It’s not that cold

…or that thick. I took a hand drill out to see how thick the ice on the lake is. I leaned a little too hard on the drill, and the ice turned out to be not nearly thick enough. Of course I did not want to know how thick it was near the shore, but at the end of the dock. It was around 20F, and I was wearing 4 layers, gloves, and my field boots. I went in up to my chest. The water was not too bad, although very bracing. Ethan was there to ask if it was cold. Once I was back inside and stripped down to my boxers, I felt pretty good. I can see why folks do those polar bear swims… The drill is still on the bottom of the lake. Maybe I will have to do some diving before it gets too thick. Or maybe I will wait till spring.

6 Responses to “It’s not that cold”


  1. 1 nathan

    Time for a coffee roast gathering with a polar bear swim ending? First one to find the drill wins!

  2. 2 Mother-in-law

    Hey, if that’s our drill, you better go get it right now! Just kidding! Wish I could have witnessed the tumble.

  3. 3 ShackelMom

    I suspected it was not a fall ON the ice that finished off the phone… I guess if one lives by a lake in Michigan, one must fall through the ice at least once!

  4. 4 Dad

    Assume it was a cordless drill. Maybe with fresh water it could be dried out and still work. Have never tried that experiment! (Though we did manage to dry out Mom’s computer…)

  5. 5 daniel

    It was not an electric hand drill, but a vintage hand drill or ratchet brace, it seems. It has the large U shape in the middle that you crank around by hand. A good magnet could bring it back up… It is the same one I used last year to check ice thickness, but never this early, and maybe a little more carefully…

  6. 6 Dad

    Okay, got a clear picture now. We called them ‘a brace and bit’ and they were used for boring big holes, which I guess was the goal.

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