Elise Petersen, 10, left, skates on an open rink on Mirror Lake with her sister Sadie, 14, on Tuesday, Feb. 6. The Petersens are here from Columbus, Ohio. (News photo — Oliver Reil)

LAKE PLACID — The ice on Mirror Lake is finally getting thicker after a long and unusually warm start to winter.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if we were at 10.5 to 11 inches (by Thursday),” North Elba Park District Manager Matt St. Louis said on Wednesday, Feb. 7.

He reported that the ice was around 9 inches thick on their last check, with another check planned on Feb. 8.

The ice on Mirror Lake is important to the village. Many of its most prized activities need ice, including the Lake Placid Toboggan Chute on Parkside Drive. To open the chute to the public, St. Louis said they want 12 inches of ice to guarantee safety. However, the ice is currently thick enough to begin setting up the chute, which Park District employees have been working hard to do.

St. Louis reported Monday that the chute runs were slushed in over the weekend. On Wednesday, St. Louis said the chute runs are getting solid. Right now, the lake is clear and skating rinks — some with hockey nets — have been established for public use and the coming CAN/AM Pond Hockey Tournament from Thursday, Feb. 8 to Sunday, Feb. 11. The long runway of cleared ice in front of the chute is clear.

The Lake Placid Toboggan Chute on Mirror Lake is seen on Tuesday, Feb. 6. The attraction is expected to open on Thursday, Feb. 15, as long as the ice is 12 inches thick, according to North Elba Park District officials. (News photo — Oliver Reil)

On Tuesday, Feb. 6, Brian Petersen’s daughters Elise, 10, and Sadie, 14, were out taking full advantage of the open rinks on Mirror Lake. The family came from Columbus, Ohio. Petersen said his son was at Mount Van Hoevenberg for a USA Luge camp. Elise is a hockey player.

“She’s been out here every chance she can get since we’ve gotten here,” he said.

The weekend forecast is somewhat foreboding, with Thursday through Saturday seeing highs in the upper 40s and a potential for some rain. This may force the pond hockey tournament to move to the Olympic Speedskating Oval on Main Street, CAN/AM’s backup location if the ice is unsafe.

St. Louis said that the district hopes to open the Toboggan Chute by Thursday, Feb. 15, just in time for Presidents Day weekend.