January 20, 1983 - Ice: Hallmark of WinterJanuary 20, 1983
Tbt ASuffolk ximtg Page 13
Ice: Hallmark of Winter
Water has the ability to stay cold or
warm for long periods of time. This
accounts in part for our mild climate here
on Long Island during the winter. With the
Sound to the north of us and the Atlantic
Ocean to the south, these bodies of water
tend to keep the temperature mild even
though we occasionally do get some cold
days during the winter. The 40 degree
temperature this past week kept the snow
away, that's for sure, and in its place we
got rain.
But as I said before, sooner or later we'll
get some cold days and the ponds and
creeks will start to make ice. Just this
morning the creek had a thin shell of ice
over it. It was so thin that by now the water
temperature or the air temperature or
both have melted it all.
Later, when it does freeze over solid, I'll
look forward to spearing eels through the
ice. There's no finer eating than smoked or
fried eels. Yes, and I even enjoy them
pickled. An old German family lived next
to us years ago and he'd boil them and then
pickle them in a sort of jelly that came
from the cooking. I can remember eating
them cold and wondering if anything could
ever taste better.
I think I've told you about my first
experience with smoking eels when a
smoker I made out of an old ice box burned
down. The lesson learned was never to use
one that was insulated with old -time
excelsior.
Half the fun of eeling in the winter is
getting out on the ice. There's a bit of work
chopping the holes, especially when the ice
is a foot or more thick, and there's
definitely work involved in the actual
working of the spear. But nevertheless,
just being outside with the hopes of hitting
it lucky is worth it.
One of the funniest things I remember
about eeling happened when I was a kid.
We'd been eeling out on East Creek for a
couple of days and returned because
"those eels you gave us tasted so good you
outs get some more." .
It was cold those nights and new ice had
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formed in the holes we'd previously cut. To
add to the cover, we had had a three -inch
snow storm. We kids knew just about
where we'd cut the holes but someone else
might not be so lucky.
A good friend of ours who never went for
too many activities that involved work
came out on the ice to see us. In those days
hip boots were fashionable and everyone
wore them when it snowed. Well, you
guessed W! Herb came out all right. One
minute he was waving to us. The next
minute he was almost gone! He'd stepped
on the thin newly- frozen -over ice hole that
was hidden by the snow and went right in. I
can remember him cussing as he lay on his
back in the snow, his boots raised high so
the water could run out.
Ice and Skating Synonymous
Ice always seemed to spell skating years
ago. Guess there just wasn't that much to
do when school was out or during the
winter evenings. None of us had cars in
those days and so our parents usually
drove us to the ponds. Of course, we'd
collect a raft of kids on the way so that
when we got there our group plus others
made quite a showing on the ice. We'd
build a bonfire along the edge of the pond
where someone's hands and toes were
always being thawed out.
Great Pond was one of our special spots
for in those days no one lived around the
pond and being nestled down behind the
dunes it was protected from those howling
northwest winds that always seemed to
blow the hardest whenever we went
skating. The skates we wore were never
new ones, but always hand -me -downs and
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I doubt if they were ever sharpened from
the day they were made. They were either
too big or too small, but in either case they
were always cold. I can't remember ever
ice skating when my toes were warm. As a
matter of fact, to this day I think cold toes
are just part of skating.
As you can tell from the equipment we
,used, our ice skating was never taken too
seriously. It, like all things, was done for
the shear fun of it. Often we'd just go down
,to the bay or out on the creek to skate.
Saltwater ice is softer than freshwater ice
but to us it really didn't make that much
difference and besides we didn't need any
transportation to the ponds that lay three
or four miles to the east and west of us.
Bay ice always seemed to be rougher than
pond ice perhaps because the pond waters
were smaller. Often it seemed like we
were skating on small cobblestones yet it
never seemed to slow us down.
Ice skating was something my sister
could do better than I could. My ankles
always seemed to flop from one side to the
other, but I'd manage to keep up with her.
Once she paid for her superiority though
by falling on her head. How she bled! We
kids all thought she'd broken her head
open but as usual mother came to the
rescue and bandaged her up and in no time
she was out skating again.
Skating With the Wind
Most of our creeks run north and south,
which lets the winter wind pretty well run
down through them. The advantage of this
is that you could put your back to the wind
and let it blow you down creek. What a
wonderful feeling racing along, your,
skates rumbling over the rough creek ice,
your hands outstretched clutching your
coat for a sail and free as the wind.
Yes, ice is the hallmark of winter and to
many of us it still holds an allure. Perhaps
not in such daring feats as ice boating and
ice skating but in activities with a more
solid footing. Even the simple adventure of
a walk on an ice - strewn beach is some-
thing I always look forward to.
One of the most memorable days I can
remember was when the ice built up from
OVER FORTY YEARS AGO - -The
winters were colder and ice usually
filled our bays. It was then that a
would -be Sonja Heine practiced on
the ice after school.
Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
six to 10 feet high on one of our nearby
beaches. The wind had shifted from the
northwest to the south. The ice was
breaking up in the bay and great chunks, a
foot thick, pressed up only to be outdone by
others. By the time the tide had changed,
and the wind had let up, there was a great
wall of ice, bathed pink by the late
afternoon light. It was winter's twilight
zone.
PAULSTOUTENBURGH
ustr
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