Burnt-Rossman State Forest ๐Ÿ“

Burnt-Rossman Hills State Forest, spanning an impressive 10,588 acres, proudly holds the distinction of being Schoharie County’s largest state forest. This natural haven has garnered immense popularity among enthusiasts of outdoor pursuits such as hiking, camping, and various recreational activities.

Traversing a segment of this expansive landscape is the Long Path, a trail adorned with aqua blazes, stretching over 350 miles. Within this forest, the Eminence Lean To stands as a notable point of interest along the Long Path, positioned roughly 0.5 miles to the east of Old Cemetery Road. A crossing of Old Cemetery Road can be spotted just to the south of an ancient burial ground.

Among the captivating features of the forest are the campsites discreetly nestled along Betty Brook Road, as well as the inviting spots found at Duck Pond, situated along Burnt Hill Road.

For those with a penchant for angling and boating, Looking Glass Pond, located along Rossman Hill Road, offers an inviting prospect. This charming pond not only facilitates fishing and boating but also boasts well-maintained fishing platforms courtesy of the Fulton Fish and Game Club.

๐Ÿ—บ๏ธ Maps ๐Ÿ–ผ๏ธ Photos ๐Ÿ“ฝ๏ธ Videos

What would you do if… ๐ŸŽถ

If you were listening to Joe Crocker it would be sing out of tune, and if it was David Crosby it would be find her dead on the floor. Maybe the Wonder Years weren’t as wonderful as people remember them to being. But let’s bang a gong and get it on. After all it’s the morning walk and I need to leave at a reasonable hour as I’m riding Blackie into work today and need to stop on the way mostly to get dental floss but also bananas and maybe some MSG.

Good morning! What day is it? Farmers Market Day, of course. I want zucchinis so badly. Mostly cloudy and 63 degrees in Delmar, NY. โ˜ There is a west-northwest breeze at 11 mph. ๐Ÿƒ. The dew point is 60 degrees. The skies will clear around 9 am.

Not sure if I actually need to do my morning walk ๐Ÿšถ if I’m taking Blackie ๐Ÿšต to work but I’m up and going and kind of like the quiet time known as walking to get my day started. Since getting my bike I don’t get in nearly as many steps as I used to do. I think I’ll do Cream of Wheat ๐ŸŒพ and chia seeds, with fresh squeezed lemon ๐Ÿ‹ with stevia for sweetness, topped with plain non fat Greek yogurt and frozen wild Maine blueberries. ๐Ÿซ Just describing that seems so mouth ๐Ÿ‘„ watering because it is. Good for a sugar high and energy โšก for cycling to work.

Today will be mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny โ˜๐Ÿ‘‰ โ˜€ , with a high of 83 degrees at 5pm. Typical for today. Maximum dew point of 63 at 11am. Northwest wind 9 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies. It was somewhat humid. The ahigh last year was 86 degrees. The record high of 96 was set in 2001.

Going to be a nice day to ride into work. ๐Ÿšฒ I figure Friday too after my dentist appointment. ๐ŸฆทI thought about heading out of town this weekend but I really need a week off from life on the road, packing and unpacking. I’m thinking the following week of taking Thursday and Friday off for a long weekend at House Pond Campsite floating on the tube โญ• and riding Piseco-Powley Road on Blackie if it’s nice.

Solar noon ๐ŸŒž is at 1:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 63.3ยฐ from the due south horizon (-7.5ยฐ vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour ๐Ÿ… starts at 7:28 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (286ยฐ). ๐Ÿ“ธ The sunset is in the west-northwest (293ยฐ) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:07 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 8 seconds with dusk around 8:37 pm, which is one minute and 20 seconds earlier than yesterday. ๐ŸŒ‡ The best time to look at the stars is after 9:17 pm. At sunset, look for mostly clear skies ๐ŸŒ„ and temperatures around 74 degrees. The dew point will be 59 degrees. There will be a west breeze at 8 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 13 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 24 seconds over yesterday.

