Elk Lake, Michigan Iceboat Events and News
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January 27th, 2012
It was one of those days when everything was right :)
The ice is good, the wind was great. It was a beautiful sunny day! We couldn't ask for more. Anyone who missed iceboating today truly missed a great day!
To see some photos, click here
Some video below. Turn up the volume as always
January 26th, 2012 Sailing was good today :)
Bass has good ice with minimal snow in some spots...very little snow.
Winds were lighter than forecast, but still enough that top speeds were 30-40mph. Tomorrow through the weekend winds are mostly 10-15mph. It should be some rather fast sailing! We will be at the Harbor Cafe for breakfast Saturday and Sunday. Likely around 9am and then out to the ice after breakfast. We will sail till our arms can't take anymore.
You can see some photos from today by clicking HERE.
Below is a video from today, a couple hours of fun sailing condensed into 3min. Turn up the volume!!
Sorry about the shakiness, I was zoomed very far in.
January 25th, 2012 The warmth the other day melted the existing snow off of Bass Lake. Doug was out there yesterday before dark. The ice is slippery with some spots having a half an inch of snowy stuff. Winds are forecast to be excellent from Thursday through the weekend!! We will be sailing Bass everyday. It is very small so some days we will have enough people we will need to take turns! Looking forward to more fun local sailing time
January 22nd, 2012 We had fun on Bass today. Winds were much lower than forecast, but Jack and Al had some amazing fast rides with lots of hiking. Rob and Ed got to sail their boats for the first time since getting out of the shop. Ed's is a new boat and Rob's was repaired. Doug showed up as we were starting to pack up. The forecast for tonight and tomorrow is rain and thunderstorms so hopefully that will clear some of the drifts off the lake. The high tomorrow is 45 to 50 degrees depending on which website you believe. Bass has plenty of thickness, so this should only improve our sailing. We will update after the storm passes. We had 5 boats at the lake and drove the 4 wheeler all over it.
Here is a video from today... I only had the Iphone, but you can see the speed, squint hard and you might see the hikes ;)
January 16th, 2012 Due to prior commitments of the involved sailors, the next day we have time available to sail Bass is Friday. As of this morning, if you are more than 50' or so from the shoreline, Bass is snow free!!
Can't wait!!
January 15th, 2012 All systems GO for sailing Bass Lake.
Bass is small, but some of the most fun times have been had on this lake.
Everyone has such a great time when we sail this small venue. Today we met for a great breakfast at the Harbor Cafe, then headed over to Bass Lake. The ice is 6" thick and hard. The snow is minimal. Once you are more than a few feet off the shoreline, the snow is only a dusting to 1/8". Very easy to sail though. Unfortunately the wind did not cooperate. We will go for it again tomorrow..wind permitting
Breakfast at the Harbor Cafe
Jack on Bass yesterday, doing a preliminary check
Rob is the dot way out there checking the last spot to freeze, the spot that stays soft far to late...it's hard!
January 10, 2012
We have yet to have winter start up here. Even the blizzard warning we had for two days that predicted 10-20" of snow, only left us with 2".
There is no snow on the ground here and the grass in spots is still green. We have been told it's the lowest snowfall in over 80 yrs, too bad we don't have ice.
There are a few small lakes that we will be checking around Northern Michigan after a couple nights of cold temps. Today we were in the high 40's, the temp guage in the truck
even hit 50 briefly while we were traveling.
Photos from Elk Lake today
December 28th 2011
UPDATE: DN Central Regatta is called ON Info at 248-988-0851 Reg. 9am Thursday
Report from Dick this morning is they are on Lake Missaukee in Lake City using the public launch. 4" of pebbled ice in the sailing area, 6" at the launch.
Note, the pin is just the center of Lake City, not where the launch is
View Larger Map
December 26th 2011
Elk Lake Ice Report....'Nuf said
December 12th 2011
If this video doesn't get you in the mood for some fun, nothing will. With near 30,000 views...
December 9th 2011
WE HAVE ICE!
