I don't know much about ice...

[FishorDie]

I was on Ghost lake the other day and i was wondering am I safe if the ice is cracking all around me? I mean the ice was thick like 16-18 inches.... but it still scared the **** out of me when i could see the ice cracking right under my feet...

[Albertadiver]

It's pretty natural. With that ice thickness I wouldn't worry. Makes that cool sound though eh? If you're not used to it, it can be unnerving. For me, not hearing the cracking is what gets me worried because it means the ice is either really thin or under a lot of stress.

I'm sure others will have better information, but that's my thoughts.

[jjstar]

I had that happen on Marie lake the crack centered right in the hole I was cutting. Crapped my pants. But the Ice was nice and clear and 16" so not a problem just plays games with my mind. I still moved over 20 feet and cut a different hole, but that was just to find some clean ice to cut :ashamed:

[Big.Bear]

Happens quite often

[TreeGuy]

Makes me think about plate tectonics, faultlines and Earthquakes. Same gig. Internal stresses must be released. Ergo cracks. Now consider California sitting on the San Andres fault.............:scared:

Tree

[nicemustang]

Happens more on the moving water lakes, because it's dammed but the water is still moving out.

[icefever]

The ice cracks a lot on this lake because of the power plant, but I sure haven't seen 16 inches of ice on there yet and I've been checking it weekly. The most dangerour areas on this lake is near the shore lines because of the lake level changes. Also stay away from the dam, it's moving water

[Grizzly]

Last season i was on pigeon in Late Feb... the ice was a SOLID 2FT.
Anyhow, i was in my ice tent watching some walleye stare at my gulp minnow, when suddenly the ice cracked, and shook. After it was all said and done, my hole was outside of my tent.

I came back a week later and the spot i was fishing was now a pressure ridge!
scary stuff. needless to say, im a die hard angler and i didnt move locations. Just moved my tent over the hole and continued fishing!

[FishorDie]

scares the crap out of me though ...i was fishing by the bridge and i knew i shouldnt have been fishing in that area.. but i had to give it a shot because it was so slow that day... i was fishing for a bit and heard a huge crack... long story short i high tailed it out of there in a hurry !

Not used to fishing near dams .... kinda freaks the sh1t out of me!

[cujo1969]

Good ice usually crack and groans when its makeing more ice.

[FishorDie]

well good to know then ... but it will still scare the sh1t out of me i think .. haha