When Does Emma Lake Freeze? Typical Ice-In Nov 17, Ice-Out Apr 13
Emma Lake in Hubbard County, Minnesota usually freezes over around Nov 17, and usually has ice-out around Apr 13, based on Minnesota DNR ice observations recorded between 2019-2024. That works out to roughly 218 days of open water a year. These are typical dates across many winters, not a forecast — individual years swing by weeks in either direction.
Ice record for Emma Lake
| Typical freeze-up (ice-in) | Nov 17 |
| Typical ice-out | Apr 13 |
| Earliest freeze-up on record | Nov 12, 2019 |
| Latest freeze-up on record | Nov 22, 2021 |
| Earliest ice-out on record | Mar 17, 2024 |
| Latest ice-out on record | May 8, 2022 |
| Open-water season | ~218 days |
| Winters observed | 10 |
| Location | Hubbard County, Minnesota |
These are dates, not an ice-safety reading
A typical freeze-up date tells you when Emma Lake has usually iced over — it does not tell you the ice is safe, and we hold no thickness measurement for this or any lake. The Minnesota DNR is explicit that no ice is ever completely safe: thickness varies across a single lake, and current, springs, aerators, and insulating snow all weaken it. Ice that held a truck last week may not hold a person today.
Read the ice-thickness guidelines before going out, and check current conditions with the Minnesota DNR ice-safety page and local bait shops, which track conditions lake by lake.
How much the timing varies
Ice-out on Emma Lake has landed as early as Mar 17, 2024 and as late as May 8, 2022 — a spread of weeks around the Apr 13 median. Freeze-up has ranged from Nov 12, 2019 to Nov 22, 2021. That year-to-year swing is why a median date is a planning tool, not a schedule. Freeze-up is driven by accumulated cold after the lake turns over in fall; ice-out by late-winter air temperature, sun angle, and how much snow sits on top of the ice reflecting it. The full nutrient and algae breakdown for Emma Lake is on the lake report.
Source: Minnesota DNR Climate Office ice-in / ice-out records, observations from 2019-2024.
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