Some small Northern Michigan lakes kicked last night. Bass is 90% ice. Temps do not go above freezing today with no sun in sight.
The next two days and night are very cold, but then we get back up to 40 degrees again...time will tell. Get ready, it won't be long now!!
December 8th 2011
By request :) I have updated the Elk Lake Surface Temperature page. You can go there to compare this year to previous years. Considering the surface temp of
Elk Lake today, I would hope to see Bass Lake start skimming this week if winds calm down.
December 6th 2011 The Harbor Cafe
has geared up their early morning specials. FREE coffee with your breakfast from 8am till 9am. We meet there every morning before sailing. All we need now is ice!! If you are iceboating Northern Michigan, stop in, get a great breakfast and check out the amazing work of Gretchen Dorian before your day of iceboating.
December 1st 2011 So what do you think happens when you leave Device Guy to his own devices??
Alone in a room with first aid tape??
He builds his own JX Ice Boat
Get well Pete!! Can't wait to see you on the ice this winter
Art Teutsch 1931-2011
Gendernalik Funeral Home Left to right: Joan Sarns, Art Teutsch, Bill Sarns, Henry Schantz, Jack Jacobs, Bob Schiable on Elk Lake
Lifelong ice boater Art Teusch passed away on Sunday, November 27, 2011.
Art was an avid DN sailor and served as an officer in the DN Association.
In 1972, Art and his wife, Louise, were among the first group of
American ambassadors of ice boat sailing to travel to Europe and help
lay the groundwork that took the DN Class international by establishing
the DN Gold Cup, a regatta that alternates annually between North
America and Europe.
In June of 1972, Art wrote an article in the DN newsletter that
addressed the changes needed to make DN sailing work for the Europeans.
"PROPOSED SPECIFICATION CHANGES FROM VICE COMMODORE ARTHUR TEUTSCH
To all IDNIYRA Members:While sailing in Europe, with a number of other Americans, this winter I made a fascinating discovery. The DN boat and organization is unique in the-world. How? Because nobody owns usl No organization or government tells us what we can. or cannot do with our DN. We have a world-wide organization that is run only by DN skippers. In these times of someone always telling you what you can and cannot do it makes me feel good to belong to an organization that is its own boss. While in Europe, we discovered they have some difficulties translating the DN specifications, which are in inches, to their metric system. Also, they have different steel sections available to them. Doug Harvey, Bill Connell and myself had many meetings with their Technical Committee, and, upon arrival home, with our Technical Committee. The following are specification changes we feel necessary to continue to keep the DN truly international and one design. The sailors in Europe are trying very hard to build legal DNs and are succeeding but some changes are necessary to help their efforts. These changes should not affect most American DNs." Jane Pagel remembers Art....
The DN yearbook tells us that Art Teutsch was Class Commodore in 1973. I don't know about how long he was VC. He was the only Commodore I recall chairing the annual meeting wearing a blue blaser. As sole proprietor of Salt River Boat Verks, Art Teutsch built some outstanding DNs. Besides racing his DN (#60) and serving as an officer of the Class, Art served faithfully on the regatta race committee for several years. Art and Bill Connell would set the windward mark and remain on station throughout the race day, fortified with a thermos of hot coffee. Art was the kind of guy that was the first to step forward when you needed a hand, whether it was checking ice, clamping up a runner plank, or organizing a cookout. Some fond memories:
When Skip Boston needed some specialized carpentry done around the sail loft, Art was his man. One day Art disappeared into the bowels of the basement at the Harper Ave. sail loft. The basement was a place to build DNs, sharpen runners, make sailboard sails, make rigging, store old sails and boats, When Art finally emerged from the basement he proclaimed that there were folks with long grey beards wandering around down there looking for the way out. One year we were at Lake Canandaigua for the NAs. It had rained the day before the opening race and the water run off formed huge drain holes in the ice. Bob Pegel was chairman of the race committee. A few sailors did some searching and thought they had located a good patch of ice at the south end of the lake. John Koeck rigged his DN and set off to sail down the lake. Some of us were setting up off a little launch site part way down the lake. John ripped the plank off his boat out in front of the launch site. Art was coming down the ice on an ATV , drove up the launch ramp and over to where Skip Boston was standing and surveying the activity. Art shouted, "Where's Pegel? We have to call this off". Skip's quiet reply was, "Why don't you tell him yourself, he's standing right here?" (Bob was wearing blue foul weather gear instead of the olive green coverall he usually wore out on the ice.) ...Jane
November 26th 2011 Are you ready?
