Parts of Moose Club Way where pretty slick. Fun to go through, but also a little scary, because this a pretty remote part of the Adirondacks. There where a couple of moderately steep hills on the truck trail, that going up like this was a bit rough. You can understand from this picture, why the some of the Adirondack Truck Trails are still closed.
Saturday May 21, 2011 — Vanderwhacker Mountain Wild Forest
There is too much Garlic Mustard and Japanese Knotweed along the Albany County Rail Trail.
This week, the question of mutation has been front and center in coverage of the coronavirus — from controversial claims about changes that make the virus more contagious to reassurances that any mutations are not yet consequential.
Here are some of the questions being raised — and what the specialists can (and can't yet) say to answer them.
Is the coronavirus mutating?
Researchers say the coronavirus is making small changes to itself as they would expect it to — at a relatively predictable and steady rate of around one to two changes per month.
"Viruses mutate naturally as part of their life cycle," says Ewan Harrison, scientific project manager for the COVID-19 Genomics UK Consortium. The coronavirus is no different.
When a virus infects a person, it enters their cells and makes copies of itself, which then circulate through the body or are transmitted — respiratory droplets is one method — to other humans.
Inevitably, viruses "make mistakes in their genomes" as they copy themselves, Harrison says. Those changes can accumulate and carry over to future copies of the virus. Mutations are akin to typos in text — most typos are nonevents, but some can change the meaning of a word or sentence. Likewise, many mutations will be dead ends with no effect on people who are infected. But some of these mutations in a virus may change how quickly it infects people and replicates, or what kind of damage it does to cells.
THE 600 acres of Croton Point once formed one of the largest tidal marshes on the Hudson River. After 50 years as the site of an active county dump, however, the area is judged by environmentalists to be a health hazard. A Federal judge last month called the landfill, which was closed in 1986, an environmental time bomb.
The Great Hudson River Revival, a yearly fund-raising event for the environmental sloop Clearwater and the region's largest folk-music festival, has abandoned its usual riverfront location after a decade of holding the event at Croton Point Park. When this year's celebration of the river opens next weekend, it will be inland, at the Westchester Community College campus in Valhalla.
The festival was moved reluctantly, according to the executive director of the Clearwater organization. ''The facts point to a serious problem at Croton Point and a recognition of that problem by the state and Westchester County,'' John C. Mylod said. He explained that the move seemed to be the ''prudent thing to do'' after the landfill site was upgraded to a Class II hazardous-waste category last year by the State Department of Environmental Conservation.
This article is from 1986 but reminds how troubled Croton Point was when this was still an active landfill right on the river.
Good morning! Yeah, it’s Friday! Seems like just another day working from home on weekdays, especially when I’m staying in town this weekend. 🏡But maybe it will be nice this next weekend. Four weeks to 8:30 PM Sunset ️⛱️. Despite the cold and snow tomorrow, summer is coming. It’s May after all and mid May by next week.
All and all a nice morning today. Partly sunny and 49 degrees in Delmar, NY. ☀ There is a west-southwest breeze at 10 mph. 🍃.
Before work today I went for a very pleasant nearly two hour walk 🚶 around the rail trail starting at 7 AM. So quiet with everything closed down on buses only running their Saturday schedules. 🚍 Very little traffic early on although there were some joggers and a county DOT worker 👷 mowing the trail. Saw a Blue Jay, 🐦 got a nice picture. Home by nine for work.
Today will have a chance of rain, mainly after 3pm. Increasing clouds 🌞, with a high of 54 degrees at 2pm. 13 degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around April 6th. West wind around 11 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies. The high last year was 67 degrees. The record high of 91 was set in 1936. There was a dusting of snow in 1977.❄
Going to be a bit cool today ☀ but I want to work outside as much as possible so I can enjoy the sunshine. I’ve started to get a good tan from last weekend and the past few days working outside but I have to be careful about not getting sun burnt with the doxycycline.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:53 pm with sun having an altitude of 64.6° from the due south horizon (-6.2° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.8 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:24 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (288°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (295°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:04 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 11 seconds with dusk around 8:35 pm, which is one minute and 5 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:15 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and temperatures around 43 degrees. There will be a northwest breeze at 8 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 23 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 17 seconds over yesterday.
This afternoon I want to work at Five Rivers Environmental Education Center 🐸 because it will be nice enjoy the day and get some more walking in before the rain begins. ☔ I’m feeling really good now that the doxycycline has kicked in 💊 and won the battle so far against the Lyme.
Tonight will rain likely before 10pm, then rain and snow likely between 10pm and 11pm, then snow likely after 11pm. Cloudy 🌧, with a low of 33 degrees at 4am. 12 degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around April 5th. Northwest wind 7 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New snow accumulation of less than one inch possible. In 2019, we had partly cloudy skies. It got down to 40 degrees. The record low of 27 occurred back in 1956.
Tomorrow will have a chance of snow showers before 9am, then a chance of rain and snow showers between 9am and noon, then a chance of rain showers after noon. Mostly cloudy 🌦, with a high of 43 degrees at 1pm. 24 degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 14th. Breezy, with a northwest wind 15 to 24 mph, with gusts as high as 40 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies. The high last year was 66 degrees. The record high of 93 was set in 1979. 1.6 inches of snow fell back in 1977.❄
Looking ahead to Sunday, partly sunny, with a high near 53. West wind 14 to 16 mph. That’s going to be a bitterly cold Mother’s Day. 👩❤ Maybe it’s good there is no tulip 🌷 festival this year. Typical average high for the weekend is 67 degrees.
Looking ahead, there are 4 weeks until 8:30 PM Sunset ️⛱️ when the sun will be setting at 8:29 pm with dusk at 9:04 pm. On that day in 2019, we had rain and temperatures between 83 and 55 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 75 degrees. We hit a record high of 97 back in 1925.
