“The weather ain’t been bad if you’re into masochistic bullsh*t.”
- Noah Kahan, Homesick
It’s been below zero for a week and we are feeling it. That song lyric above captures the mood perfectly. I realized yesterday that I hadn’t walked to the lake in over a week and I was antsy. So I decided to bundle up complete with snow pants, turtle fleece to cover my face, and a hat down to my eyes, and take a walk.
I didn’t realize how tightly wound I’d been until my shoulders started to drop halfway down the sidewalk. My eyelashes were crusted with frost, my nose stung, but somehow that made me feel calmer instead of miserable. I smiled into the sunlight. The fresh air does wonders for winter glum.
As much as I complain about the cold, I know it is doing important work. Walking along the frozen lake yesterday, I was reminded that Minnesota’s ecosystems depend on below zero stretches like this. Cold winters help prevent many potential pest insects and invasive species from establishing in Minnesota. The US Department of Agriculture estimates that invasive plant pests and diseases cost the United States $40 billion annually. These costs include effects on native species, crop loss, eradication, removal, and control efforts. Species that cannot survive our winters are stopped from migrating up from southern states. Extreme cold can also knock back unloved species that are established here. Ticks, unfortunately, do survive winter, but warmer winters often lead to population booms in spring. Cold winters help keep those numbers in check.
When the lake freezes over it becomes easy to forget there’s still a whole world moving slowly underneath. Winter ice, covering our lakes, streams, and ponds, isn’t just a beautiful surface for skating and ice fishing. It plays a vital role in the annual cycles of plants and animals under the lake’s surface. Ice provides insulation, helping keep a stable water temperature below. This can protect fish and aquatic insects from extreme cold.
Our native lake plants die off in the fall. If there’s good snow cover, the plants don’t start growing again until ice out. If there’s no snow, the sunlight can penetrate the ice and give the plants a jumpstart in winter. Similarly, when the ice comes off early, as is the growing trend, we see denser plant growth in the spring. These small seasonal shifts can ripple through the entire lake ecosystem.
Many aquatic organisms settle to the lake bottom for a long winter’s nap. Algae and zooplankton rest in the lake sediments, waiting for the ice to come off so they can be active again. Amphibians bury themselves in the lake bottom and hibernate. Fish are cold-blooded, and can slow their metabolism in winter. Fish that are adapted to cold, like trout and salmon, stay active. Warm-water fish get sluggish and wait it out until spring. The lake doesn’t stop in winter, it simply slows down.
I’ve already talked in earlier blog posts about how seeing the greens and blues of nature can boost your mood. Studies also show that white spaces, like a snow-covered forest or lake, have a similar calming effect. Cold air has been linked to immune and mood benefits.
Yesterday’s walk reminded me that winter still has something to offer, even when it’s sharp and unforgiving. The lake rests. The plants wait. Life pauses without apology. Walking beside it yesterday, I remembered that I can do the same. Even in the cold, even in the dark, there is steadiness to be found if I’m willing to step outside and meet it.
Moriya Rufer is a lake biologist with 20 years experience working with and loving lakes in northern Minnesota.
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