Last weekend's cold snap was more than enough to do the trick.

Otsego Lake officially closed for the winter Saturday morning, following temperatures that ranged from the minus 14 degrees recorded by the National Weather Service observers at the Fenimore Art Museum to the minus 24 degrees Biological Field Station director Dr. Willard Harman had at the north end of the lake.

Harman said Monday that January 10 will go down as the official date of closing this year.

This year's date is "typical," Harman said. Last year it was January 14; in 2002 the lake did not freeze; in 2001 it was December 29 and in 2000 it was December 19, which was a little early.

"Anytime from Christmas to the end of January is typical," Harman said.

Amy Blechman, who cordinates the weather observations at NYSHA said that although it was cold, no records were broken over the weekend.

All the records were in the minus 20s. The lowest reading of minus 14 on Saturday morning fell short of the minus 24 degree record for that date set in 1859.

Blechman said the mercury dipped below zero Friday morning and stayed there until Sunday morning when temperatures began to moderate before the next cold wave that was due mid-week.

That cold wave hit Wednesday morning with an overnight temperature of minus 20 degrees — short of the record minus 25 degrees set in 1957.

Temperatures are expected to remain frigid until the weekend. Record lows for the next fews days are: Jan. 15, minus 32 degrees in 1957; Jan. 16, minus 22 degrees in 1994; and Jan. 17, minus 17 degrees in 1957.