Corps Of Engineers To Measure Lake Pepin Ice

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — A survey crew from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' St. Paul District will begin measuring the ice thickness on Lake Pepin Wednesday.

The annual survey helps the towing industry decide whether towboats will have a hard time breaking through ice on the Upper Mississippi River and when to start navigation to St. Paul.

Lake Pepin is on the Mississippi between Red Wing and Wabasha in southeastern Minnesota. Ice measurements are done on Lake Pepin because it's the last part of the channel where ice breaks up, due to the slower river current on the lake.

The crew will take an airboat to travel on the ice. They will use a global positioning system to find their exact location and a tape measure to measure ice thickness.

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