November 21st 2011 One roll of 12K weave carbon fiber, not quite a full roll $1,000 plus we have a full roll (I think, it's still wrapped in plastic) of 3k weave carbon for $1,000. Depending on exactly how much is on the rolls you are getting carbon fiber for $10-$15 per yard. Send me a message at jackandkelly@hotmail.com or call Jack.
November 17th 2011 Rob and Ed make more progress repairing Rob's boat
November 11th 2011 More work on Stubby's boat repair
November 4th 2011 You must first break eggs before making an omelet... Repairing Stubby's boat
November 1st 2011 Work started in the woodshop today. Stubby's boat was taken down and assessed for repair. This is what happens when you hit a pressure ridge the wrong way causing a hairline crack. The next time you sail it...the crack is no longer "hairline"
October 7th 2011 As our thoughts return to iceboating...even though it was 80 degrees here in Northern MI today and the warm weather is continuing for several more days....we start to think about repairing Stubby's iceboat (LOL sorry Rob, it's going to stick) and the swap meets that are coming up. The Skeeter Ice Boat Club 26th Annual Swap Meet
Sunday, October 30,
9:00 a.m. to noon, followed by a raffle At Lucke's Cantina, 220 N. Elkhorn Rd (WI Hwy 67), Williams Bay, WI
For more info, email sailing19@charter.net No charge for participating. All sorts of iceboats and gear for sale: Skeeters, stern steerers, DNs, Nites, etc., etc. Boat builders and hardware manufacturers will have new products on display Items for sale can be set up in the parking area at Lucke's. Please do not park your cars in the display area or in front of neighboring businesses. A municipal lot is a short distance to the north. Please watch the DN board and iceboat.org for info GLIYC Swap meet
November 5th, Gull Lake Country Club...more info to come
July 25th 2011 Well, those don't look like iceboats!!
Some of the summer visitors to Northern Michigan's iceboat headquarters. Newfoundlands...
May 8th 2011 For Sale Frosty Paws !!
For those of you who know this JX, you know how amazing it is. This boat was tuned and perfected for years. Gorgeous automotive paint job (yellow) with wood also showing on the sides. 440C stainless skates, polished steering tubes, custom interior, C2 (Sherry)Composite Mast also Composite Concepts boom, harken blocks, North Sails (Henry Bosset) Radial cut mylar/dacron sail. The absolute best of everything. $5,500(The mast, sail and skates alone were almost $5000 when purchased) Contact Kelly (full photo will be posted soon I hope) For now here is the side
April 11th 2011 Most of the ice melted away yesterday. It didn't blow out, it melted.
For the last couple days it has been primarily floating slush.
This photo is looking south
April 9th 2011 The Fat Lady is waaaay way past singing here
April 5th 2011 STILL SAILING!!
Sailing still on Lake Charlevoix in Boyne City (Thank You Rick for the photos!!)
April 3rd 2011 Thunder, lightning, rain, snow, sleet...we had it all today!!
Currently we are in the middle of a pretty good thunderstorm
April 2nd 2011 Eerily quiet on Elk this morning. Not a breath of wind and no person or animals in sight. Just stillness.. By noon the wind has picked up to 2-5mph, but the surface has softened and up until a few minutes ago it was raining :( I can see a dozen or so boats sitting still at the south end. Will get the big zoom out and shoot a couple photos from down there..Wind is supposed to pick up more as more rain moves in. There is snow on the radar, but it's 43 degrees right now.
Meanwhile there are boats sailing Lake Charlevoix today!! :)
(Thank You Rick for the photo!)
