Association Forum - Great Lakes?

Assn Members Area · Join

Home.

Association Forum

Ships Store

Cruising

Racing

Technical Tips

Photo Gallery - New

Boat Search - Updated

Manuals & Brochures

Swap Meet

Links

Officer Flag Line & Staff

Bylaws & Constitution

Members Area

Join the Association

Notice:
The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.

Association Forum

Username:	Password:
Save Password
Forgot your Password?

All Forums

Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

General Sailing Forum

Great Lakes?

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Author

Topic

Page: of 2

JimB517
Past Commodore

Member Avatar

USA
3285 Posts

Initially Posted - 01/16/2009 : 17:01:53

I know you guys are having one heck of a deep freeze. Are the lakes freezing? Anyone have any photos?

By the way, it's 90F here. I had to run the AC in my car. I think all the heat in the country is concentrated in the SW US.

Hope for wind on this 3 day weekend.

Indiscipline 1978 FK SR #398

Edited by - on

JohnP
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

1520 Posts

Response Posted - 01/16/2009 : 17:29:53

Go ahead, twist the knife!!!

At least the Chesapeake Bay has not frozen yet, but I was sad to put a snow cover on my boat a while ago. But no snow here yet, to the eastern side of DC.

Edited by - on

John Russell
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
3444 Posts

Response Posted - 01/16/2009 : 20:25:10

Lake Erie is frozen near Cleveland. I assume it also is in the western end since that is where it is shallowest. Remember, Erie is the shallowest of the Great Lakes. The wind chill was well below zero today. If it isn't to windy tomorrow I'll try to get a few shots.

The good news is that when the lake freezes, the "lake effect" snow that eastern Ohio through western New York suffer is lessened. Lake effect snow occurs when weather fronts pick up moisture from the lake and dump that moisture in the form of snow as it moves off the relatively warm water over the colder land mass.

Edited by - John Russell on 01/16/2009 20:25:37

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

Members Avatar

USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/16/2009 : 20:41:40

We lived in Great Lakes IL when I was a kid in the 60's. I can remember walking out onto Lake Michigan with my older brothers (sworn to secrecy so our parents didn't find out) and some of their friends during a hard freeze one year.

Edited by - delliottg on 01/16/2009 20:42:50

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 01/17/2009 : 09:59:47

[url="http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/res/glcfs/glcfs.php?lake=l&ext=ice&type=N&hr=00"]Great Lakes Ice Cover[/url]

Edited by - on

Dave Bristle
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 01/17/2009 : 13:55:05

Wow--look at Erie... The western end is wall-to-wall (as of 2 days ago). It seems it's been a few years since that happened.

Edited by - Dave Bristle on 01/17/2009 13:55:34

Dave Bristle
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 01/17/2009 : 14:00:32

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by delliottg
 We lived in Great Lakes IL...<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">Where's that? I grew up near Chicago and know Lake Forest, Lake Bluff, Great Lakes Naval Station, etc... Do you mean one of those?

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

Members Avatar

USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/17/2009 : 17:15:26

Great Lakes Naval Station. My dad ran the dental school there (as well as other places during his career). We also lived in Lake Forest for a while, but don't ask me specifics, I was there when I was 4-8, and was only back for "A" school for a couple of months during my tour in the USN. We used to sled down Zigameier (sp?) hill on base. It was closed to traffic during the winter and we'd build toboggan runs & jumps, etc. Great fun. Then there was "killer hill" right next to it that you had to make a 90 degree turn at the bottom to avoid the chain link fence at the bottom that protected the 12' or so drop off to the road below. My sister got stuck under the fence once when she couldn't get the Flexible Flyer to turn.

Edited by - on

Tom Potter
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
1913 Posts

Response Posted - 01/17/2009 : 17:23:15

David,
I hung out in Snipes Castle 1979-80 Engineman A and C school.

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

Members Avatar

USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/17/2009 : 17:51:17

Tom,
Same here, in '81, electrician's mate A school. It was weird to be back there, our house had been torn down, only the pad was still there, next to Foss Park if you remember where that was (north end of the base along Lake Michigan). Couldn't even find where we'd lived off base, couldn't remember.

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 12:55:17

This all reminds me of a story my dad told. When he was a middle teen, Lake Huron froze over one year under very light wind conditions and the Lake was fantastic for skating. Blowing snow had banked up in places but left large areas of bare smooth thick and safe ice.

He and a bunch of friends got it in their head to skate far enough out to see Canada, based on the misconception that lake freighters they observed traversed the center of the lake.

Well, it is ninety miles across and the freighter lanes were only out about 10-15. And... given the limited sunlight hours at that latitude in the middle of winter they started at first light and skated until half the daylight was consumed and seeing no Canada, turned around.

It was a nice day but they hadn't noted that they'd enjoyed a tail wind going out and the reader can figure the rest. It was several hours after dark when they returned, thankful for plenty of moonlight to follow their skate tracks. My dad claimed that he'd never been before or since... so completely worn out.

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

Members Avatar

USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 17:46:44

We didn't walk all that far out, and in my young mind it seemed like the waves themselves had frozen (I nearly drowned in Lake Michigan waves so I wasn't exactly thrilled to be out there). I'm sure it was just my imagination, but that's what I remember.

