When Does Long Lake Freeze? Typical Ice-In Nov 26, Ice-Out Apr 29
Long Lake in Otter Tail County, Minnesota usually freezes over around Nov 26, and usually has ice-out around Apr 29, based on Minnesota DNR ice observations recorded between 2007-2022. That works out to roughly 211 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 Long Lake
| Typical freeze-up (ice-in) | Nov 26 |
| Typical ice-out | Apr 29 |
| Earliest freeze-up on record | Nov 20, 2022 |
| Latest freeze-up on record | Dec 7, 2021 |
| Earliest ice-out on record | Apr 20, 2007 |
| Latest ice-out on record | Apr 30, 2008 |
| Open-water season | ~211 days |
| Winters observed | 7 |
| Location | Otter Tail County, Minnesota |
These are dates, not an ice-safety reading
A typical freeze-up date tells you when Long 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 Long Lake has landed as early as Apr 20, 2007 and as late as Apr 30, 2008 — a spread of weeks around the Apr 29 median. Freeze-up has ranged from Nov 20, 2022 to Dec 7, 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 Long Lake is on the lake report.
Source: Minnesota DNR Climate Office ice-in / ice-out records, observations from 2007-2022.
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