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Nostgolia on this Election Day 2023 ☕🙈🗳️

This year I’m glad I’m not involved in any elections or doing anything political. Just sipping my coffee watching the sun rise remembering the days gone by but glad I’m not at all rushed this morning.

Good morning! Happy Election Day 2023. Partly cloudy ⛅ and 51 degrees at the Stoney Pond State Forest. ☔ There is a west-southwest breeze at 15 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 47 degrees. I can smell the manure somebody’s spreading this morning 💩 it’s November in Madison County and the field work is soon to be done for the season. 🚜 They might have snow as soon as midweek.

Turned out to be a much nicer morning then expected. ☕ I knew it was going to be a great day when I awoke, saw the clear night skies 🌜and the moon. Had a nice hardy breakfast of eggs 🍳 with lots of vegetables and onions 🧅 that I got at Aldi’a yesterday in Cazenovia. While yesterday was cold, damp and gray at times it was still a good day with lots of riding 🚲 and making the most of my day off. A lot has changed in this world over the past few years but mornings are still quite beautiful and the coffee is good.

Glad I’m not involved in any elections this year 🗳 but there were many hard fought ones out of Bill Magees auction house 🗝️ 🍶🏺just down the road. Been half a decade now, I saw the bridge in Cazenovia they renamed after him. It was sad he lost five years ago, but during that general election cycle wasn’t my race. 🧑‍🌾 Truth is winning these rural districts is almost impossible with the democratic party becoming mostly an urban issues party with gun 🔫 control one of their top priorities. I can understand why people vote the way they do nowadays out in the country. 🚜 It’s not just Trump. Both parties have become more extreme but the Republicans have really locked up the rural areas nowadays. I have a feeling that Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Senator John Tester of Montana are going to loose in 2024, especially if the GOP runs a stronger presidential candidate then felon Donald Trump. ⏳ Time moves on. Democrats though really have locked up the suburbs, especially the older ones and professional class. 🕴🏻

Today will have showers likely, mainly between 10am and 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a temperature falling to around 43 by 5pm. 🌦️ Breezy, with a west wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 32 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning with sunny skies in the afternoon. The high last year was 69 degrees. The record high of 75 was set in 1938. 4.5 inches of snow fell back in 1886.❄

I’m not sure how long it will be nice, clouds are already pushing in. 🌥 I don’t want to deal with wet camping gear 🏕 so I’m slowly but surely taking things down. I don’t have solid plans for today but I think 🤔 I’ll just go for a walk 🚶 around Stoney Pond then head home and get unpacked. 👪 Planning to go see my family this afternoon it’s been three 3⃣ weeks as I’ve been out of town 🌲 on various trips. Despite yesterday being cold and dreary especially midday it was a great trip.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 11:47 am with sun having an altitude of 30.9° from the due south horizon (-39.6° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 10 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 4:08 pm with the sun in the west-southwest (241°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (249°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:50 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 8 seconds with dusk around 5:18 pm, which is one minute and 10 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:53 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and temperatures around 44 degrees. Breezy, 20 mph breeze ⛅ from the west-northwest with gusts up to 32mph. Today will have 10 hours and 6 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 26 seconds over yesterday.

Yesterday I rode the South Trail from outside of Cazenovia to New Woodstock. 🚵 Nice ride though best on a mountain bike as some parts of the trail are a bit rough with roots and gravel. Pungent with the cow poop and water slurry 🐮 💩 one of the dairies was applying to a nearby field but that’s to be expected this time of year.

Spent a little bit of time riding around New Woodstock yesterday after taking the South Trail from outside of Cazenovia to New Woodstock. 🚂 Neat little village with a Historical Museum just off the rail trail. They like in Cazenovia also have an old Black Diamond Caboose there. Cute little village.

Unfortunately my bike had developed a really annoying squeak on Sunday afternoon ⚙️ which I couldn’t figure out and started applying grease everywhere, including getting it all over my hands 👐 and jeans 👖 and started to drive me crazy thinking I might have a failing bearing or some problem that could leave me stranded. I thought it was just some stone dust from the Erie Canalway somewhere it shouldn’t be mixed with the grease. Kept stopping, applying grease trying to find the noise. 🔕 Finally, I figured it out, it was the left pedal got some stone dust in it and squeaking. A little spray lubricant, knock off WD 40 on the pedal after my south trail ride 🚲 returned my sanity.