Yesterday all day my butt was dragging ๐Ÿ˜ด especially come the afternoon. I’m not sure why I got a goodnight sleep, had a protein and fiber rich breakfast of eggs and spinach, and nothing was extraordinary on Tuesday. I went to the planning board meeting yesterday on yet another development in the Albany Pine Bush. This time they’re proposing yet another warehouse in Colonie in prime Pine Bush in a wildlife corridor. ๐Ÿ‘ทTown is mostly concerned with the coloring of the fencing and the stucco which they want to look like every other warehouse. Developer and the government Pine Bush commission is good as they’re building on an existing site. We’re not at Save the Pine Bush as it’s more Pine Bush being developed.

Tonight will be mostly clear ๐ŸŒƒ, with a low of 58 degrees at 5am. Four degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around August 30th. Maximum dew point of 60 at 6pm. West wind 5 to 8 mph becoming calm in the evening. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies in the evening, which became partly cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It was somewhat humid. It got down to 63 degrees. The record low of 48 occurred back in 1955.

A picture perfect weekend on tap. ๐Ÿ˜Ž Saturday, a chance of showers after 2pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 83. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Maximum dew point of 64 at 4pm. Sunday, mostly sunny, with a high near 82. Maximum dew point of 67 at 1pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 83 degrees.

It’s so tempting to head out of town ๐ŸŒฒ as summer is rapidly coming to a conclusion but I know the responsible thing is to stay closer to town and I’m tired of packing and unpacking all of the time, taking down and setting up camp โ›บ. I really should visit John at least one last time, his wife needs help with him and time is ticking for him. โณ It would be fun to take Blackie ๐Ÿšต out on the Erie Canal Trail and maybe the Albany Pine Bush Preserve in the evening. And just rest and restore myself. Eat some fried zucchini with lots of onions. ๐Ÿ†๐Ÿง… Maybe but not likely hammock camp overnight on Cole Hill.

As previously noted, there are 3 weeks until Average High Falls To 79 ๏ธDegrees โ›ฑ๏ธ๏ธ๏ธ when the sun will be setting at 7:35 pm with dusk at 8:03 pm. On that day in 2022, we had rain and temperatures between 90 and 66 degrees. We hit a record high of 98 back in 1953.

Caywood Point

Thematic Map: Coldest Day of the Year in NY State
Map: Debar Pond

More clouds and rain to start out the day ๐ŸŒง๏ธ

A cup of black coffee and a few red seedless grapes and I’m off for my morning walk. Can’t complain I got a good night’s sleep with the lights out before nine. Listening to Paul Simon 1972 album and moving forward.

Good morning! Ease off that clutch pull the lever back and we’re in the second, that is Tuesday. Cloudy and damp, muggy around 70 degrees in Delmar, NY. โ›… There is a south breeze at 9 mph. ๐Ÿƒ. The dew point is 68 degrees. The muggy weather ends tomorrow around 3 am. ๐Ÿ˜“

Last night that salmon ๐ŸŸ, spinach, onions were good. Adding that lemon juice and pepper makes such a difference. I was tired ๐Ÿ˜ด but moved through Monday. ChatGPT is really good at work at summarizing articles when you are fried and don’t want to think ๐Ÿค”. It was bed ๐Ÿ› after my bicycle ๐Ÿšฒ ride. A mountain bike on the asphalt of Delmar is kind of lame but get me some gravel or a logging haul road it’s pretty awesome. The banana oatmeal pancakes ๐Ÿฅž of yesterday was good, I’m thinking spinach scrambled eggs ๐Ÿณ for that extra punch today. I was good yesterday and I haven’t opened all they Greek yogurt that I bought on Sunday.

Today will have a slight chance of showers, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. Partly sunny ๐ŸŒฆ, with a high of 78 degrees at 3pm. Five degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around September 5th. Maximum dew point of 70 at 11am. South wind 6 to 8 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies. It was sticky. The high last year was 95 degrees. The record high of 95 was set in 1983.

