Lake Winnisquam Ice-Out Contest

1st Annual Lake Winnisquam Ice-Out Contest!

Join the WWN 1st Annual Ice-Out Contest and test your springtime prediction skills! Whether you’re a lifelong lake resident, avid ice fisherman, local business, or just want to wager a guess, it’s a fun and easy way to support the Winnisquam watershed while taking part in friendly competition!

Entries accepted through February 21st! You must be 18 years or older to participate. One guess for $10 or three guesses for $20. Each guess helps fund monitoring, education, and stewardship efforts that protect the lake we all love. Submit your entry below.

What is ice-out?

Ice-out is the point in spring at which a lake is considered free of winter ice cover and open water extends across the lake. There is no single universal definition of ice-out and each lake or watershed organization may use a slightly different standard. What matters most is that the definition is consistent year to year, so trends over time are meaningful. Therefore, ice-out determinations are subjective and can change based on varying weather conditions.

Why ice-out matters

  • Ecology: Ice-out influences water temperature, algae growth, fish spawning, and wildlife activity.

  • Climate indicator: Over many years, tracking ice-in and ice-out dates helps to track changes in winter ice conditions and climate trends.

Who determines and what is ice-out?

The WWN utilizes volunteer ice watchers and defines ice-out on Lake Winnisquam as when the lake is approximately 90 percent free of ice cover, as determined by our volunteers. That means there could still be some ice on the lake (weather, wind, and location dependent), however the main areas of the lake are free of ice cover. The Lake area includes:

  • South of Mohawk Island

  • Mohawk Island to Mosquito Bridge

  • the main part of the Lake from Mosquito Bridge to Loon Island

  • the Loon Preserve no-wake zone north of Loon Island

An ice-out determination will be supported, as best as possible, by the following:

  • Timely surveys of the Lake from shoreline roads

  • Photographs of the Lake before and after ice-out (primarily the day of Ice-out)

Rules and Regulations

  1. You must be 18 years or older to participate.

  2. Submit one guess for $10 or 3 for $20!

  3. Contestants in the Ice-out competition cannot include:

    • The volunteers who determine the ice-out date

    • Immediate family of the volunteers who determine the ice-out date

    • Winnisquam Watershed Network Board and employees.

  4. Ice-out will be determined by WWN ice watchers according to the specification above. Note: ice-out determination does not mean it is safe to boat or recreate on the lake.

  5. Ice-out will be announced by WWN within 24-48 hours of determination.

  6. The ice-out winner will be determined based on the date of ice-out guess. 

  • If there are multiple guesses with the correct ice-out date, we will randomly draw one winner.

  • If there are no guesses with the correct ice-out date, we will randomly draw one winner from guesses of the day before and day after the ice-out date.

  • The Ice-out Contest winner will be notified directly by WWN and be announced via newsletter and on social media. If you do not want your name to be publicly shared, please alert WWN upon notification.

Prize

The winner will receive a 50/50 cash split of all guesses purchased!

Enter Contest
OFFICIAL RULES