Swung by Critz Farms hoping to get apples 🍏 but it looked like only the brewery was open 🍻 and I wasn’t looking for a drink. So I went to Cazenovia Lake Park. Kind of cold gray afternoon but the geeese didn’t seem to mind the cool gray day on Cazenovia Lake. 🦆

Then I went to the Lorenzo State Historic Site, never been there before. ⛲ Been by it a million times though. It was a Monday so all the buildings were shut up and no visitor services or as I needed a bathroom 🚽 but it was still nice to explore the grounds. Swung by the library 📚 in Cazenovia for a pee.

Then I Canastota – Cazenovia Trailway, it was starting to rain and was cold didn’t spend a lot of time, ☔ wanted get back to camp and start cooking soup plus by then I needed another bathroom 🚽 break. Too much coffee ☕ in the morning. 🌅 Also didn’t feel like carrying my mountain bike over several steps to cross Bingley Road. Visited Aldi’s in Cazenovia 🍏 🥦, such a delightful shopping experience. 🛒 Low prices, simple selection quick in and out and the cashier lines without them bagging is so quick. ☺

Got back to camp around 4 pm accidentally brushed a tree with one of my tires backing into the campsite ⛺ rushing having to pee but didn’t do any body damage to my truck 🛻 as the tires stick out beyond the body. Sun ☀ came out and ghe wind died down. Fried onions and mushrooms, boiled carrots, broccoli, spinach and whole wheat pasta, added some tuna fish 🐠 for an excellent dinner. Soup really warmed me up 🍲, I just wish I had some homemade bread 🍞 to dip in it but I eat all of that the previous three days. Had a nice fire 🔥 didn’t rain until 7:30 pm so it was a good evening at which point I retired to bed 🛏 in my truck for the evening.

Tonight will have a chance of rain and snow showers before 11pm, then a slight chance of snow showers between 11pm and 1am, then a chance of flurries after 1am. Cloudy 🌧, with a low of 26 degrees at 6am. Eight degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around December 3rd. Northwest wind 14 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Little or no snow accumulation expected. In 2022, we had clear skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 34 degrees. The record low of 18 occurred back in 1971.

Cool but fairly decent now for Veterans Day Weekend, especially come Saturday. ☀ Friday, clouds then clearing, high may reach 43. Saturday, mostly sunny, with a high near 37. Sunday, going to be sunny and 39. Typical average high for the weekend is 51 degrees. Probably will stay 🏡 next weekend.

Looking ahead, next Tuesday is Average High is 50 🍂 when the sun will be setting at 4:42 pm with dusk at 5:11 pm. On that day in 2022, we had partly sunny and temperatures between 42 and 27 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 50 degrees. We hit a record high of 70 back in 1973.

One Car

My electric use is up nearly 33% since last October ⚡

Shocking I know. It’s all the baking and cooking I’ve done lately, that extra kilowatt or two adds up each day. Fortunately the difference is maybe $8-10 at the most, as I was using under 100 kWh a month before I got into cooking and now it’s closer to 150 kWh.

As I don’t have a lot of electronics at home, and go to bed early not using a lot of lights, most of the energy I use is the hot water heater, the refrigerator and the stove/oven. And doing cooking uses all three of those appliances a lot more.

But it’s worth it for the fresh bread, healthy delicious meals, and the good life. Who knows, with inflation these days, I’m probably coming out ahead with less money spent at the grocery store on processed foods, though my grocery bills are way up too. I’m not complaining, eating healthy is an important part of being an adult and living the good life.

Wow that was a long intro to my Wednesday blog post!

