An educated guess
Readin’ and writin’ and ’rithmetic likely had little to do with the calculations — in spite of who was chosen by The Journal as this year’s ice-out predictors.
All six student councils at Falls High School Tuesday gave their collective guesses for the date on which the ice on Rainy Lake will melt into oblivion.
Last year, a group of senior men belonging to a local coffee klatch made the predictions; so this year the speculation falls to younger members of the community.
The student councils’ reasoning ranged from the whimsical to the practical — but all them agreed that due to recent balmy temperatures, the frozen crust of Rainy Lake isn’t long for this earth.
Prompted to give some reason for the seniors’ guess, student council member Chev Arnold concocted, “It came to me in a dream; a voice called out to me ‘the lake will thaw on April 22.’” The group also noted that it was student Katie Loop’s birthday.
The junior student council bears the distinction of being the first all-male council. Joe Toninato gave some mathematical reasoning for the group’s guess of April 24: “If you add 40 to 24, you get 64,” he said. “Then if you flip 64 around, you get 46 — divide by two and it equals 24.” TJ Bernard mentioned that April 24 is also his brother Chase’s birthday.
The sophomores picked the Internal Revenue’s tax deadline as the date on which the ice on Rainy Lake will go out. They also noted that it was classmate Elizabeth Gearhart’s birthday.
Freshman on the ninth grade student council’s prediction was April 23, but they were unhappy because their original guess was taken by the eighth graders. Macy Skrien noted that although Rainy’s ice is slushy, it still appeared solid over the weekend. “(It’s) still thick cause we can still stand on it,” she said.
April 21 was the guess of the members of the eighth grade student council. Cory Netland said his friend had fallen through the ice over the weekend, “in up to his neck.” Garret Davis said he had been ice fishing a few times this winter.
Members of the seventh grade student council said they chose April 20 because “all the other dates were taken.” Outnumbered by females, Jackson Vollom was teased for his lack of acuity in the science field. “I got an A in science,” Vollom said flatly.
Ice out trivia
The ice is considered out the first day that a boat may travel on Rainy Lake from Island View to Kettle Falls unimpeded by ice.
Ice out day has been recorded annually for both Rainy and Kabetogama lake since 1930. Depending on the type of winter, the spring temperatures and ice thickness, the ice has consistently cleared from Rainy Lake in the last week of April or the first week of May.
The earliest date the ice out occurred on Rainy Lake was in 1998 on April 13; the latest in 1996 on May 18.
Ice out occurred last year on Rainy Lake on April 29.
Online Ice Out Contest
Anyone can participate in The Journal’s online Rainy Lake Ice Out Contest by visiting http://leader.upickem.net/engine/Welcome.aspx?contestid=15419. Three winners will be drawn from all of the correct guesses. Winners will each receive a $10 merchandise certificate from Rainy Lake 1 Stop.
RAINY LAKE Ice Out
1930 May 3
1931 May 5
1932 May 7
1933 May 6
1934 May 6
1935 May 8
1936 May 13
1937 May 7
1938 May 3
1939 May 5
1940 May 10
1941 April 25
1942 April 25
1943 May 4
1944 May 11
1945 April 23
1946 April 22
1947 May 11
1948 May 6
1949 April 28
1950 May 22
1951 May 9
1952 May 4
1953 May 4
1954 May 14
1955 April 23
1956 May 11
1957 May 7
1958 April 22
1959 May 6
1960 May 16
1961 May 8
1962 May 7
1963 April 30
1964 May 6
1965 May 7
1966 May 15
1967 May 5
1968 May 6
1969 April 28
1970 May 9
1971 May 2
1972 May 16
1973 April 23
1974 May 11
1975 May 10
1976 April 18
1977 May 3
1978 May 10
1979 May 12
1980 May 2
1981 April 29
1982 May 7
1983 May 1
1984 April 28
1985 April 30
1986 April 23
1987 April 18
1988 May 6
1989 May 6
1990 April 29
1991 April 27
1992 May 7
1993 April 30
1994 May 8
1995 May 2
1996 May 18
1997 May 5
1998* April 13
1999 May 1
2000 April 22
2001 May 1
2002 May 4
2003 May 5
2004 May 1
2005 April 23
2006 April 16
2007 May 4
2008 May 14
2009 April 29
KABETOGAMA LAKE Ice out
1952 April 28
1953 April 30
1954 May 4
1955 April 20
1956 May 9
1957 May 2
1958 April 17
1959 April 30
1960 May 10
1961 May 6
1962 May 4
1963 April 28
1964 May 3
1965 May 5
1966 May 14
1967 April 25
1968 April 29
1969 April 25
1970 May 6
1971 April 30
1972 May 12
1973 April 21
1974 May 9
1975 May 8
1976 April 18
1977 May 1
1978 May 5
1979 May 10
1980 April 28
1981 April 18
1982 May 5
1983 April 26
1984 April 24
1985 April 28
1986 April 18
1987 April 17
1988 May 2
1989 May 6
1990 April 26
1991 April 25
1992 May 5
1993 April 29
1994 April 25
1995 April 27
1996 May 18
1997 April 29
1998* April 13
1999 April 30
2000 April 20
2001 May 1
2002 April 30
2003 May 1
2004 April 28
2005 April 20
2006 April 16
2007 April 30
2008 May 9
2009 April 29
*Earliest ice-out dates for the lakes.