I was hoping to ride to work today ๐Ÿšฒ but I’m afraid that it will rain again this evening. I’m thinking Wednesday will be better. Yesterday I walked 4.5 miles and rode 7.5 miles mostly down to the library to return my remaining library books as truth told I doubt I’ll get a chance to read them. ๐Ÿ“– Started to rain around 7:40 pm and I headed home but that was to be expected. Rode up to Font Grove which was about as far as I expected to get. Did the stairs up and down at work again.

Solar noon ๐ŸŒž is at 1:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 63.6ยฐ from the due south horizon (-7.3ยฐ vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour ๐Ÿ… starts at 7:29 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (287ยฐ). ๐Ÿ“ธ The sunset is in the west-northwest (293ยฐ) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:09 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 9 seconds with dusk around 8:38 pm, which is one minute and 19 seconds earlier than yesterday. ๐ŸŒ‡ The best time to look at the stars is after 9:18 pm. At sunset, look for rain ๐ŸŒง and thunderstorms ๐ŸŒฉ and temperatures around 69 degrees. The dew point will be 63 degrees. There will be a west breeze at 10 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 15 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 22 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will have a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms before midnight. Mostly cloudy ๐ŸŒฅ, with a low of 61 degrees at 5am. One degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around August 13th. Maximum dew point of 65 at 6pm. West wind 8 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%. In 2022, we had partly cloudy skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It was very sticky. It got down to 67 degrees. The record low of 46 occurred back in 1989.

Hot and humid this weekend with a chance of showers especially Saturday night.๐ŸŒฆ๏ธSaturday, mostly sunny, with a high near 83. Maximum dew point of 65 at 5pm. Sunday, a chance of showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 83. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Maximum dew point of 69 at 11am. Typical average high for the weekend is 83 degrees.

I am still undecided about the weekend. โ›ˆ I’m watching a potential clipper front that could make Saturday evening wet and I just got back from vacation. I’d like to visit John Wolcott potentially and maybe try riding in the Albany Pine Bush and the Erie Canal Trail. ๐ŸŒฒThat said summer is rapidly fading and I can’t take any days off during the week of August 20th as that’s when the other director is off. โ›บ I could do the Potholers ๐ŸŠโ€โ™‚๏ธ after my dentist appointment on Friday ๐Ÿฆท but gas prices are up โ›ฝ and that’s a long trip for two nights.

There are 2 months until Average High is 65 ๐Ÿ‚ when the sun will be setting at 6:26 pm with dusk at 6:53 pm. What can I say, autumn is coming. ๐Ÿ Might want to check if the headlights are still working on your car as it will mean more driving after dark kind of like I did more than I wanted on vacation due to maximizing the days. ๐Ÿ–๏ธ Those were the days. Mine do. But I still don’t love driving after dark with the deer ๐ŸฆŒ, other car headlights and potholes.

Laying Back in Truck Cap

Map: Lester Flow
Map: Long Pond State Forest
Map: Klipnocky Woods - Allegany County State Forest - Primative Camping Opporunties

It’s Monday – Let’s go chase that ducking money ๐Ÿ’ต

I mean Dan Halloran wasn’t wrong. Sometimes you got to swim in the mud and muck in the Cesspool of New York State to pay for the days riding Blackie through the cow shit and horse manure of Schuyler County. Those ten days went by so quickly and I’m back in Albany with the rain falling down doing my morning. The first day back is always the hardest, especially on such a dreary day but those eighteen flights of stairs must be climbed even with the door to door service of the local.

Good morning! Monday’s come back around again. Time for the morning walk and that old John Prine record. And maybe Paul Simon. ๐ŸŽถ Rain I know I’m shocked and 65 degrees for the morning walk in Delmar, NY. โ˜ There is a south-southeast breeze at 5 mph. ๐Ÿƒ. The dew point is 60 degrees. The skies will clear tomorrow around 9 am.

