Shawn Lovell wants to know when he can feel safe crossing the frozen surface of Mendenhall Lake toward the ice caves, so he decided to take some measurements.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t
Lovell, an outdoors enthusiast, said in a phone interview Tuesday that earlier in the day he used a chainsaw to cut the ice at the lake near Mendenhall Glacier and measure its thickness. Despite a spate of subfreezing temperatures in Juneau starting Jan. 3, according to National Weather Service observed weather reports<\/a>, Lovell said the ice doesn’t yet seem safe to him.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t “It’s still pretty thin,” Lovell said. “A lot of people want to go out there, and I thought, ‘Eh, not yet.’ I wouldn’t want to tell someone it was safe to go out there.”<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t Lovell said he accessed the lake from the parking lot just past Skater’s Cabin. Near shore, he measured the ice’s thickness at 7 inches, so he proceeded with caution to take another measurement. About 300 feet away, Lovell said the ice measured about 3 3\/4 inches.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t The National Weather Service recommends staying off ice that is thinner than 4 inches.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t Lakes & river ice forming across SE AK due to cold temps. Double check before venturing out. Ice is never completely safe. Stay away from inlets\/outlets & keep away from glacier faces. Ice survival tips from Dr. Giesbrecht https:\/\/t.co\/Ca8k6lb3r4<\/a> #akwx<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/O6sBbXQfjn<\/a><\/p>— NWS Juneau (@NWSJuneau) January 12, 2020<\/a><\/blockquote>