April 1st 2011 Scroll down for photos below the forecast
The ridge had completely disintegrated because it was raised and exposed. It was just a crack for the last week. Last night new ice popped up, check out how thin the new ice is...It's less than 3".. Please stay away from the ridge..
March 30th 2011
Since we have already had a couple calls and emails this morning about sailing this weekend...I thought we should thoroughly check the ice and give an update on the ice here..
Conditions change rapidly and it's been 4 days since our last update. Walking out on Elk we spudded..the first spot, like 4 days ago, was hard to get through. So we walked out further..spudded another spot... the spud went through the 8" of ice in ONE HIT!! Checking a dozen more spots, being very careful to spud where we walked, even though we are pretty aware of where the bad spots would be from watching it freeze and thaw this winter, we found many more spots we could spud through in one hit. Most were where we expected, but a couple were surprising. Being as there was no rhyme or reason for the bad spots and the lake is covered with up to 2" of dense snow near shore with deeper drifts out further we have decided it's not worth it. Rain on Friday with near to over 50 degree temps between now and the weekend sealed the decision. There very well may be good ice in Northern Michigan, but Elk has been rough and iffy the entire season. It has deteriorated pretty quickly compared to other lakes. Good ice can't be determined on foot, but ice with rotten spots is too dangerous to check on foot. To cross the ridge we had to go on shore, it's disintegrated and rotten near it.
March 26th 2011 We walked around on Elk Lake today. I am not saying it's safe, but I am also not saying you couldn't sail it if it were thoroughly checked...I just don't know..we only walked it and walking ice is NOT sufficient. What I can tell you Objectively is what I found...2-3" of new snow ice on top of spring honeycombed ice. I would not be surprised if there was also an 1" more on the bottom from the single digit temps the last nights, but after spudding 20+ times, I did not get through in the VERY FEW spots I checked. There very well may be soft spots out there...can't tell on foot nd we are not sailing it to check. The pressure ridge has completely disintegrated because it ws so badly honeycombed. We found 0-2" of snow cover..USE CAUTION..there is thin ice somewhere...
March 24th 2011 CHECK OUT the front page of the Elk Rapids News this week!!
The big photo is Jack and Rich's boats in a photo Kelly took a couple years ago. The other two photo's are of GLIYC's Doug Bottomley and his Arrow (he also sails a J20, but was giving rides)
Click for a larger image
March 23rd 2011 Woke up to ALOT of snow this morning. Even with a ton of snow covering the lake this morning you could still see water spots. Places where the skimmed over drain holes succumbed to the weight of the new snow. I cannot accurately give you an idea of how much snow fell just yet. We are expecting 3-7" more today. I can tell you that there are spots on the ice with 1" of snow and then drifts all over the place up to TWO FEET!! With the cold temps coming it's unfortunate we did not miss the storm although safer it's covered with snow for those that are too tempted when it's clear
March 21st 2011 Well this doesn't look good! 3-10" of snow and freezing drizzle likely Tuesday night.
March 20th 2011 Still sailing being reported on the hard ice of North Lake Leelanau!
Drain holes on the north half of Elk are covered with skim to 1" of ice. That amount of coverage is not safe in our opinion. When you come here after a cold night from an hour or more away you do not see what we saw the night before. You do not know where to look for the thin spots that were open the evening before. Living on the lake and seeing it from where you sit every waking hour is the best local knowledge there is.
There are also many cracks. That ice over the drain holes has been beaten by the high March sun for a couple days and has also been rained on today. The surface hardens at night and softens through the day, but the drain holes are hard to see and the ice in many spots, even where there are not drain holes is not thick and it's integrity has been compromised due to the sun. Thank you to all the people who have emailed and called in the last week expressing their thanks for the ice reports and videos. Videos are so helpful and I am glad you enjoy them. There are always some that feel they have something to prove and will try to sail far too late into the year so it is very very nice to hear that people truly appreciate everything we do and agree that it's not worth the risk. We have such an amazing large group that sails here with us and we enjoy it tremendously!! Thanks again everyone for so many calls and emails, we always and only report ice that we actually have been on...We are on the north end of Elk Lake everyday, it's our backyard.
