Winter's Toe Hold Slips as Open Water Spreads through Lake Minnetonka

Ice on most of Lake Minnetonka's bays is either gone or disappearing quickly thanks to unseasonably warm March temperatures.

Ice still dominates many of Lake Minnetonka's northern bays, but southern areas of the lake have broken free of winter in recent days.

The Freshwater Society has been the official caller of "ice out" on Lake Minnetonka since 1968. Ice out hasn't been declared in March since 2000; last year's announcement was made on April 14. The earliest recorded ice out on Lake Minnetonka was on March 11 back in 1878. The latest ice out was called on May 8 in 1856. The most common ice out dates are April 17, 18 and 19—according to the Freshwater Society.

On Lake Minnetonka, the ice is designated as “out” when it is possible to travel by small boat from any one shore to another shore through any passage on the lake.

The arrival of migrating loons, Minnesota's state bird, traditionally occurrs on Lake Minnetonka concurrently with ice out, and the Freshwater Society will celebrate both during a fund raiser on April 12.

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