![On Lake Winnipesaukee, The Ice Out Watch Is On](http://townsquare.media/site/695/files/2019/03/ice-out.jpg?w=630&h=418&zc=1&s=0&a=t&q=89&w=980&q=75)
On Lake Winnipesaukee, The Ice Out Watch Is On
It has become an annual tradition for residents of the Lakes Region of New Hampshire - trying to guess when "Ice Out" will be declared. It goes all the way back to 1887, the first year it was declared. Since then, it has occurred anywhere between March 18th (in 2016) and May 12th (1888). So what exactly constitutes the Ice Out of the big lake? According to Wikipedia:
Lake Winnipesaukee Ice-Out occurs when all the ice on Lake Winnipesaukee, the largest lake in New Hampshire, has broken up after winter.
Ice-Out is declared when the MS Mount Washington can make it to every one of its ports: Center Harbor, Wolfeboro, Alton, Weirs Beach and Meredith.
Most locals agree that Ice Out means the unofficial start to boat season, as well as the end of winter in New Hampshire. So who decides to declare Ice Out? That is the responsibility of one man - Dave Emerson. He flies over the lake two or three times a day to check on it. Last year, Ice Out was declared on April 26th. Here's an interesting chart on the Wikipedia page that shows the most popular Ice Out dates since they started keeping track.
When do you think Ice Out will be this year? Leave a guess in the comments on the Facebook post!
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