Can't wait to see you all this summer and next season on the ice!! (unless this storm coming misses us and the amazing cold headed our way builds us a good base under this spring ice) *fingers crossed* and wishful thinking ;) We will keep you posted, as always!
March 19th 2011 One of our regular Elk Lake sailors stopped by North Lake Leelanau (Leelanau County, Northern Michigan) because he saw 12 iceboats on the ice!! There was hard black ice and some good sailing going on!! So happy people found some safe ice to sail up here! If anyone has photos, please forward them to me and I can post them
March 18th 2011 Saturday's forecast and a video of the ice rotting away pretty rapidly. Huge drain holes...some are open and some have literally a PAPER THIN skim over them. It's very dangerous, besides a crappy granular surface. Bright sun all weekend and warm temps with little wind thankfully so we don't get tempted. The ice obviously looks rotten, just like it does approx a week before it starts breaking up. This march sun has been very hard on it. Raining right now as I type this.
March 17th 2011 Elk Lake Update: (As of 3pm)
Drainholes and open cracks surrounding me prevented me from going out further than 1000' feet on either side of the ridge. There is still water running like a faucet THROUGH the lake. You can even hear it from shore. Short video below. It's hard to hear me describe what's going on because of the wind noise
Thunderstorms or rain likely for tonight, calm winds becoming 5mph-8mph for Saturday and Sunday.
10am: keep in mind things change rapidly
We do not get cold enough by Saturday to fix drain holes and I believe any standing water will be shell ice
Check out the video, ice report and photos below, there are waves on the couple inches of standing water in the low spots
Obvious drain holes and not very obvious drain holes already. Yesterday they were very vivisble because there was snow still covering the lake. This morning 80% of the snow is gone, but what is left has frozen into little "ice mountains". There are 2" to 3" tall ice piles out there from where the snow did not melt down, but it refroze. With the warm temps, those could flatten out today, but there would stil be drain holes. There is standing water (with waves in it..see video) in the low spots then the high spots are snow/ice piles. Friday night is the first night below freezing, we go down to 28. That is not cold enough to make the drain holes safe or to freeze the standing water (if it doesn't make new drain holes) anything more than shell ice. As of yesterday the biggest one we saw was approx 4'x8', but it's going to be 55 degrees today and we are going to get up to 1/2" of rain. We will keep you posted and I will go on the ice today and get a video. Below is a quick video from near the shoreline and a couple photos. One you can see a couple of the snow ice piles and the other is a shot across the lake as the sun is coming up. You can see the rough texture.
March 15th 2011 Who ordered all the drain holes??
Warm temps, melting snow and rain are a dangerous combination for our BUMPY ice. Besides the calm winds forecast for Sunday :(
March 11th 2011 Kay's restaurant, HARBOR CAFE' is up for Best New Restaurant, Best Burger, and Best Restaurant You Can Boat To.... I know many of you have already eaten there and see the beautiful photos on display by Gretchen. Please check out the ballot and vote, it only takes just a minute!!
Ice conditions and wind for sailing this weekend should be very much like last weekend with slightly less snow. See the video from a couple days ago to check it out.
March 10th 2011 Below is a closeup of part of the "Resort Map" for Petoskey.
Notice the iceboat (heading for open water LOL), it has a J14 insignia
March 9th 2011
Ron Sherry's new Composite Concepts page is up and running. Ron just called and asked us to post it here and spread the word. If you are looking for Composite Concepts and their World Champion parts, look no further. Click the link above to be taken to iceboatracing.com
March 8th 2011
Sail The March Thaw Weekends
Sailing the March thaw weekends have been early the last two years. This year we will not likely be really thawing come this weekend, but then the thaw is going to come on hard after that. 3/4 of an inch of rain over two 50+ degree days coming the following week. That along with the March sun is going to be very tough on the see through ice we have in many many areas under the snow now. The ice is no longer all snow ice after the last thaw. Alot of the green/clear ice is exposed. After this weekend we will go day by day and keep y'all posted.