Good morning! What day is it? A day and cloudy hump Day, of course. Mostly cloudy and 50 degrees in Delmar, NY. ☁ Calm wind. Charging the light on my bike now, showering shortly and then off to work. Not a lot sun expected tonight, but will clear out late tonight around 8 pm. Might be good for an evening walk, though I haven’t been doing a lot of walking lately, as I’ve been riding to work, intentionally taking the long way in and home to get in more miles on the bike. 🚴‍♀️

This morning I burned up more kilowatt hours 👨‍🍳 making more homemade bread and butternut squash in the oven, with eggs and coffee up top. ☕ I had a lot of coffee this morning, and the eggs 🥚 🍳 were cooked with onions, kidney beans, cilantro, and some frozen veggies. It was a good morning but I had too many cups of coffee to walk though I was fine riding in as I stopped drinking early enough to piss off some of the excess coffee. The doctor says only one cup of coffee in the morning, which some days I ignore as I like more then one while I’m cooking and having breakfast. If I’m not walking, it’s not like I need a pee break.

Today will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a high of 61 degrees at 2pm. Typical for today. Maximum dew point of 47 at 12pm. Light and variable wind. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning with a few breaks of sun the afternoon. The high last year was 58 degrees. The record high of 84 was set in 2016. There was a dusting of snow in 2015.❄

I will need my bike headlights both directions on for safety. 🔦 Not because it’s super dark out but the skies are gray, and it’s so important to be seen by other motorists on the road. I left my taillights charging over night, so they should be plenty bright for the night to come. 🚲 ⚠️ The past few nights I’ve been riding out to Slingerlands at the end of the day, to get in a few more miles of exercise as I haven’t been doing my morning walk as it’s so dark, and I don’t love walking in the dark any more, preferring to retire to bed earlier. 🛌

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:41 pm with sun having an altitude of 37.8° from the due south horizon (-33° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 7.7 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 5:32 pm with the sun in the west-southwest (251°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (258°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 6:10 pm after setting for 2 minutes and 58 seconds with dusk around 6:37 pm, which is one minute and 34 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Waxing Crescent 🌒 Moon in the southwest (216°) at an altitude of 11° from the horizon, 235,132 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 7:12 pm. At sunset, look for partly cloudy skies 🌃 and temperatures around 58 degrees. The dew point will be 47 degrees. There will be a calm wind. Tomorrow will have 10 hours and 57 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 45 seconds over today.

Tonight will have patchy fog after 3am. Otherwise, partly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 43 degrees at 6am. Three degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around October 11th. Light south wind. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies in the evening, which became cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 33 degrees. The record low of 20 occurred back in 1974.

Yesterday, I had a project that I worked on down at the library for a while 👨‍💻 then I went home and kneaded bread. Dinner was just a quick finishing off of the pea soup, covered with curry and dipping the remaining bread I had a home. 🍲 It was a good dinner, after I had a good bike ride home. Tonight I need to think about starting to pack and what food and supplies I’ll need for camping. I told myself today I would run to the store, but I may wait until Friday. Figure I could do the shopping and laundromat at same time, though I kind of want to get more sticky traps for mice 🐭 and maybe replace that increasingly problematic smoke detector with a modern ten-year one that detects flash over rather then just smoke from cooking.

Weekend still looks wet. Saturday, rain. High near 60. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Sunday, a chance of rain before 8am, then a chance of showers after 8am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 52. Breezy. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Typical average high for the weekend is 60 degrees.

Not as wet though heading south it seems like it will be a wet day 🌧 as will be the first day camping and by mid-day Sunday in Cumberland Maryland, it might actually have some nice sun for riding the Chesapeake and Ohio Rail Trail before heading down to West Virginia to set up camp for the night. 🚲 I want to spend a fair amount of time poking around Cumberland, but I also realize that night will sneak up before you know it this time of year. 🏕 🌆

Looking ahead, there are 2 weeks until Average High is 55 🍂 when the sun will be setting at 5:50 pm with dusk at 6:18 pm. On that day in 2022, we had partly sunny, warm, mist and temperatures between 69 and 54 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 55 degrees. We hit a record high of 78 back in 1950.

Morning At Glacial Lake

Happy Summer 2023! 🏖

A few more days until the latest sunset of the year. But by the weekend the heat, humidity and thunderstorms of summer will arrive.

Good morning! Partly cloudy and 57 degrees in Delmar for the morning walk. ⛅ Calm wind. The dew point is 55 degrees. The air quality index is 44. Summer arrives at 10:58 AM and the muggy weather starts at Friday around 11 am.

