Salt Ice
Ice that forms from sea water or brackish water is different from normal fresh water ice in many ways.
- It is generally weaker
- It weakens more quickly in a thaw and it thaws at lower temperatures.
- It is more flexible
- It's formation process is different
- It has other attributes that make it tricky to read.
- Salt ice is usually tidal with the related elevation changes and currents associated with the tides. Potentially this can create all manor of problems.
- The salt in the ice is often effective at melting moderate amounts of snow.
If you are going to travel on salt ice make sure it is extra thick, well below freezing, you are fully prepared/equiped and go with people with experience with it and learn from them. The Swedes have written a fair amount about skating on brackish water ice.
I have only been on salt ice a couple of times.
Bob June 2012
