When Does Jacobs Lake Freeze? Typical Ice-In Nov 21, Ice-Out Apr 29
Jacobs Lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota usually freezes over around Nov 21, and usually has ice-out around Apr 29, based on Minnesota DNR ice observations recorded between 2009-2024. That works out to roughly 206 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 Jacobs Lake
| Typical freeze-up (ice-in) | Nov 21 |
| Typical ice-out | Apr 29 |
| Earliest freeze-up on record | Nov 2, 2019 |
| Latest freeze-up on record | Dec 2, 2009 |
| Earliest ice-out on record | Mar 14, 2024 |
| Latest ice-out on record | May 7, 2022 |
| Open-water season | ~206 days |
| Winters observed | 32 |
| Location | St. Louis County, Minnesota |
These are dates, not an ice-safety reading
A typical freeze-up date tells you when Jacobs 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 Jacobs Lake has landed as early as Mar 14, 2024 and as late as May 7, 2022 — a spread of weeks around the Apr 29 median. Freeze-up has ranged from Nov 2, 2019 to Dec 2, 2009. 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. Jacobs Lake carries an overall water-quality grade of D — the full breakdown is on the lake report.
Source: Minnesota DNR Climate Office ice-in / ice-out records, observations from 2009-2024.