I think today will be an oatmeal with blueberries 🥣 kind of morning with cold black coffee ☕. Another session day and I’m running late though not as late as yesterday, as my colleagues in the Senate are posting pictures of vacation on Lake George.

But first let’s kick off summer. Today will be mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 78 degrees at 4pm. Three degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around June 11th. Maximum dew point of 58 at 10am. Southeast wind 3 to 7 mph. A year ago, we had rain in the morning, remaining cloudy in the afternoon. The high last year was 70 degrees. The record high of 97 was set in 1938.

Donning my politician’s suit 🕴️I kicked off Tuesday although I didn’t end up catching a bus 🚍 until the late local. Making eggs for breakfast 🍳 followed by preparing a lunch and dinner and ironing my shirt and tie and showering I was running late. Plus I was in such a haze after the long weekend with memories of Piseco-Powley Road high on my brain 🧠.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:58 pm with sun having an altitude of 70.8° from the due south horizon – highest of the year. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:54 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (297°). 📸 The sunset is in the borthwest (304°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:37 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 28 seconds with dusk around 9:11 pm, which is 14 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Waxing Crescent 🌒 Moon in the west (277°) at an altitude of 25° from the horizon, 252,228 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:58 pm. At sunset, look for mostly clear skies 🌄 and temperatures around 71 degrees. The dew point will be 55 degrees. There will be a southeast breeze at 7 mph. Today will have 15 hours and 22 minutes of daytime, an increase of one second over yesterday.

I left work around 6 o’clock last night but the bus was running almost a half hour late 🚍 so I didn’t get home until nearly seven. Rice, lentils, kale, mushrooms 🍄 for dinner last night with some hot sauce. Also some white beans I cooked up yesterday. I was kind of moving slowly yesterday, tired after the weekend that was but I did go down to the park 🏞 for a while for a walk and did 6.8 miles for the day. 👣

Tonight will be partly cloudy 🌌, with a low of 53 degrees at 6am. Six degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around June 1st. Maximum dew point of 56 at 9pm. Southeast wind 5 to 7 mph becoming calm after midnight. In 2022, we had light drizzle in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 61 degrees. The record low of 37 occurred back in 1940.

As is to be expected, humidity arrives with the summer. Clouds and thunderstorms with the mug-o-meter kicking up some oppressive numbers for the weekend. ⛈ Saturday, a chance of showers, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 2pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 83. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Maximum dew point of 70 at 10am. Sunday, showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm, mainly after 2pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 84. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Maximum dew point of 70 at 1pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 82 degrees.

With summer starting to today, there are 2 weeks until Hottest Time of the Year 😅 when the sun will be setting at 8:37 pm with dusk at 9:10 pm. On that day in 2022, we had rain showers, humid, partly cloudy and temperatures between 74 and 65 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 84 degrees. We hit a record high of 99 back in 1919.

Roaring Brook

April 11, 2023 Morning

Twenty thousand steps later and it’s a Tuesday 👣

It got dark and I was tired and stopped at 9.9 miles which is so close but not ten miles.

Good morning! Happy Tuesday. Partly cloudy ⛅ and 38 degrees in the Delmar for the morning walk. Calm wind.

Thinking about cooking up some barley 🌾 for breakfast this morning for something different. Rice, shrimp and stir fry vegetables for dinner tonight I’m making – from ingredients without all the added salt and sugar. Always trying to find healthy new foods to eat to add variety and nutrition.

Today will be partly sunny 🌞, with a high of 70 degrees at 3pm. 13 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around May 10th. Light and variable wind becoming west 9 to 14 mph in the morning. Winds could gust as high as 25 mph. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies. The high last year was 61 degrees. The record high of 87 was set in 2017. 1.7 inches of snow fell back in 1942.❄

The service is done on my truck 🔧 but I had a meeting on Monday afternoon so I’m picking it up today before work. I think I’ll take th local 🚍 in after that, maybe from the Delaware Park and Ride, so I can get tofu for use in meals later in the week.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:57 pm with sun having an altitude of 55.6° from the due south horizon (-15.2° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 4.1 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 6:55 pm with the sun in the west (276°). 📸

The sunset is in the west-northwest (282°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 7:32 pm after setting for 2 minutes and 57 seconds with dusk around 8:01 pm, which is one minute and 9 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 8:36 pm. At sunset, look for mostly cloudy skies ☁ and temperatures around 66 degrees. Breezy, 16 mph breeze ⛅ from the west-southwest with gusts up to 34mph. Today will have 13 hours and 14 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 49 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 49 degrees at 6am. 13 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around May 17th. Breezy, with a west wind 14 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 34 mph. In 2022, we had cloudy skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 44 degrees. The record low of 13 occurred back in 1874.