Edited by - on

Derek Crawford
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
3321 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 18:01:28

I remember ice fishing in Northern Alberta in 1960. Drove out onto the ice (in a car!), drilled a hole through 3' of ice and lit a fire to keep relatively warm! Didn't catch a thing either but an old Indian about 50 yds away was hauling out northern pike like crazy.

Edited by - on

Turk
Admiral

Members Avatar

USA
736 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 18:31:15

Here is a link to a webcam!

http://www.greatlakesvista.com/

Edited by - on

John Russell
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
3444 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 18:53:53

Here's one aabout 50 miles or so west. [url="http://www.bayboatclub.org/Dockcam.htm"]Bay Boat Club Dock Cam[/url] Unfortunately, it's only a live feed so check it out sometime during the day.

Edited by - John Russell on 01/18/2009 18:54:57

Dave Bristle
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 20:54:44

It's hard for lake sailors around the country and people on both coasts to perceive the Great Lakes if they haven't actually been on them... You've all seen the maps, but stop and consider the scale for a moment. Lake Superior is something like 350 miles long and 150-200 miles wide, with enormous depths (I don't remember off-hand). Lake Michigan, the long-skinny one, is roughly 90 miles wide and some 400 miles long--you cant't see either shore from the middle. Several multiples of the state of Connecticut (where I now live) would fit in either lake. 6-8' seas are not uncommon on any of them. 15-20' happen now and then on some. And those seas are not like Pacific swells--they are steep, breaking waves. Coastal sailors I've known who've encountered weather on the Great Lakes have said, "Holy crap! Get me back to the ocean!"

I grew up there, and frankly I'm happy to be here (Coastal New England). The Great Lakes rank with anything as potentially heavy-duty sailing--generally with far fewer places to hide per mile of coastline. My hat is off to Great Lakes sailors--stay safe out there!

Edited by - on

Prospector
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Canada
3159 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2009 : 11:29:55

Here ya go. Every great lake cam you will ever want to watch. Hope you like th elook of white on white!

http://www.votingindustry.com/freighter/links.htm

Edited by - on

Tim Baur
Deckhand

Members Avatar

USA
5 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2009 : 15:15:33

Lake Erie at Huron Ohio is cold and frozen, The dredging of the Basin has halted and Tug frozen in, It's been interesting watching big kids move mud. The Cleveland boat show is on till the 25th so lets take a break.
I pulled my boat November 12th last nice day we had. I vow to maybe pull by the 15th October next year just to get the extra time to winterize.
For any die hards out their, Harbor North has a few liveaboards this winter and they seem to be pretty happy!!!!!

Edited by - on

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
3467 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2009 : 16:20:00

Temps a little bit cool in the DC area right now. Just like JohnP, I put my cover on my boat but.....I did it only because I was going to be out of town for 6 days and did not want to take a chance with any potential snow days. As it is turning out, snow was west and north and Wash DC/Northern VA area escaped snow.

I return this Wednesday afternoon. Right now, we are visiting relatives in Bradenton, Florida (about 3/4 hr south of Tampa). Daytime temps around 60-65F.

Edited by - on

Dave5041
Former Mainsheet Editor

Members Avatar

USA
3758 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2009 : 17:23:40

I pulled out at Port Clinton in late October, and I plan on putting in at Gulf Breeze, FL tuesday or wednesday. Its about 60º this evening, about 70º warmer than when I left OH on friday, but the locals think it's cold.

Edited by - on

Windhover
1st Mate

Members Avatar

USA
35 Posts

Response Posted - 01/20/2009 : 06:44:50

Lake Ontario is still mostly open, Syracuse is at 103" of snow for the season with more Lake Effect to come... the good news is Spring is on the way.
My sailing forecast for the day (looks good if you can stand the cold and snow coming down sideways)
Today: N wind 7 to 10 kt becoming N. Snow showers likely. Seas 2 ft or less.

Tonight: NW wind 9 to 13 kt becoming W. Snow showers likely, mainly before 3am. Seas 2 to 4 ft.
Sure am jealous of you guys in FL right now!

Edited by - on

glivs
Admiral

Members Avatar

USA
836 Posts

Response Posted - 01/20/2009 : 19:05:12

To hard core racers at this time of year, what's a little ice: [url="http://race.fit2paddle.com/C2047168441/E20070131131733/index.html"]Carnival du Quebec[/url].

Edited by - on

Old Disco Queen
1st Mate

Members Avatar

USA
66 Posts

Response Posted - 01/20/2009 : 20:03:16

And you know that I was in Chicago this weekend, took the train in and it was 3 hrs late due to track trouble (whatever that means). If I closed my eyes it felt like I was on a tack on Old Disco in a rough sea...oh...when will the heat come back???

Stephen

Edited by - on

Dave Bristle
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 01/20/2009 : 22:04:22

More on Gerry's ice race is [url="http://www.lightmediation.com/blog/podcast/september/Quebec_Winter_Canoe_Race_365.pdf"]here[/url]. That'll make any of us feel warm by comparison!

Edited by - on

dmpilc
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
4593 Posts

Response Posted - 01/21/2009 : 08:33:19

Those guys are just plain crazy!!!

Edited by - on

tinob
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
1883 Posts

Response Posted - 01/21/2009 : 09:52:38

THEIR ACTIONS DEFINE MADNESS....Wonder what they do for excitement?

Val on the hard DAGNABIT,#3936, Patchogue,N.Y.

Edited by - on

Page: of 2

Topic

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Jump To:

Association Forum

Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.