Out walking this morning ๐Ÿšถ in the rain like so many days lately back in the Albany. The weather was so unbelievably nice out in the Finger Lakes. ๐Ÿ“ป But it also was nice camping ๐Ÿ• somewhere without cell service ๐Ÿ”• and no radio – avoiding the shit known as the news, all bad and useless crap – and the even worse social media. I heard that Florida Man got indicted for even more felonies over the past week and might soon be subject to a protective order. Good for him and I do think his cases will ultimately for first amendment law โš– and restorative justice. I mean he will likely be the first felon ever to be a major presidential party candidate. ๐Ÿ‘ฉ๐Ÿป‍โš–๏ธMaybe he’s bad for our country but he’s a good force for it’s laws. Crises are often best the time for reform. I’m excited about some of the second amendment cases in front of the Supreme Court in the coming year. ๐Ÿ”ซ Whatever you think it Florida man, be has been a voice for change in the justice system – many times unintentionally.

Not to be overally negative after vacation, but I know I wouldn’t return to Albany if I didn’t like playing in the shit of the Cesspool, ๐Ÿ’ฉ and making that big boy money ๐Ÿ’ต from my corner office that overlooks the Capitol, Empire State Plaza and also the Hudson River and Dunn landfill that is when the caustic smoke from the Canada wildfires doesn’t drown out the skyline. I mean I wouldn’t listen to Paul Simon’s Duncan if I didn’t like that song. Like so many things in this world. It’s so hard to get up and going after 10 days of pure delight out in the Finger Lakes. I wish I could live every day out in the woods, in the country. ๐Ÿšœ But alas, I’m back in the city, back taking the local bus downtown to work. I know it’s going to be a great week, ๐Ÿ˜€ I have good healthy food to eat,

Today will have showers and thunderstorms before 10am, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 10am and noon, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. Some of the storms could produce gusty winds and heavy rain. ๐ŸŒง High of 75 degrees at 4pm. Six degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around September 8th. Maximum dew point of 71 at 3pm. ๐Ÿ–๏ธ Southeast wind 8 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New not rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible. A year ago, we had cloudy skies. It became very sticky as the day progressed. The high last year was 91 degrees. The record high of 102 was set in 1918.

Pots of red kidney beans, brown rice with red lentils and split peas are cooking down this morning on the stove. ๐Ÿง‘‍๐Ÿณ Good carbs cooking down to be the basis of many meals this week. I double checked to make sure they were properly refrigerated or frozen and the stove off before leaving for work on the local bus ๐Ÿš. I was hoping to ride to work today ๐Ÿšฒ but the weather is not cooperating and I wasn’t running early enough to catch the express after all that cooking and breakfast to say nothing about the morning walk. Oatmeal pancakes ๐Ÿฅž for breakfast with some chia seeds mixed in and topped with frozen peaches, strawberries, mango and whatever else was in the blend with a little sugar free maple syrup.

I ended up spending a shocking ๐Ÿคฏ $120 in food this week at Hannaford, I fully admit I should have gone to Wally World last night but I was tired and my pantry was bare. I did end up rugged getting a lot of things, many things like the 5 lb bag of brown rice should last a few weeks. They didn’t have store brand only 5 lb of Carolina brown rice but the price was reasonable for a bag that size. They also had non-fat plain Greek yogurt actually in stock at Hannaford so I ended up buying 2 large containers as it can be hard to get locally. Unopened Greek yogurt has a shelf life of about two months refrigerated and two years frozen, which I was reading how good it freezes. Not that it would ever last that long because that’s how I get my dairy fix ๐Ÿฎ these days, though I try to eat in moderation st least when I’m not on vacation. ๐Ÿ‹ I also bought big bags of red and Vidalia onions ๐Ÿง…and lemons because I enjoyed such things a lot on vacation. Both can be used in so many meals, plus I’m hooked on fresh squeezed stevia lemonade especially on a hot summer evenings. There is worse things to be hooked on.

