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January 23, 1986 - Ice to Follow January Thaw?January 23, 1986 The Suffolk Times Ice to Follow January Thaw? By PAUL STOUTENBURGH Ice and winter are pretty synonymous here in the northeast. Young and old alike know ice means winter sports. Of course, ice here is nothing like ice in Maine or upstate New York, but nevertheless we get our share here on the island. Nowadays, we always get breaks in the weather, such as we have just experienced, and then our winter's ice disappears. It's an on- again, off - again thing of late, but it wasn't always so. It seems to me as a kid our bays and creeks would freeze over in December and stay that way until March. There were always thick manholes of ice scattered on the surface of the creek ice where men and boys had chopped holes so their long - handled spears could probe the bottom for the sleeping eels below. It was cold but rewarding work. You could usually tell a good spot by the parked cars down by one of the creeks. Usually it took a lot of exploring and chopping to find a good spot. Of course, being like a beacon out on the ice would draw attention, particularly if you had started to bring up eels. It wouldn't be long before others would be out there with their ax, bag and spear -- ready to get their share. I remember an old friend of mine from the city who came out weekends and was always looking for something to do. One day he followed me out on the ice in Eugene's Creek to see how we speared eels. It had snowed a bit that night and a new layer covered up every- thing, including the thin new ice that covered our previous eeling holes. We were talking about this and that and not paying too much attention to any- thing when, to and behold, Herb disap- peared. Right up to his crotch he went! He had fallen into one of the newly -fro- zen -over holes. There he sat on the ice. What could we do but laugh? Herb promptly returned home to dry off, but he was soon back for more. Home Ice Advantage We always skated on the creek ice because it was always the closest to home. It never seemed to be as smooth and fast as the ice in the ponds and lakes, but it would do. From the creek side, the first thing you learned was to watch out for the edge. It was here the tide went up and down and kept a slushy area between the solid ice and the shore. If you didn't know this, and you happened to step in this slushy area, you were in for a muddy retrieval. Nothing dangerous, but it sure put a hold on skating until you got back with dry socks. There is something spectacular about ice when it starts to move. In a small way, it gives you the idea of a miniature glacier on the move. Put wind or tide behind a huge mass of ice and some- thing has to give. Often I've seen great chunks of creek or bay beach literally planed level by this moving ice. In many places, huge walls of ice are formed as the ice piles up and under itself. A good northwest wind when there is ice in the Sound will give you this effect and is also responsible for building up the wall of sand and gravel that's characteristic of that shore. Trying to relate this to the great Focus on Nature glaciers that helped form our island boggles the mind. Imagine an ice sheet thousands of feet thick, stretching from Wisconsin to Cape Cod, moving south- ward ever so slowly, grinding, planing, smoothing, polishing everything in its way. The rounded stones and boulders we see along the north shore and scat- tered throughout our island vouch for its work. Depressions, some dry, some wet like Marratooka Lake, Laurel Lake, Lake Ronkonkoma and Lake Suc- cess, are reverse monuments to these glaciers passing. Here huge chunks of the glacial ice broke off and were plowed under as the glacier moved on. Later, after the glacier retreated because of the warming of our climate, these buried chunks of ice started to melt, leaving the depressions that in some in- stances created our lakes and in other instances dry kettle holes. The glaciers formed our land in many ways, some hardly recognized today. Each of our creeks is a direct result of glacier melt water running off to the sea. If you follow the creek ends north- ward, you will find their depressions in the dry land as they continue on the upland. Besides ice being a factor in glaciers, we also find ice playing its part in chip- ping away the solid rock that once made our entire world. Wherever moisture can get in and freezing can take place, we'll have this chipping away. We all know the power of ice when it's con- fined. Years ago when milk was deliv- ered to our homes, we often saw the milk rise out of the bottle when it was left on the porch to freeze. My cows' water pails, if left out to freeze, will burst their bottoms. So it is if moisture finds its way into the slightest niche or rock. Sometimes these cracks can split huge boulders. We've all seen them along the Sound. It was the freezing that did it. All this process of picking away at the solid mass eventually made our sand and soils. Without ice and tem- perature changes, we'd not have the world we have today. Each day the pro- cess still goes on, supported by the grinding sea, the howling winds, the roots of plants and the many other fac- tors that make our world what it is. With the recent cold snap we had, the ice boats of Orient almost came into play. Here is about the only place you will find ice boating on the East End. It's nice to see Orient's heirlooms coming out from the old barns and cel- lars. They have a majesty all their own and seeing them scoot along the frozen bay, with their bundled up crew, brings to mind a Currier & Ives scene of yes- teryear. Although we've seen a January thaw, don't count on spring being just around the corner. The end of January and all of February still have much to offer the ice enthusiasts. Perhaps we'll still get skating and ice boating here on the East End. � A FINE FURNITURE STORE The most complete collection of Scandinavian designs on the East End... on Sale from 10% to 25% off. 20 Hampton Road 287 -1013 Southampton, N. Y. 11968 Open: Mon -Sat. 09:30 -5:30 Page 13A Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh WINTER'S ICE - -If you own ice skates or an ice boat, you probably can't wait for a good freeze. But if you have work outside or on the bay, ice can really slow you down. Leave it to The Good Hands People to come up with a great IRA. It's hard to find a retirement savings plan with better fea- tures than an Allstate "Cash Developer" IRA. You pay no administrative charges or maintenance fees. Charles G. 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