The snow came un-announced and un-invited today. like the noxious neighbor to your quiet Christmas gathering. It was still coming down as your scout left the ice; no telling how much will fall. But the good news is that we had a look at what’s there.
Goulds Landing has 4” of grey ice. Halfway to the mouth of the harbor there is a long line of brash ice extending side to side. The edge of the old ice was beat up in the most recent wind, and then froze back together in a mosaic. Could be sailed over slowly. Below, looking back at the ramp.

l

About like that time on Moosehead when Denis and Frank didn’t get the last minute change in launch site and went to The Birches. The rest of the fleet set out from Rockwood. We could see them coming down the lake from the north ( from which Canadians usually come) but there was a full width mess of rough brash between us. We began carefully checking it when Frank came flying over it, smashing and crashing the whole way. So if you can take it, your boat probably can as well.

Beyond that is 3’ of black ice with scattered pools of 2”. All very hard and strong.

Dollar Island is on the left. No open holes were observed; there were two skaters in the distance. There might be something from them on the Facebook skaters site.

There are a few, very few, small slush pits. The ice under these snow cones is thick but soft. They could swallow a runner if you hit them just right, but probably would not. Best to avoid them anyway:

If you are sailing there with the ice covered in snow, even a dusting, these will present as small mounds.

Close up of the ice crystal flowers blanketing the plate like a field of albino buttercups. The ice between them was black less than an hour earlier…

So that’s what we got. Very sailable with more checking. However, light and dying west winds tomorrow, 1.5” of snow forecast for Sunday night and then again on Wednesday and Thursday.

Just in from Eddie Zelonish: Sabbatus is reported to have 2.5-3.5” of black ice with a dusting of snow. Even less wind there tomorrow but it might be great skating.