When Does First Crow Wing Lake Freeze? Typical Ice-In Nov 15, Ice-Out Apr 16
First Crow Wing Lake in Hubbard County, Minnesota usually freezes over around Nov 15, and usually has ice-out around Apr 16, based on Minnesota DNR ice observations recorded between 2001-2019. That works out to roughly 213 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 First Crow Wing Lake
| Typical freeze-up (ice-in) | Nov 15 |
| Typical ice-out | Apr 16 |
| Earliest freeze-up on record | Nov 8, 2019 |
| Latest freeze-up on record | Dec 1, 2001 |
| Earliest ice-out on record | Apr 9, 2005 |
| Latest ice-out on record | Apr 21, 2019 |
| Open-water season | ~213 days |
| Winters observed | 10 |
| Location | Hubbard County, Minnesota |
These are dates, not an ice-safety reading
A typical freeze-up date tells you when First Crow Wing 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 First Crow Wing Lake has landed as early as Apr 9, 2005 and as late as Apr 21, 2019 — a spread of weeks around the Apr 16 median. Freeze-up has ranged from Nov 8, 2019 to Dec 1, 2001. 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 First Crow Wing Lake is on the lake report.
Source: Minnesota DNR Climate Office ice-in / ice-out records, observations from 2001-2019.
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