Ice Conditions, Weather Reports, and More!

Finally, a weekend on Little Bay de Noc this hard water season that seemed almost normal. The yellow gate crack is all but invisible. Open water surrounding the crack has frozen and is covered with snow. The open water between the crack absorbed snow from last week then slushed it up and then froze. Not…

It’s been a busy couple days on the Noc. Anglers hit the bay in numbers not seen since last hard water season. I’ll have an in depth report after the weekend.  Side note… Blade’s Bait & Tackle is now a Wilcraft authorized dealer. More to come about that too! Increasing your odds, -Blade

I hate to be at odds about ice conditions with those highly trained professionals who work or volunteer to provide Delta County safety and rescue services. I respect their commitment and look upon them as pillars of our community.The reports I provide require constant attention to ice that changes daily north of the narrows of…

February 12, 2024 I made my way down the Kipling Crack as far as I was going to take the wheeler tonight. It continues all the way to the shoreline west of Saunders Point. It’s a very easy find compared to the Yellow Gate Crack because it’s heaving up and it doesn’t have nearly the…

February 11th, 2024Ice on Little Bay de Noc north of the narrows of Gladstone has firmed up very well. The landings are back on track and light machines are getting to solid ice without breaking through. This should get even better through the week. Now let’s focus on those cracks on the Bay that currently…

February 10th, 2024The lower temps are going to firm ice up nicely again. That’s going to be helpful for ice travel in about a week or so. Here’s the rub. The two main heave/cracks have now settled the heave part and it can be difficult to identify where the “crack” is without ice protruding up.…

February 9th, 2024Well, the ice made it through the heat wave of the past week. But not the landings. They are just awful! And we are ready to freeze this margarita mess up again so getting on the ice isn’t so laborious. I’m guessing by Monday or Tuesday the accesses should be less water logged.…

Today by 10am the brilliant sun on the Bay created standing water with a ripple. I guess 15 mph sustained winds and 30 mph gusts does make water ripple. Pushed by winds out of the south, water looked as though it was flowing north up Little Bay de Noc. At 2 o’clock, I took a…

February 7th, 2024The weather man said it was going to be 41° in Gladstone today. That may have been, considering the thawed ground around here. But not the ice out on the Bay. It was overcast and a smidge above freezing on Upper Little Bay de Noc. It wasn’t even warm enough to make tire…