink hole.

Sunday night and Monday, a rain storm is now forecast with temps in the 40s. This is not good at all since there is no way for liquid to be absorbed by the ground, and it will most likely make an even bigger mess of the lake ice. Although we're running out of places to put the snow, at least we can move it out of the way. Any rain we get from now until this snowpack melts will flow and pond wherever it wants... a much bigger problem. As I mentioned in postings on the weather thread, any rapid melting of the snowpack (by rain, or by warm weather) will only add more water to the situation.

We've had 5.73 inches of melted equivalent ("rain") since this month began, and almost all of it has fallen as snow or ice which means it's still there. Should our February snow melt quickly it would be like getting 5.73 inches of rain all at once. If the melt is caused by rain, add the new rainfall to the 5.73. That's just for the snow of the past 15 days.

For reference, the May 2006 floods produced 6.23 inches of rain over 5 days.

February began with 13 inches of snow already on the ground from before, which had turned to ice from previous rain saturation and compression by weight of new snow... so that bottom foot of our snowpack probably has the most water in it. And if that melted too...

02-15-2008, 10:35 AM	#12
CanisLupusArctos Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Center Harbor Posts: 1,049 Thanks: 15 Thanked 472 Times in 107 Posts	I have not been out on the ice since the last storm, but yesterday I got a good idea just by looking at it (and judging by what's on shore.) There has been 31 inches of snow in the past 10 days, very little of which has melted. The last storm produced mostly freezing rain rather than regular rain (after 9 inches of snow). While some of this trickled down into the snowpack, several inches of it remained powder while another several inches of it was wet. The freezing rain created a 1/4-inch crust that water has not been able to penetrate easily. Yesterday I noticed that the snowpack on the lake ice didn't budge, even when 30 mph NW winds blew. It held the same exact formation it's been in since it fell. This indicates the crust on top. I saw a few places where the weight of the crust caused a section of it to fall into the powder below, creating a white sink hole. Sunday night and Monday, a rain storm is now forecast with temps in the 40s. This is not good at all since there is no way for liquid to be absorbed by the ground, and it will most likely make an even bigger mess of the lake ice. Although we're running out of places to put the snow, at least we can move it out of the way. Any rain we get from now until this snowpack melts will flow and pond wherever it wants... a much bigger problem. As I mentioned in postings on the weather thread, any rapid melting of the snowpack (by rain, or by warm weather) will only add more water to the situation. We've had 5.73 inches of melted equivalent ("rain") since this month began, and almost all of it has fallen as snow or ice which means it's still there. Should our February snow melt quickly it would be like getting 5.73 inches of rain all at once. If the melt is caused by rain, add the new rainfall to the 5.73. That's just for the snow of the past 15 days. For reference, the May 2006 floods produced 6.23 inches of rain over 5 days. February began with 13 inches of snow already on the ground from before, which had turned to ice from previous rain saturation and compression by weight of new snow... so that bottom foot of our snowpack probably has the most water in it. And if that melted too...