The longest wait for ice on the Great Lakes does not mean you will not see United States Coast Guard members preparing for the inevitable.  

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported last week that ice cover for the Great Lakes on New Year’s Day was at 0.4 percent, the lowest in the 50 years they have collected data. It has not been that clear of ice since 2007 and 2016, when the Great Lakes were just above 0.5 percent covered with ice. 

Members of the United States Coast Guard Station Sturgeon Bay have still been hard at work with their soft water missions as they cover the largest area in Sector Lake Michigan due to the peninsula. They also take advantage of the time by coordinating training with the Sturgeon Bay Fire Department, Brussels-Union-Gardner Fire Department, and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. They have resorted to smaller inland lakes and even fake ice shelves they attach to their docks to practice their ice rescue techniques. For Coast Guardsman T.J. Barnes, this is his longest wait for ice to form during his time in the service, which includes two years in Duluth and the last three years in Sturgeon Bay. His big concern is when the ice does start to form and anxious ice anglers and guides start dropping lines to make up for lost time.

When it is time to hit the ice this winter, Barnes encourages anglers to make sure they are dressed for the elements, have a personal floatation device handy, and tell people where and when they are going in and out of their ice shanty. Last February, BM2 Benjamin Gantman and MK3 Salvatore DelRosario from U.S. Coast Guard Station Sturgeon Bay received the Secretary of Homeland Security Commendation Award for their role in rescuing 11 people stranded on an ice floe near Sherwood Point.