Winds are great for sailing tomorrow and Thursday depending on what kind of precip we get
Get it while you can!!
March 7th 2011 Through the eyes of an iceboater....10 minutes with Mike Acebo on Elk Lake
March 6th 2011 Warmer temps on the way for the next week or more. Sailing should be good this weekend, but after that we will go day by day since it gets warmer and rain is in the forecast
Winds look very good for sailing tomorrow, Wednesday and Thursday.
Below are a couple videos taken by Pete (GLIYC Commodore)on Saturday. He was sheeting his Super DN with one hand, the other hand was bare and holding a video camera.
Also a couple photos by Pete
March 5th 2011 Update 5pm:
Such a fun day. Everyone comes in smiling...and yes, they still have all of their teeth :) Photos and videos shortly! All I can say is AWESOME! Update 1pm:
GREAT DAY!! Everyone is sailing. We have Skimmers, DN's, Arrows, Nites. Skeeters, Jboats...everything you can imagine. They are all flying around the lake!! (Ok, not literally "flying") Such a blast!! One photo now, more later along with video. Also the live cam is up...look right
March 3rd 2011 Update 9pm: Great time today with great friends! Fun sailing and a very nice dinner at Pearl's.
Short video from today. Winds were high!
The bat signal must be working. Sailors are starting to arrive at Elk Lake to sail the weekend.
March 2nd 2011
Jack just walked out on the ice. From a walking viewpoint, the ice appears some smoother. It's 80-90 % snow free. The snow that is on it is approx less than 1"..not fluffy, but can't pack a snowball either. We are 42 degrees on Friday, so that may get rid of the last bit of snow. As long as there is no surprise big storm (there is not one in the forecast) then we will be sailing this weekend. Forecast for Saturday is breezy
February 28th 2011 High winds, no sailing today.
40 degrees tomorrow and Friday should make for good sailing this weekend.
February 27th 2011 Today's sailing video
A few more photos..By Sue Wallace
2pm:Even though winds were light at most times everyone got some good sailing in. Below are some photos, I will be adding video tonight and to see more photos..CLICK HERE
February 26th 2011 10pm:Sailing to continue on the nice ice of Harbor Springs and the bumpy ice of Elk Lake as long as weather permits. There is another warm up coming to melt any snow we may get this week. Below is a photo Rick Wolanin took today of Walt sailing with just a tiny bit of snow on the smooth ice.
10am:Breakfast in our bellies and setting up the boats now. Approx 1" of very light fluffy snow fell last night. It's so light we won't even notice it being on the ice. The boats still glide across the ice with the touch of a finger. Very light winds forecast all day today so we are not sure if we will be able to sail or not. We could easily sail with 5mph of wind, but it's only 2mph right now. Wind forecast via Intellicast looks better for 10am to 5pm tomorrow.
February 25th 2011 Update 3pm:
Still sailing and Robert arrived.
Short video from today below
11:30am:
Partly sunny/mostly cloudy..whatever you want to call it.
Winds 10+ mph with gusts higher. Small sails being utilized today.
Sailing has started this morning and the Live Cam is up.
February 24th 2011 UPDATE 5pm: God Bless
Turn it up!
Video #2 now up
UPDATE 4pm:
Click here for a few photos taken from today. I also took some video. That will be posted shortly 11am:
A few people already starting to arrive for sailing this weekend. There are a couple boats sailing, a couple in the pits and a couple setting up and getting their boats on the ice. Here are just two photos, more to come this evening and some video. Watch for updates throughout the day.
No new hazards, ice still bumpy :) Pressure ridge, just on the north side of the pits
February 23rd 2011 Sailing Little Traverse Bay in Harbor Springs..2 videos and a few photos
photos by Andy Bowman
February 22nd 2011 Beautiful blue skies and gorgeous weather, unfortunately...no wind
You can see the pressure ridge just to the north of the pits
February 21st 2011 The storm completely missed us!! Although on radar it looked like it didn't...We have 90% snow free ice. On the flat surfaces on shore we only have 1/8 of an inch of snow! Sailing will continue!!
