Will Last Night's SE Michigan Snow Be Detrimental?

[SleePac]

Well...the snow is beautiful...but is it going to play havoc on that skim layer of ice we had on a lot of lakes yesterday? How detrimental is last night's snow for all of us who are just chompin' at the bit to get out there and fish?

Gggggrrrrrr.....

Concerned in Livonia!

[tubejig]

Not concerned at all. Before there is thick enough ice to really do anything on, I am sure there will be a day with enough wind to break up whatever is there and make water out of it. Remember, its only the beginning of December.

[TheApprentice]

Not concerned at all. Before there is thick enough ice to really do anything on, I am sure there will be a day with enough wind to break up whatever is there and make water out of it. Remember, its only the beginning of December.

Yeah it may only be the beginning of December, but have you checked out the forecast lately? I am in Southwest MI (Edwardsburg) and I checked out one of my favorite channels yesterday and it was completely covered with around 1/2" of ice and with these temps it will be no time before I am out there fishing. I would say it will be a little bit before you are on any big lake though. I am venturing to say I will be out there Tuesday slaying the gills.

To answer your question SleePac, yes the snow will affect the ice. It depends how much snow you got and how thin the ice was to begin with, but as we all know the snow can be detrimental to ice and making of the ice. Lets hope there is not too much. I have not yet been outside to see how much snow we got here, but it does make me nervous.

Ryan

[kdogger]

I've spent a winter living an inland lake in Oakland County, and I've made some observations about snow.

1) Heavy snow (bad)
a: Weighs down the ice, pushing it down, and allowing water to flow up through the cracks and holes. (You may have noticed that sometimes water gushes out of your auger holes...) This wet slop freezes, making the ice thicker, but not necessarily stronger.
b: Tends to insulate the snow against the cold.

2) Light snow(Good): the white will reflect sunlight, keeping the ice cooler on sunny days. (Black ice tends to absorb lots of heat energy) Although light snow may insulate it a bit, the "R" factor is pretty low, and the increased albedo, I feel, improves ice-making.

[FishDaddy09]

Any snow on thin (new) ice is always bad, it insulates the ice from the cold air and hinders the development of more ice. Once you get 6" or more I think it helps to keep the ice and give you some cover so the fish can't see you.