For many of us, the thrill of skating on wild ice also includes the analyses on our computers the night before or early in the morning. The research that goes into finding that perfect 10 skating surface span different disciplines. As many factors (temperature, wind, sunlight, cloud cover, snow, vegetation, etc ) contribute to ice formation, integrity, and quality, we use satellite imagery, weather reports, wind monitors, and webcams/timelapses to determine the best chance of great skating.
Please help us with this page if any resource is missing. We would like this page to be eventually embedded with a "widget" that displays data from each of these sources. Reach out if you have the expertise.
Please help us find the best weather source(s) for the micro-climates in this region.
The National Weather Service (NWS) has a clickable map to hone in on the location of interest: NWS Burlington office. Here you can find the 3-day history (in hours) as well as the hourly forecasts to plan your adventures.
East Street Weather Blog reports on Huntington and North Hero. https://eaststreetweatherblog.wordpress.com/
USGS monitors select lakes and rivers around the state. Water temperatures do not tell you about ice formation, but can give a sense of how the water is changing and compares to previous years. Lake Champlain (temperature) and Waterbury Reservoir (water level only)
The Sentinel 2 satellite, run by the European Space Agency (ESA) is a valuable tool to scout conditions. The images are sufficient quality to understand where ice may be, but cannot tell you whether that ice is safe. The data are limited as the satellite come around at the right spot ever 3-4 days and those days must not have cloud cover.
Jamie Hess and Chris Boone each host articles on how to use this valuable resource
Webcams are another valuable resource for covering a lot of ground to scout for ice without driving. The timelapses are also helpful to see if a particular area had snowfall over the past 24 hours due to various microclimates in the area.
Relevant webcams in the Burlington area include:
Wind is important for planning trips: would the ice be snow covered, how long to skate before turning around, or a one way down-wind skate Please recommend good source(s) for wind.
Detailed description of lakes are important for scouting andp planning (elevation, depth, surface area, and access)
Vermont Department of Ecological Resources has a Depth Charts of Vermont Lakes and Ponds and a Lake Land Cover Map which is a Google map with area and elevation at each marker (but doesn't include smaller lakes and ponds).
The Birding Hotspots open source website has a very comprehensive list of places to bird including lakes and ponds. This is helpful for access and area of the body of water.
Some colleagues have made informational maps for fun and have given permission for use on this website. Read the descriptions carefully to understand what you are looking at. Again, liability conditions apply.
Historical Freeze Map by Bishop (unsure when was the last update) https://caltopo.com/m/13UF610