Weekend continues to look mild and fairly spring if not summer like. 🌸 Saturday, partly sunny, with a high near 78. Maximum dew point of 52 at 11am. Sunday, a chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 74. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Maximum dew point of 53 at 10am. Typical average high for the weekend is 59 degrees. Closer to normal for next week.

I’m thinking Blodgett Hill this weekend 🚶 for another 20 mile hike but it depends on the weather forecast and how I’m feeling. It’s a pretty good hike.

There are 2 months until Fathers Day 👨 when the sun will be setting at 8:34 pm with dusk at 9:07 pm. The average high temperature is 34 degrees, with a record high of 61 in 1895.

Harvey Mountain

January 3, 2019 Morning

Good morning! Today is the Latest Sunrise of the Winter 🌄! Six weeks to Valentines Day or as I used to call it Valente’s Day. ❤️ Snow showers, partly cloudy  around 34 degrees in Delmar. ❄ There is a southwest breeze at 8 mph. 🍃. Not a terrible morning, actually quite mild for January. As usually is the case in winter, temperatures will drop below freezing at around 8 pm. ☃️

This morning was pretty dark, but somehow I managed to eat breakfast relatively quickly, 🥞 shower, 🚿 and make it down to the express bus 🚌 this morning. It was a bit tight time-wise but it got done. Having that clock in the kitchen makes it much easier to keep track of time while I’m making breakfast. I know I probably should have put a clock in my kitchen a long time ago, but finally I done it. I feel like it will last for a long time, and was a good use of $4.

Today will have a chance of rain and snow before noon, then a slight chance of rain between noon and 1pm. Mostly cloudy 🌦, with a high of 41 degrees at 12pm. 10 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 7th. Southwest wind 8 to 16 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Total daytime snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. A year ago, we had sunny skies and a high of 22 degrees. The record high of 61 was set in 1913. 12 inches of snow fell back in 2003.❄

The sun will set at 4:34 pm with dusk around 5:06 pm, which is 55 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At sunset, look for partly cloudy skies 🌃 and temperatures around 38 degrees. There will be a west-northwest breeze at 13 mph. Today will have 9 hours and 9 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 55 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 27 degrees at 6am. 12 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around March 19th. West wind 5 to 9 mph becoming south after midnight. In 2018, we had clear skies with more clouds in the early hours of the next day. It got down to 14 degrees. The record low of -15 occurred back in 1904.

Yesterday was a late night at work, doing plan edits. 🗒 But that’s fine as it meant I avoided the evening rush hour traffic going home. 🚏 Made for a real easy commute, and I got home and made some fish and onion rings, then went for my evening walk, then to bed. I was kind of tired, as it seems like I’ve had a low-grade cold for a while. Speaking of that, I really should get my flu shot this weekend. I keep putting that off, but it takes a few weeks to be effective, and I saw an ad for that on the bus this morning.

Might also look at getting a hair cut because my hair is getting shaggy and starting next week, dress up time returns to work.🕴 I also need to think about getting some new dress shoes.👞 I’ve been looking at Zappos and online ordering, because it’s a bit cheaper then Supershoes or a similar brick and mortar retailer, and you have much more selection, and don’t have to burn gasoline to get there.

Looking ahead, there are 6 weeks until Valentines Day ❤️ when the sun will be setting at 5:26 pm with dusk at 5:55 pm. On that day in 2018, we had mostly cloudy and temperatures between 45 and 28 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 34 degrees. We hit a record high of 63 back in 1946.

Photo.2013.01.05 18.17.47

April 23, 2017 Afternoon

Good afternoon! Sunny and 58 degrees in Wells. There is a southwest breeze at 5 mph. Definitely a really nice afternoon after a fairly cold and wet weekend at the Adirondacks. I hate it when the best weather is the time your going home but still it was a pretty nice somewhat extended weekend in the Adirondacks. 