Two photos and a short video from 10:30am
February 20th 2011 Update 10:30pm: Just a dusting so far. I turned on the big sodium light and you can see Black Ice in the pits. Dusting of snow with lots of clear ice still
Update 1pm:
Rich and Doug sailed out and checked the drain holes they could find. They have enough ice over them now that Rich and Doug are sailing. Rob and Jon were also sailing, but Jon and Pete are packing up because they have to head south into the storm in mid Michigan and want to get home before they get a foot of snow down there. The ice is bumpy, but NOW WHERE NEAR as bumpy as it was for the first party. I will post photos from today as I get them. Sailing will continue here as weather permits. 11am:
The guys that are here are setting up as I type. They will sail shortly. More info as I have it.
Details on how the drain holes have healed, photos and video shortly. The live cam will also be turned on around noon. See the link at the top of the page
February 19th 2011 Here is today's video, but please scroll down below the video to read the ice conditions before considering sailing Elk Lake
Elk Lake ice report after sailing
Ice is bumpy as suspected yesterday. Black areas of ice are 5" thick white areas are 12" thick. Two Dn's found drain holes that were only skimmed over. People have been sailing for a couple hours and some people are still out there sailing, but Jack and I are not going to sail today. We do not want to risk catching a skate and breaking a boat. We are going to give it a few days for the ice to build over the drain holes. It's only been cold here for 8-10 hours. Here are a few photos, more photos and video will be posted later this evening.
Click any photo for a larger view
Setting up on Elk Lake, getting ready to sail!!NEW Live Dedicated Elk Lake Webcam...
The cam will be up while we are sailing and you can control it!
Internet Explorer users can even zoom in.
The link will always be on the left side of this page with the other links.
Click here to check it out http://elklakeiceboating.com/cam.html
February 16th 2011 Sailing mornings we will be meeting for breakfast at the Harbor Cafe' before heading to the ice. Kay, who cooks and donates the ribs and alot of the other food for Iceboat Parties owns it. You will find photography on the wall from Gretchen Dorian. Most of you know Gretchen, she is always on the ice getting photos of the iceboats. Check out her work while you are there, you may see someone you know. The food is amazing and inexpensive and since Kay and the chef, Chad are iceboat supporters, please support them when you are in the area by eating there. It's at 129 River St...2 doors down from the Town Club.
MyNorth.com/Traverse Magazine does a video interview with Jack.
Click the iceboat below to watch it If you have trouble viewing this award winning video go directly to it: Jack on the news Also here is the Lakeland Boating Article for those who haven't seen itClick here to see the large version
Jack's Award being presented
Photo of the award that was presented to Jack is below: 
Jack sailing his twin masted iceboat on Lake St Clair in southeast Michigan
You can also view the patent Jack holds for this boat just for fun.
Black Ice doing some amazing hiking on Bass Lake in Elk Rapids, Michigan with 5" of snow. Make sure to watch it all. The hikes get bigger as the video goes on.
Jack, Al, Larry, Rich, Mike, Ed and others enjoying one of the most fun sailing days of the year.
Map of recent visitors from around the world
Visit the Harbor Cafe' run by Iceboaters and supports iceboating. Why not support them!
129 River St, Elk Rapids MI 49629
Elk Rapids Sweet Shop (Incredible doughnuts, pastries, cookies and eclairs)
108 River St, Elk Rapids
Downtown Elk Rapids
(231) 264-9732
Sweet Peas
145 River St
Elk Rapids, MI
231-264-8031
Beautiful blown glass and artwork can be found at Mullaly's 128
Click their banner below
Iceboat Elk Lake right out your front door !!
Owned and operated by long time iceboater Rick Conrad
Torch River Resort near the Torch River, close to Elk and Torch Lakes
You are Iceboater number to visit Elk Lake Iceboating
