When Does Little Bass Lake Freeze? Typical Ice-In Nov 28, Ice-Out Apr 21
Little Bass Lake in Itasca County, Minnesota usually freezes over around Nov 28, and usually has ice-out around Apr 21, based on Minnesota DNR ice observations recorded between 1997-2015. That works out to roughly 221 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 Little Bass Lake
| Typical freeze-up (ice-in) | Nov 28 |
| Typical ice-out | Apr 21 |
| Earliest freeze-up on record | Nov 16, 1997 |
| Latest freeze-up on record | Dec 19, 2015 |
| Earliest ice-out on record | Mar 27, 2012 |
| Latest ice-out on record | May 14, 2013 |
| Open-water season | ~221 days |
| Winters observed | 93 |
| Location | Itasca County, Minnesota |
These are dates, not an ice-safety reading
A typical freeze-up date tells you when Little Bass 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 Little Bass Lake has landed as early as Mar 27, 2012 and as late as May 14, 2013 — a spread of weeks around the Apr 21 median. Freeze-up has ranged from Nov 16, 1997 to Dec 19, 2015. 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 Little Bass Lake is on the lake report.
Source: Minnesota DNR Climate Office ice-in / ice-out records, observations from 1997-2015.
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