This afternoon will be sunny, with a high of 64 degrees at 4pm. Two degrees above normal. West wind 5 to 7 mph. A year ago, we had mostly cloudy skies and a high of 64 degrees. The record high of 87 was set in 2007. 2.4 inches of snow fell back in 1956. Goblers and the birds are definitely enjoying the nice weather. 

The sun will set at 7:50 pm with dusk around 8:21 pm, which is one minute and 10 seconds later than yesterday. Today will have 13 hours and 50 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 43 seconds over yesterday. By Wednesday we will be up to 14 hours of daylight. Not bad. But the sun sure seems to rise early. 

Tonight will be mostly clear, with a low of 37 degrees at 4am. Three degrees below normal. West wind 3 to 6 mph. In 2016, it got down to 35 degrees under partly clear skies. The record low of 25 occurred back in 1965.

Looking ahead for all you mothers (pun intended), there are 3 weeks until Mother’s Day when the sun will be setting at 8:14 pm with dusk at 8:47 pm. On that day in 2016, we had fog, rain and temperatures between 73 and 46 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 69 degrees. We hit a record high of 93 back in 1900.

This past weekend I camped at one of the campsites down the road Fox Lair on NY 8. Same campsite that I previously camped in many times before. This campsite is nice because it’s an old homesite that is well drained and gravel with high dirt berm and a mountain on one side which is good for safe shooting. My shoulder is a bit sore from the recoil. I didn’t damage state property. Anything not fully burnt to a crisp was packed out. This campsite is protected from the wind, especially compared to the beautiful but often windy Fox Lair campsite. 

Camping at NY 8 us great off season but it’s hardly wilderness camping with semi trucks roaring up the start of the hill leading up to Eleventh Mountain. I don’t mind the noise but especially on Friday night there were trucks rumbling along all night. The campsite is above and well screened from the road but still the noise of cars and trucks in passing gear echoing in the valley. A lot of folks with their big diesel pickups were towing their campers up to camp. A loggers hauling logs to the mill in Ticonderoga from Perkins Clearing. Saw a bunch of folks scoping out turkey for spring turkey which starts two weeks from Monday. I certainly heard and saw gobblers up at camp. They’ve done pretty good in this portion of the Adirondacks.  

I cannot lie the first half of the weekend was pretty cold. Today with the sun out is much warmer but for the first half of the weekend camping it was on and off rain with clouds and temperatures around 40. Pretty much what you would expect for the Adirondacks for late April. Spring doesn’t come to the Adirondacks until about May 15th. There still was snow and ice in the campsite. Spring peepers were out though on Saturday night and especially once the wind went quiet. Indeed the stars were great once the sky cleared. Sometimes as the weather gets progressively better on your trip you get to have more warm and fuzzy memories of it. 

Really nice how much longer the days have gotten. It was nearly 8:30 and it wasn’t pitch black where I was camping in the Adirondacks. True evidence that summer is coming. While the only evidence of spring in the Adirondacks was the rapidly melting snow. Only five weeks until Memorial Day Weekend when Moose River Plains will open. That said this year again I’m thinking about going back up to Vermont for Memorial Day Weekend. We’ll see. I’m sure in the summer I’ll head up to Moose River. 

It was rainy on Friday although not a heavy rain most of the time. Once I got the tarp up and got a smokey campfire I was good to go. I was able to coax the heater up which kept my chair toasty but I am having trouble with the quick connect hose and I may have to replace that. I am probably just going to go the route of the conventional LP hose and the replaceable filter modules. I don’t like the idea of disposable filters but I rather have them then a more expensive plugged regulator. It tough keeping the LP hoses which get greasy in cold weather from condensation and the mud and dirt from camping. The heater didn’t work on the hose at all on Saturday. I could run the heater off a 1 lb disposable bottle but I don’t like refilling them because of the scary warning printed on the bottle and because honestly I’ve never had much luck refilling them anywhere near capacity. 

