How do ice floes on large lakes freeze together into a continuous cover?

On large lakes where wind prevents the formation of a stable, uniform ice cover, the process of creating a continuous ice sheet often involves the formation of large ice floes. These floes are created when initial ice crystals—often mixed by wind agitation—are prevented from forming a stable layer and instead break apart and reform repeatedly.1

As these floes drift, they eventually freeze together to form a continuous cover. This stabilization process can result in the creation of large ridges and piles of ice, which may have an underwater draft several times their height above the surface. In some instances, particularly on very large lakes, wind effects remain so significant that a stable, continuous ice cover may rarely form over the entire surface, leaving the water near the freezing point throughout the winter.12