Katherine writes: Woke up to a skim of ice on the lake this morning—which by now is yesterday morning, as I am behind on pretty much everything.
You will notice that there are no fishing shanties at all. There has been no Daugherty Johnson snow sculpture this winter either. Unsettling, that’s what it is.
Bereft of our usual winter pleasures, we look forward to spring—cautiously, of course, because you never know what Mama Nature will get up to. Last spring Katherine and Babs and I had a good time down in Elk Rapids observing the after-school Environmental Art Program. (You can see our Scrapbook here.) Lindy Bishop just posted a new video (Outdoor Art Class: Andrew Goldsworthy) that recaps the whole thing with music yet.
Torch Lake Views 
P.j. grath
February 5, 2012
It is an unsettled and unsettling season, but that is a beautiful photograph, even to the broken plates of ice looking like broken window panes scattered helter-skelter.
Gerry
February 5, 2012
That’s exactly right – shards of window glass. I believe we should inform Sheriff Bean. Someone (or Something) has broken into Torch Lake.
uphilldowndale
February 5, 2012
Glorious photo, the brittle ice, can’t think you’d ever see anything like that here in the UK. Off to the Goldsworthy link now, you know what a fan I am
Gerry
February 5, 2012
If you keep having odd weather in the Borderlands you will wake to shattered plates of ice one day. They’ll be lovely and they’ll melt in the sunshine. Enjoy the video. It brought back good memories for me.
tootlepedal
February 5, 2012
Great picture. It looks cold enough to me from over here.
Gerry
February 5, 2012
It is that.
Joss
February 5, 2012
Unforgettable photo. Nevertheless, I must save it.
Gerry
February 5, 2012
I like the way you think, Joss. Waste not want not.
Joss
February 6, 2012
Actually, I’ve saved it to desktop. I know that is terrible thing to do with a picture. But I dumped a load of icons in the bin first.
Gerry
February 6, 2012
I’ve had some memorable photos on my desktop. One was a lighthouse in winter, with waves crashing. Another was the bluff over the Bay at my favorite lookout spot. Then I had a lettuce leaf from Kathy’s blog. I loved that lettuce leaf. It got lost when I had to completely reinstall my system. Such is life. Enjoy the ice. We’ll try to bring you something equally memorable for springtime.
Dawn
February 5, 2012
Nice. I’m with you, waiting for the other shoe to drop. If we have such warm temps now…..well….what might happen later?
Gerry
February 5, 2012
Flaming frogs raining down! Maybe not. But for sure we have not seen the last – or for that matter, this year, the first – of the Lake Effect Snow.
Kathy
February 5, 2012
We are not having a “normal” winter here, either. We do have snow on the ground, but it’s been unseasonably warm. Near 40 degrees today and no ice on the bay. Really like that photo of the cracking ice. On another note, interestingly, I learned how to spell “bereft” today. And here you went and used it! (Before, I always spelled it “berefit.” Alas. It takes a lifetime to learn…
Gerry
February 5, 2012
“Bereft” is one of my favorite words. Fortunately, I don’t have many occasions to use it.
I’m glad you liked the photo. I thought it was particularly chilling. So here we go with another wildly gyrating season. Round and round the little ball goes . . . where it stops, nobody knows.
Martha
February 5, 2012
Beautiful ice photo. I saw some shanties tilting in the watery ice of Green Bay this afternoon….
Gerry
February 5, 2012
Uh-oh. Just gently toppling into the drink, eh? Somebody’s gonna be unhappy.
shoreacres
February 6, 2012
Marvelous photo. Common as it may be for you, I don’t remember ever seeing “ice” and “pink” in the same photo.
As for winter – well. The first tropical invest of the Atlantic season popped up yesterday, on Superbowl Sunday. It’s never happened. All manner of folks are thinking nervousness might be in line sooner rather than later.
Gerry
February 6, 2012
That reminded me of something . . . and sure enough we had some pink – or ruby and amethyst anyway – ice shards on Torch Lake two years ago. (Last ice on Torch)
lynnekovan
February 7, 2012
Lovely shot! the colours are marvellous. It’s freezing here too in the UK. We had half an inch of snow, and everything came to a standstill. Heathrow airport cancelled most of their flights. Moscow cancelled non!!
Gerry
February 7, 2012
Thank you. Mysterious are the ways of airports. Certainly places that rarely get much snow can’t reasonably invest in the same kind of equipment that Snow Country places must have as a matter of course. But woe to the Snow Country officials who cannot deal with the fiercest blizzards. Chicago, 1979 . . .
Sybil
February 9, 2012
Weird winter all ’round.
Gerry
February 9, 2012
Quite likely further weirdness lies ahead.