I do wish I had stopped at that farm stand I passed in Chenango County to get zucchini and more sweet corn ๐ŸŒฝ ๐Ÿ† but summer isn’t over and I should be able to get both at the farmers market at the Plaza this week. I forgot how wonderful zucchini I when I got some and chopped it up and fried it. I was tired ๐Ÿ˜ด and just kind of focused on getting home yesterday after vacation then stopping at farm stands. ๐Ÿคท I also would like to get more peaches ๐Ÿ‘ from the farm market, as they are so much better then the store-bought ones that are rock-hard and less tasty. Yesterday, I got plums ๐Ÿซ at the grocery store and they are pretty good. They are supposed to make your skin really shinny. Good after that sun tan I got last week. Trying to try new fruits when in season to learn new tastes, and maximize the health benefits of variety. Changes it up from apples and bananas ๐ŸŒ ๐Ÿ every week, though I still keep both of them in my office and like to have those for snacking.

Solar noon ๐ŸŒž is at 1:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 63.9° from the due south horizon (-7° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.9 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour ๐Ÿ… starts at 7:30 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (287°). ๐Ÿ“ธ The sunset is in the west-northwest (294°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:10 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 9 seconds with dusk around 8:40 pm, which is one minute and 18 seconds earlier than yesterday. ๐ŸŒ‡ The best time to look at the stars is after 9:20 pm. At sunset, look for rain ๐ŸŒง and thunderstorms ๐ŸŒฉ and temperatures around 73 degrees. The dew point will be 70 degrees. There will be a south-southeast breeze at 10 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 18 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 22 seconds over yesterday.

More rain quite possibly tonight. They’re calling for a chance of showers and thunderstorms to start out the evening, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 10pm. Some of the storms could produce gusty winds and heavy rain. ๐ŸŒฉ Cloudy, with a low around 68. South wind 9 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. ๐Ÿ’ฆ I have to say I’m glad I’m not camping this week at least not in the Albany-area. ๐Ÿ˜ The Finger Lakes have been much drier then locally. I guess there isn’t much of a fire danger locally at this point. ๐Ÿš’ But I’m still hopeful to get out for my evening walk ๐Ÿšถ‍โ™€๏ธ after my dinner of salmon, rice, spinach, onions and any other thing that wets my appetite.  ๐ŸŸ ๐Ÿ˜‹

That said, we do have more good weather to look forward to come this weekend. ๐Ÿ˜Ž Saturday, a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 83. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Maximum dew point of 66 at 1pm. Sunday, ๐Ÿ˜‚a chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 80. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Maximum dew point of 68 at 11am. Typical average high for the weekend is 83 degrees. Just kind of a chance of thunderstorms, but that’s to be expected on a summer weekend. The plans for the weekend are to be decided, but it seems so nice. ๐Ÿฆท I have my dental cleaning on Friday, so I have to take off the first part of the morning for that but it could also be jumping off start to the weekend. Schoharie? Potholers? Adirondacks? So many options, though it seems like lately I’m always on the road burning up increasingly expensive gasoline. โ›ฝ If the forecast slides downhill, I’m thinking of doing some mountain biking in the Albany Pine Bush, and getting some watermelon at Market 32 ๐Ÿ‰ which apparently is on sale this week. I do dig the sweetness of watermelon like that one I chomped on summer vacation.

Looking ahead, there are 2 weeks until World Mosquito Day ๐Ÿž when the sun will be setting at 7:50 pm with dusk at 8:18 pm. On that day in 2022, we had hot weather partly sunny skies and temperatures between 88 and 70 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 82 degrees. We hit a record high of 98 back in 1916.

Forked Lake

Map: Empire State Topography
Map: Empire State Color Relief

And in the end โ›บ ๐Ÿ‘‰ ๐Ÿก

Summer vacation 2023 comes to a close at 6:30 pm, Sunday August 6th – ten days after leaving on Friday July 28th at 9 AM.

It was a great trip, probably my favorite summer vacation of all times. While I didn’t travel as far as some years, my days were filled with smaller adventures from 6 AM to 11 PM.

Ultimately if you subtract out ordinary and existing costs, my vacation cost only about $300, about $200 was fuel the other hundred was ice cream, half case of beer, propane and miscellaneous supplies like paper towels. Of course I spent like $125 between groceries and farm stands but over a ten day period that would have likely gotten spent even if I stayed home.