Saturday wasn’t quite as rainy but it still was pretty cloudy. As planned I drove down to Garnet Lake and went for a walk along the shoreline then out fishing on Mill Creek. Didn’t catch anything but it’s possible that the DEC hasn’t stocked it yet for the year. They say on their website that it’s stocked for trout and there are many access points but I didn’t have no luck. Beautiful area though and I was able to top off my batteries in the truck driving down there. 

Sitting back in the woods last night next to the campfire I was listening to Glen Campbell’s Galveston and thinking about how much fun the good ole days most have been in the Adirondacks. But then I remember back then I would have never had the lights and pickup truck camping would have been a much different experience. I certainly wouldn’t be listening to Glen Campbell through my smartphone played through the Bluetooth Speaker. 

Sunday morning to start out was very cold, there was ice on the windows of my truck cap. I could have really used the heater this morning. Ended up getting out of bed to take shit in the bucket, and then quickly heading back to the truck for a few more hours of sleep. When I woke up, lots of much desired blue skies and by breakfast time it warmed up a lot. 

The gobblers are definitely out there all horney and impregnating then the hens. I saw a hen crossing the road yesterday and I awoke to gobble, gobble. The spring peepers are put and making a lot of chirping noise this morning. It really is a great day. 

I had a slow breakfast and broke camp and after packing up discovered my day pack was left home, so without my water jug and backpack I decided to skip my planned hike at Moreau Lake State Park in favor of a short hike to Auger Falls. I stopped at Wells but decided I was running late, so I skipped fishing for the day. I’ll be back to hit up the Sacandaga River later in the spring time. 

Auger Falls was really raging. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much water running over it. But then again it’s spring, the snow is still melting and we’ve had a lot of rain over the past few days. I also hiked along the river all the way up to the flatwater. Despite all the rain the trails up there weren’t too muddy as the ground is still frozen. Maybe it worked out better hiking here then going up Moreau Lake overlook. Plus I get to avoid driving the Adirondack Northway which I hate driving with a passion especially with all the speeding Sunday traffic. 

Went to the library and got out several books to read but I never ended up opening them. It was kind of cold so I was either huddled over the fire or moving around in part to remain warm. I had a lot of podcasts to sit and listen to so between that and listening to NPR that occupied the time. I really enjoy listening to podcasts next to the campfire. And the nice thing is they are all on my phone and they play wireless to my Bluetooth speaker which is waterproof and can play 20 plus hours without needing a charge. I just plug it into one of USB ports in my truck at night to keep it charged. 

The new accessory battery has amazing run time and I don’t have to worry about over discharge as the loads are automatically shed at below 12.1 volts, not that I’ve ever gotten it that low with the new battery. I expect a long life with good runtime with this battery as it was a step up from what I had and the low voltage disconnect is preventing abuse. It’s nice not having to monitor the voltage or hear the chirp of the inverter sensing low voltage. 

It is nice getting back out camping but I can’t wait until it gets warmer. I mean I could skip black fly season but I just hate having to be so bundled up. I know if you camp in the woods away from the swamps you can avoid the worse of the black flies. I miss the Potholers and Pisceo Powely Road. Those warm summer nights at Powely Bridge can’t be far away. 

As much as horrifies my liberal friends I do love my Gadsden flag. You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to own my own Don’t Tread on Me Flag but was too embarrassed to spend the $8 to buy it. I mean I’m a life long liberal Democrat who loves guns and all things fire, but I also think government is too much in our lives. I’ve flirted with the Tea Party because I love the Man (lol!) and his aerial highway patrols as much as the next person, but I also think that Obamacare has helped a lot of people even if I think that the subsidies should have been a lot more generous for middle class families. Why can’t government help people get healthcare and an affordable college education without spying on our emails or beating up on the farmers just trying to do their jobs? Animal rights and environmental extremists have gotten much too much control in our society today. Not every acre of land should be declared wilderness. We can have public lands with great backcountry camping and trails but also have logging. I believe we can have a government that works for the people and promote the common good without treading on people’s rights. 

I have lots of great photos and videos to upload this week. Stay tuned for more! Movies are going to be a big part of the blog going forward. 

Enjoy this beautiful day! I’m on my way back to the cesspool, aka Albany. But I’m sure I’ll be back to the Adirondacks sooner than later. Big summer ahead!