Isle Royale Forums

We are planning a trip for June 20 - 27. According to the weather channel the avg. temps range from 45 to 68. When is the ice out by the way? Looks like April or May?

Last year the first trip of the Voyageur II was delayed a week or so because their was still some ice in Washington Harbor. That would be early May.
From what I've witnessed, it seems to really start to rot in mid to late March, with April being the prime thaw time, and then early May leaves pockets and protected areas, depending on the year...
Even in June, a dip in the interior lakes is "refreshing."

I ordered my season pass this afternoon and one of the park supervisors commented that this has been a very cold winter. I told him I was on the first boat on the 9th of May and he said it was colder this year than last. Last year, the Voyageur was delayed in May because the ice in Washington Harbor was still too thick.

Let's hope that the ice is out before the 9th.

I've taken a couple dips in the inland lakes and Lake Superior in late May and "refreshing" is exactly how I would describe it....for the first 1/100 of a second. I remember soaking my weary feet in the water at Three Mile on my first trip to the island. I figured the cold water would feel good after a long day on the trail. As it turned out the cold was so intense that within a couple minutes my feet were in pain and I was forced to take my feet out of the lake.

In 2005, after paddling around Blake Point and landing at Merrit Cove Camp, I thought I'd give my head a little rinse (I was still wearing my full dry suit). I slipped into the water, floated out from the shore, dipped my head in the water, and promptly got the worst external brain freeze I've ever had

Nick wrote:In 2005, after paddling around Blake Point and landing at Merrit Cove Camp, I thought I'd give my head a little rinse (I was still wearing my full dry suit). I slipped into the water, floated out from the shore, dipped my head in the water, and promptly got the worst external brain freeze I've ever had

Nick, Nick...brain freeze, you are making this much to easy!!!!

johnhens wrote:Nick, Nick...brain freeze, you are making this much to easy!!!!

It's so nice to see the Trish is reading the posts to you again!