Minnesota DNR warns anglers to beware of ice heaves that are more prevalent this winter

Wheaton, Minn. — While this season’s lake ice already has delivered a better start to ice fishing season than the past two Minnesota winters, reports of numerous pressure ridges have demanded some caution among anglers.

“Just because somebody is out there with a vehicle and a truck, doesn’t mean you need to be out there with a vehicle and a truck. Don’t let that be the test. Test (the ice) yourself,” said CO Bobby Stringer, of Wheaton.

While the early and ever-thickening ice has been promising throughout the state, the lack of snow and fluctuating temperatures is raising another ice issue: pressure ridges.

“When that ice forms and starts buckling up, it’s going to create a hole somewhere else. … You’re not catching me with a (full-size) vehicle out there right now,” Stringer said, adding that an ATV is his primary mode of transportation right now.

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Throughout the season, Stringer has seen the pressure ridges on Minnesota and South Dakota’s Lake Traverse shift toward shore, which are now blocking accesses onto the lake, making conditions unsafe for anglers to drive out.

“South Dakota (officials) called me, and they closed their accesses due to heaves and pressure ridges. … Then I had to work with the local folks here to close two of the three accesses here on Traverse because of the pressure ridges,” Stringer said.

He said there’s a ridge reaching around 8 feet upward, preventing anglers from even getting onto the water as accesses are blocked by ice upheaval.

While Lake Traverse has been hindered by pressure ridges, it’s by far not the only lake with pressure ridges popping up. There are numerous reports from other DNR Enforcement conservation officers around the state who report iffy ice conditions with vehicles breaking through either thin ice or into open water caused by heaves.

According to the DNR, fluctuations in air temperature from below zero to above or around freezing at 32 degrees Fahrenheit can cause pressure ridges to form. As of press time on Tuesday, Jan. 14, a swing between below freezing to above freezing, then below again was forecast across much of the state this week.

“Last year, we had a lot of snow on top of (the ice), so it kept it pretty much … insulated. When you get cold weather like this, with no snow on top of the ice … it’s flexible,” said Jim Staricha, owner of Northland Towing in Isle.

Arriving at the scenes of sunken ATVs, trucks, and even a sedan, five of the seven vehicles that he’s towed have been in that bind due to pressure ridges that are dicing up the lake’s surface.

Through his 47 years of running a towing business, Staricha said he’s seen many vehicles break through the ice near Garrison Bay and Indian Point on Mille Lacs. He suspects that’s due to the public access there and the inherent uncertainty that each ice season can bring.

“Don’t take ice for granted. If you don’t go through a resort (access), and you’re going out on public access, get out and walk the trail … check the ice. And don’t be trying to cross pressure ridges that are moving,” Staricha said.

Some of the people whose vehicles he fished out this year did all the right things on their way out and assumed they could take the same route back to shore.

“They were out there four or five hours ago, followed the same trail off. Well in that time the pressure ice comes through and diced up all the ice,” he said. “You drive over it once, and an hour later it could be completely different. … It’s not solid ground, it’s floating ice.”

With fluctuating temperatures and minimal snow cover, Stringer also cautions anglers that checking ice conditions when leaving the lake is as important as checking on the way in.

If anglers are driving on any lake and see rough spots where ice sticks out above the flat surface, they should ride parallel to it until the heave dissipates and where it is likely safe to cross.

COs other than Stringer reported ice-related incidents this week:

• CO Matt Loftness, of Marshall, reported that open-water areas continue to be the main topic of conversation with ice anglers. Multiple lakes have large open-water spots, with a few recreational vehicles going through.

• CO Mitch Lawler, of Enforcement’s Marine Unit in Alexandria, reported that he used his patrol airboat to assist the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office with a truck and fish house that broke through thin ice on Lake Mary in Douglas County.

• And CO Matt Brodin, of Brainerd, located two long pressure ridges on the Gull Lake.