Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Allagash Wilderness Waterway (AWW) rangers are reporting hazardous ice conditions on the Allagash headwater lakes. State officials are advising ice fishermen and snowmobilers to use extreme caution when heading out to fish this week.
AWW Superintendent Matthew LaRoche warned that there is only an inch of good black ice with about five inches of soft snow ice on top of that. The rain that fell over the Christmas holiday has caused the lakes to rise and the ice to break away from shore in many places. There are two or three feet of open water along the edges of the lakes in most places. When rangers and wardens were out checking the ice on Monday, they found the same conditions on all the lakes that were checked. There is also open water in all thoroughfares that connect the lakes.
Gov. Paul R. LePage urged caution on the first weekend of ice fishing season.
“This week, many Maine residents and visitors will be out snowmobiling and ice fishing to open the 2015 season,” said LePage. “Anglers should enjoy the excellent ice fishing season that begins Thursday, Jan. 1, but exercise caution regarding ice conditions. Please take precautions so that your Maine ice fishing experience is not only memorable for the fish you catch, but also for the positive memories you make with family and friends.”
LaRoche warned all visitors to stay away from thoroughfares and avoid tributary streams when traveling on the ice.
“An inch of good ice isn’t very much, and that thickness may vary from location to location,” LaRoche said. “The ice is just not safe enough to cross any of the waterway headwater lakes yet.” He urged those heading out on the ice to stay near shore, play it safe and check the ice in the area in which they are traveling before venturing out onto the ice.
For specific advice on ice conditions and areas to avoid, visitors should check with the ranger at Chamberlain Bridge or call the dispatch center in Ashland between 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday, at 435-7963, extension 1.
The AWW provides: winter campgrounds at the Chamberlain Bridge and Kellogg Brook; public drinking water, vault toilets and snow plowing. A groomed snowmobile trail is marked from the Chamberlain Bridge parking lot to the south end of Chamberlain Lake and to Round Pond/Telos lakes.
The AWW is a 92-mile-long ribbon of lakes, ponds, streams, and river that wind through the heart of northern Maine’s vast commercial forest. The waterway became the first state-administered river to be designated by the United States Department of Interior as a component of the federal Wild and Scenic River Program.
This designation was the culmination of an effort began in the early 1960s to protect the outstanding natural character, unique recreational opportunities, and historical significance of the Allagash River and its associated lakes and ponds.
For more information about the AWW, go to: www.maine.gov/allagash.
