River spring?

Drive by the river as much as I can nowadays, which is a nice lil detour on my way home, and there is a spot that has continually stayed open the whole time. This stretch is pretty shallow, I would guess about 4-6′, the open area about 20yds long by half that wide. Always a flock of geese on it as well. Can birds keep it open? Every other part of the river here in the city has froze over for quite some time unless you get up by the dam. Just curious to what may be causing it and gain some info on river stuff.

Yes birds can keep water open as long as they don’t leave for to long to eat. So with that being said and the temps we have had I would say its a combination of birds and spring/current.

There was a post on ere awhile back about the discharge fro the nuc plant. From what I heard there suppose to be starting the other reactor sometime later this week and that should help keep the river open a little more

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There was a post on ere awhile back about the discharge fro the nuc plant. From what I heard there suppose to be starting the other reactor sometime later this week and that should help keep the river open a little more

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This spot is just north of Minneapolis, no nukes here.

Its the geese, they will huddle there and keep it open for as long as they can. I’ve seen farm ponds with 6″ of ice and an open spot the size of a bathtub the geese kept open. The geese leave and the next day its ice covered.

Might just be heavier current in that area. The main channel at 494 was still open last week for about a mile or so.

Is this in the middle of the river or near the shore?

Is there a creek that flows in just upstream from there?

A large rock or other debris may cause enough turbulence to help keep it open.

I’d say its some kind of deviation in the bottom’s structure that’s forcing the current upwards and creating enough stir to keep the water open or at least the ice thin enough to fall apart when the weather warms a bit.

Its right off the shoreline, and its a muck/sand bottom with scattered rocks. Not enough turbulence to cause it to stay open IMO. I put a waypoint on it in the garage so I can check it out come spring time. No discharge that I know of, drifted by that spot several times and never noticed anything. Geese are still heavy there, might try to put a thermometer in it sometime soon if I can get to it. If its shooting out some warmer water I might have a nice lil spot come spring time.