Lough Neagh Ice - the last time?

January 2010 saw the whole bay from our house out to Rams Island and Langford Lodge Point frozen and snow covered, giving probably the largest extent of ice anywhere in Ireland - perhaps even in the UK.   The picture shows yours truly out on the ice near the mouth of the Glenavy River at sunset.  Scott's of Sandy Bay can be seen almost two miles in the distance.

The bay is covered with a sheet of ice a little more often than most people realize, every 10 years or so; and it's generally possible to walk out on some of the shallow inlets where the water is two to three feet deep, making it relatively safe.  There are stories of my Grandfather falling through the ice on a horse and cart in 1947; my dad plunged into the water when riding a bicycle across the mouth of the Glenavy River in 1963 (to a barbecue in front of Hillis's shore);  I've had a few near misses over the years; but thankfully we all lived to tell the tale.

However, it is much rarer for the main bay to be frozen strong enough to walk on; notably it is effectively open water so needs dead-calm conditions for 3-4 days for ice to build to sufficient thickness.  The last time we were out on the ice between our house and Rams Island was in February 1986 when it was frozen on and off for a month!!.

Before that, the most amazing "frost fair" of my lifetime was a week of hard frost in January 1982 when we also had 5ft snow drifts.  There were hundreds of people out on the ice.  The older generation were quick to mobilize, driven by memories of the winters of 1947 and 1963, when the Lough was frozen for six to eight weeks - events deeply embedded in our folklore.

Quite a few people of that generation walked the two miles from Sandy Bay out to Rams Island on the ice; a feat I've never managed in my lifetime.

Sadly, if the Moy Park Incinerator were to go ahead the thermal pollution would ensure that the bay never freezes again; and that part of our heritage would be lost forever.  It seems like a little thing, but it means a lot to all the people from around the shore.

The ill-informed suggest that the heat would offer wildlife relief during severe cold spells.  This isn't really a factor.  First, Lough Neagh is only 15 miles form the coast so respite is always nearby; and the open water in the middle of the Lough never freezes anyway.  More important though, there are unique cold-water-fish spawning grounds in our part of Lough Neagh, including for protected species like "Pollen."  They need low water temperatures (<5C) to breed.  Those same factors that allow the bay to freeze from time to time are an essential part of the ecosystem.

Destroy them and the whole Lough Neagh ecosystem will be impacted, not just the heritage of a few families around the shore!

Best,

Danny
--------
t:  dannymoore_ni