When Does White Iron Lake Freeze? Typical Ice-In Nov 25, Ice-Out Apr 28
White Iron Lake in Lake County, Minnesota usually freezes over around Nov 25, and usually has ice-out around Apr 28, based on Minnesota DNR ice observations recorded between 2002-2024. 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 White Iron Lake
| Typical freeze-up (ice-in) | Nov 25 |
| Typical ice-out | Apr 28 |
| Earliest freeze-up on record | Nov 13, 2002 |
| Latest freeze-up on record | Dec 3, 2024 |
| Earliest ice-out on record | Apr 14, 2021 |
| Latest ice-out on record | May 10, 2022 |
| Open-water season | ~211 days |
| Winters observed | 18 |
| Location | Lake County, Minnesota |
These are dates, not an ice-safety reading
A typical freeze-up date tells you when White Iron 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 White Iron Lake has landed as early as Apr 14, 2021 and as late as May 10, 2022 — a spread of weeks around the Apr 28 median. Freeze-up has ranged from Nov 13, 2002 to Dec 3, 2024. 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 White Iron Lake is on the lake report.
Source: Minnesota DNR Climate Office ice-in / ice-out records, observations from 2002-2024.
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