It doesn't seem likely right now, what with the unseasonably warm weather we've been enjoying recently. At least most of us have been enjoying it. Some don't.
One group of sports people who don't like warm weather all that much are those who like spending time dangling bait on a hook through a hole in the ice, or speeding over a frozen body of water on a snowmobile or ice-boat.
There is, however, at least a modicum of danger in any of those activities. The danger comes from the fact that you never can completely trust ice to keep you out of the water.
Despite days of freezing weather and familiarity with a particular lake, pond or river, you never can be absolutely sure. However, this is true of many things that are fun and we generally balance the risks against the rewards.
The U.S. Coast Guard, which has the responsibility for rescuing folks whose expeditions onto the ice turn out to be more exciting than they had intended, has issued guidelines for helping determine relatively safe ice.
The USCG actually advises that the only sure way to be safe regarding ice is to stay off, but it recognizes that recreational activities on the ice are part of the lives of many people, especially here in the Great Lakes region.
The CG says that ice should be at least two inches thick to support one person and logically, four inches thick to support two.
It takes five inches to keep a snowmobile dry, eight inches to support a car and 12 inches to hold up a light truck.
Remember, these are minimum thicknesses. Also remember that old ice is not as supportive as new ice, even though it's fro- zen, it changes with time. Check out the old ice cubes in your freezer.
And foggy ice, with lots of air bubbles in it, is not as strong as clear ice. So thickness is not the only thing that determines the strength of ice.
The CG has some other tips for folks who go out on the ice. They are very similar to tips, or even requirements, for boaters.
They say you should take along a VHF radio, a rope, whistle, flashlight, compass and some flares. With the VHF, you can call the CG on Channel 16 if there is an emergency. They, in turn, can locate you more easily by determining the direction from which your radio signal is coming.
Dress in layers and make the outer layer a bright color. Better yet, wear a personal flotation device, or even a dry suit. A couple of companies make coveralls that will keep you both warm and buoyant. They're expensive, but will seem cheap when you are trying to keep your head above water.
Let someone know that you are going out on the ice. Also tell them where you are going, who you're going with and when you expect to be back. It's best to write this all down and leave it with a couple of people. Include your cell phone number.
A cell phone can be used to call 911, but it won't help with direction finding like VHF will. However, if the fishing is extra good and you stay out later than planned, it does make it possible for your family to contact you to find out if you are safe, avoiding an expensive CG Search and Rescue exercise.
Take along a couple of "ice awls" or other device you can use to pull yourself out of the water if you fall through.
The USCG further advises that you maintain a check of the ice conditions, watching out for soft spots. Check out the tem- perature and wind direction for the past few days before your trip. Warm weather can weaken the ice and wind from any direc- tion can break it up, leaving you floating free.
Don't go out alone, or at least without being around other people. But when you do go out with one or more others, spread out to reduce the weight on a particular spot on the ice, and, frankly to avoid all of you going in if you break through.
Don't step across open water, you might find yourself on a free floating sheet headed to Canada.
These tips all apply to ice activity on the Great Lakes, like Erie. But most of them also are important to anyone going out on a farm pond or river.
Remember though … Spring is just a couple of months away.