Ice-out declared on Lake Minnetonka

ORONO, Minn. (AP) - Now you know it’s spring - the ice-out has been declared for Lake Minnetonka.

The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office and the nonprofit Freshwater Society declared the ice out for the season at 7:30 a.m. Thursday. That means the big lake in the western Twin Cities is fully navigational.

Typically the declaration on Lake Minnetonka comes in mid-April. Last year, the Freshwater Society declared the ice out on May 2. The Water Patrol made the call a day earlier. Record-keeping of ice-out dates on the lake began in the late 1880s.

The Star Tribune (https://strib.mn/PyzAnx ) reports this is the first time the sheriff’s office and the Freshwater Society have shared the declaration honors.

In the east metro, White Bear Lake was declared ice-free Wednesday morning.

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Information from: Star Tribune, https://www.startribune.com