While the ice cover and temperatures don't really indicate the arrival of Springtime yet, the calendar still shows Spring less then three weeks away.
In a news release Saturday, the Coast Guard reported that the cutter Alder will start icebreaking operations on Tuesday in the harbor and out to Lake Superior. Officials warned anglers and others who may be out on the ice to remove ice shacks and other equipment, and to use caution if out in the ice.
Areas where the Alder will be working include - but are not limited to - the Superior Front Channel, the Superior and Duluth harbor basins, the East Gate Basin, the Duluth and Superior entry channels and the Lake Superior ice adjacent to Minnesota Point.
Icebreaking operations later may extend to other areas of the harbor, as well as to Two Harbors, Silver Bay and Taconite Harbor.