Big Lake ice road disappears

WASILLA — The Big Lake ice road has been open since early December, but local officials are urging caution for those who use the winter thoroughfare after the latest weather warm-up.

“Folks are using it, but my family is not,” said Mat-Su Borough Assembly District 5 member Dan Mayfield, who also is the president of Big Lake Trails, which maintains trail access in the area. “There are a few puddles and it hasn’t frozen up as nicely as we would like right now. People are using it for daily travel, but they need to use caution and measure (the ice) if they can before they go.”

The 6.5-mile ice road provides access to year-round homes as well as cabins on the shores of Big Lake, Mud Lake and Flat Lake. It’s usually easy to follow when it’s plowed because of the large berms that form on either side. But that doesn’t mean the “road” across the ice is in great shape. Mayfield said Tuesday that any markings delineating the road are gone. Now that everything is down to bare ice, he said it could be difficult for drivers unfamiliar with the area to find their way around at night.

“We had some great roads there for a while last month, but now there are hardly even any berms to mark the edge (of the lane,)” he said.

A New Year's warm-up sent temperatures in the Mat-Su into the 40s, creating wet, sloppy conditions across the area and melting most snow at lower elevations. By Wednesday, the ice was again frozen solid on top after cooler, more seasonable temperatures arrived in the Mat-Su.

Last weekend a truck went through the ice in the channel between Big Lake and Mud Lake, which Mayfield said should be a reminder for ice road travelers. No injuries were reported and the truck was later retrieved. Using the land access between the channels is preferred, he said. The channels are typically marked off.

“The channels should be avoided in any weather,” Mayfield said. “For folks that aren’t familiar with driving out there (on the ice road), I would say just be very cautious.”

West Lakes Fire Department battalion chief Jim Keel said Tuesday the ice thickness was between 18 and 22 inches.

“There was about 3 inches of water on the road on New Year’s Day, but it’s down to around an inch now,” Keel said, adding that the cooler nights will help keep the water down. “Access is OK from both the north and south shores, but there is no obvious road.”

Keel said the fire department will put its command vehicles on the road, but the ice has to be at least 24 inches before ambulances and rescue trucks are allowed.

Contact reporter Steven Merritt at 352-2269 or steven.merritt@frontiersman.com