11-19-2017, 02:08 AM
Years ago, I was fishing Flaming Gorge on about 6 inches of ice. I wasn't having any luck so I moved about 50 feet and drilled three new holes. After fishing there for awhile, I noticed that water was starting to come up on the ice. I wasn't sure why it was happening, but I decided to move back to my original holes. Shortly after moving back, there was a loud popping noise and I immediately recognized that a pressure ridge had just formed. I looked over where I had been fishing and all three holes had large cracks running through them and had I still been fishing there, in my ice shack, I would have plunged into the water.
A few years ago, while fishing Bear Lake, I saw two guys walking side by side pulling one sled across the ice. I could see that they were walking straight towards the pressure ridge we had already crossed earlier. I heard one of them holler over to my fishing buddy, "How is the fishing?". Just as the words left his mouth they reached the pressure ridge and both of them fell through to their shoulders. They were able to get out before my buddy could get to them. I immediately saw ice crystals forming on them; however, they stood there talking to my buddy for at least 10 minutes. At which point, he asked them, "Aren't you getting cold?". They answered that they were and he suggested that they hike back up to their truck, get their clothes off and get warmed up. The first guy took a few steps and fell right back through the ice (falling through the same pressure ridge, about 10 feet from where they had fallen through before). He got out even faster than the first time, but I was a little puzzled why after falling through once already that he didn't recognize the danger of a pressure ridge.
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A few years ago, while fishing Bear Lake, I saw two guys walking side by side pulling one sled across the ice. I could see that they were walking straight towards the pressure ridge we had already crossed earlier. I heard one of them holler over to my fishing buddy, "How is the fishing?". Just as the words left his mouth they reached the pressure ridge and both of them fell through to their shoulders. They were able to get out before my buddy could get to them. I immediately saw ice crystals forming on them; however, they stood there talking to my buddy for at least 10 minutes. At which point, he asked them, "Aren't you getting cold?". They answered that they were and he suggested that they hike back up to their truck, get their clothes off and get warmed up. The first guy took a few steps and fell right back through the ice (falling through the same pressure ridge, about 10 feet from where they had fallen through before). He got out even faster than the first time, but I was a little puzzled why after falling through once already that he didn't recognize the danger of a pressure ridge.
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