Snow as far as the eye can see – this is what it currently looks like in large parts of Germany. Since the lakes freeze over at outside temperatures of minus 16 degrees Celsius and below that, people near their home are not only drawn to tobogganing, but also to skate outside. But in most places the ice cover of the waters is not yet thick enough.
Ice skating: the ice cover of the lakes in Germany is often not thick enough
There is a risk of bruising when entering – and that can be life-threatening, warn authorities, fire brigades and the German Life-Rescue Society (DLRG). The ice can only be stepped on from an ice layer of 15 centimeters. With flowing water, it must be 20 centimeters. Most rivers and lakes would not reach this thickness until 14 days of permafrost, but the cold period does not last that long.
It is therefore advisable to only enter lakes that are approved by the city or the municipality. The load-bearing capacity was then checked beforehand. In many federal states, however, this practice has not been common practice for years – there, entering the ice surfaces is at your own risk.
In addition, the currently applicable Corona rules limit winter fun. In order to avoid crowds, some places have closed the ice rinks. Wherever ice skating is possible, you should definitely keep your distance from other day trippers and wear a mask if necessary. We’ll tell you where you can skate in Germany and what you should watch out for when stepping on the ice surface.
You should keep this in mind when stepping on an ice surface
In addition to warm clothes, protective clothing is also important when ice skating. Experts recommendFlexible protectors for the knees, such as those worn by athletes in volleyball or handball, to be worn under clothing. For the hands it should be thick ski gloves – they cushion the impact when falling.
However, you should avoid using wrist and knee guards with plastic shells like in inline skating. Due to the plastic, the protectors slide away when you fall, so that you may hit your face. A thick woolen hat also protects the head very well. A helmet is also suitable, but with one you could injure other ice skaters in the face in a collision.
If you lose your balance, you should let yourself fall forward as much as possible. Since the ice is slippery, the danger to the wrists is not as great as that of an injury to the tailbone when falling backwards. Beginners can push a sledge in front of them for the necessary stability to get a feel for the ice.
Many lakes are no longer released. You enter there at your own risk.
You should keep this in mind when the ice breaks
But if the ice crackles and cracks, you should leave it immediately. In acute danger of breaking in, lie flat on the ice and then crawl carefully to the bank. Should you actually break in, then try to spread your arms quickly, advises the German Life Saving Society (DLRG). Then break off the ice in the direction you came from until it thickens again. Then try to roll yourself onto the ice surface and slowly get to land. Anyone who observes another person’s break-in calls the fire brigade on 112. To avoid this scenario, it is important to only step on released ice surfaces. Here is an overview:
Schleswig-Holstein
In Schleswig-Holstein many frozen lakes attract ice skaters, but the police, fire brigade and DLRG warn: No lake is safe! Flooded meadows seem to be safest for ice skaters, report the “Lübeck news“. At Rothenhusen in the Wakenitz lowland there are several such large “puddles”. But the Duvenseer Moor is a real top tip.
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On an excursion, however, the corona-related distance rules should be observed. The police have already been deployed several times to fetch the skaters from the ice at Klempauer Hofsee, for example, in order to avert danger.
Bremen
In Bremen, the environmental authority has set up an automatic announcement service to provide information about which lakes and bodies of water are approved: Call (0421) 361-5500. But so far all the ice surfaces there are too thin, there is a danger to life when entering.
Regardless of this, the Semkenfahrt should not become a corona hotspot, so it will remain closed this year. Alternatively, there is a small ice surface on which ice skating is permitted from a distance. This is a flooded meadow behind the Roland Center in the Park Links der Weser.
Bayern
In Bavaria, several lakes have been frozen over for a long time and therefore repeatedly attract numerous day tourists to ice-skate. An extremely popular place is the Schwansee in the Ostallgäu southeast of Füssen. According to the police, the visitor parking spaces are usually overcrowded early. That is why there are regular checks to ensure compliance with the corona measures. Also the area around the Schliersee is a popular excursion destination for Munich residents, as well as the Spitzingsee, where ice skaters make their circles.
Also in the nature reserve Saalewiesen between Bad Neustadt and Salz in the Lower Franconian district of Rhön-Grabfeld, many day-trippers use the Saalewiesen to let off steam on the ice. Because the Saale, which has overflowed its banks, has transformed large areas of meadow into an ice rink. According to the District Office, nothing speaks against winter fun, but there is a parking ban in the nature reserve, which visitors should observe, reports the “Main Post“.
Baden-Wuerttemberg
Baden-Württemberg has also been able to score with frozen lakes since January. For example, the Schlosssee Salem has had a layer of ice since mid-January. In the area, however, the ice has not been released by cities or municipalities for years. You enter at your own risk.
Many lakes in Baden-Württemberg have been frozen over for some time. Ice skating is possible there under corona conditions. (Symbol image)
No safe ice surfaces in many federal states
Numerous other federal states also have frozen lakes. But whether in Berlin, North Rhine-Westphalia or Thuringia – since the ice surfaces are still not safe, the responsible authorities there warn against entering.
No approved ice surfaces in Lower Saxony
The Steinhuder Meer is partially frozen, but not officially released. There is an express warning before entering the ice surface. The ice thickness at the Zwischenahner Meer is not officially measured. Accordingly, no official body allows entry and ice skating.
Also the Maschsee in Hanover there is already a thin layer of ice, but even if it were thick enough, the city does not want to open the lake this year. In the town hall, there are fears that ice cream fun on the Maschsee would attract too many people, which would make it impossible to keep the corona intervals. This reports the “Hannoversche Allgemeine“.
In Oldenburg, the city fire brigade measured the strength of the core ice of several bodies of water – including in the Dobbenteich and the Swarte-Moor-See. The determined ice thickness was a maximum of two centimeters, so the city urgently warns against entering frozen waters.
The same applies to the core ice on the Schillerteich and in the Allersee in Wolfsburg. The city warns against entering the ponds, there is an acute risk of burglary, reports the “Wolfsburg General“. In Gifhorn advises the water rescue service to only enter areas approved by the authorities.
In Hesse, too, the fire department warns against entering
In Hesse, the ice cover was not stable on the floodplains, nor on the standing water. This applies to the Perfstausee near Breidenbach, the Aartalsperre, the Ahneparkseen in Vellmar, the Frankfurt Ostparkweiher, ponds and lakes in the Kassel Karlsaue and the Leeheimer Riedsee as well as the bathing lake in Gernsheim in southern Hesse.
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania: The ice layers are not thick enough
Likewise, the layers of ice in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania are not yet thick enough for ice skating. “The wind ensures that the ice is not evenly thick,” said Robert Stahlberg from the state water police MV to the “Ostsee-Zeitung“. Where the water is already freezing, the ice layer is currently a maximum of three centimeters thick. Flow conditions under the ice are also a danger.
According to the Stralsund city administration, ice is only stable from a thickness of 15 centimeters. However, the city administration does not release any ice surfaces – for reasons of liability, said Rostock city spokesman Ulrich Kunze.
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