I have to say this has been the best vacation in my life โ›บ ๐Ÿšต ๐Ÿฆ ๐ŸŠ ๐Ÿ›ถ

The weather has been absolutely fantastic, my days packed with adventures and cold ice cream and swimming holes. I’ve ridden like 250 miles through farm and forest land. Many nights with campfires, watermelon cold beer and fresh squeezed lemonade. Dinners with Vadellia onions and peppers, lemon pepper chicken and salmon, beer boiled clams with sweet corn, zucchini and tons of fresh fruit with Greek yogurt. Many amazing sunrises and sunsets. Just not nearly enough hours in the day.

Good morning! Happy Sunday. I do know what this means, after 10 days all good things must come to an end. ๐Ÿ˜” Don’t look so sad, life goes on this world keeps turning. Summer 2024 is but a few winks ๐Ÿ˜‰ of the eye away, as is a long weekend trip up to the Potholers maybe next weekend or in two weeks. Then maybe an extended Labor Day Weekend at Spectulator Tree Farm to close out the summer. Except for the hammock, flags, bucket shitter and the kayak on the roof of the truck my home for nine short nights has been taken down. ๐Ÿ›ถ

Stunningly beautiful morning like so many this past week. Mostly sunny and 68 degrees at the Finger Lakes National Forest. โ˜€ There is a southeast breeze at 6 mph. ๐Ÿƒ. The dew point is 57 degrees. I heard the seven o’clock chime ๐ŸŽ on my phone and it was followed by the eight, nine and ten o’clock chimes on my phone about five minutes later as I took down camp, carefully packing things for the return trip to Albany.

This morning was a delightful breakfast ๐Ÿฅฃ of cream of wheat, freshly squeezed lemon, a bit of stevia to make it sweet plus chia seeds ๐ŸŒฑ for fiber and the remaining Greek yogurt I had so it wouldn’t go bad without ice. I also had the last hard boiled egg ๐Ÿฅš a little while after for additional protein and as I wasn’t sure if it would survive to mid day without any more ice in the cooler. Plus two cups of cold black coffee โ˜• not that I really needed it as I made sure to get my eight hours of sleep yesterday for the long drive home.

Today will be sunny ๐ŸŒž, with a high of 79 degrees at 4pm. Four degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around September 1st. Maximum dew point of 62 at 5pm. East wind around 7 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning, which became light rain by afternoon. It was very sticky. The high last year was 93 degrees. The record high of 98 was set in 1900.

I told myself that I should leave Ithaca by 4 pm to ensure my arrival home by 7 pm, ๐Ÿก well before dark and so I have time to unpack and run to the laundromat and grocery store before bed ๐Ÿ› at 9 pm. I’d like to get back into the habit of rising at 6 am for the morning walk ๐Ÿšถ and to bed nightly at nine, as I find that’s the most natural sleep pattern for me. Of course if I ride my bike ๐Ÿšฒ to work I can get a later start as I won’t need to do a morning walk before catching the express downtown. ๐Ÿš Do plan to resume doing the stairs to the 18th floor twice a day at work ๐Ÿข at least when I’m working downtown for that extra push of intensive cardio each day. Truth be told, I really should plan on leaving Ithaca at 3 pm knowing I’ll inevitably be running late, ๐Ÿƒ stopping at farm stands ๐ŸŒฝ and pee breaks ๐Ÿšป, parks and scenic vistas. ๐Ÿ“ธ

Solar noon ๐ŸŒž is at 1:14 pm with sun having an altitude of 64.2ยฐ from the due south horizon (-6.5ยฐ vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.9 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour ๐Ÿ… starts at 7:43 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (287ยฐ). ๐Ÿ“ธ The sunset is in the west-northwest (294ยฐ) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:23 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 9 seconds with dusk around 8:52 pm, which is one minute and 16 seconds earlier than yesterday. ๐ŸŒ‡ The best time to look at the stars is after 9:33 pm. At sunset, look for partly cloudy skies ๐ŸŒƒ and temperatures around 73 degrees. The dew point will be 63 degrees. There will be a east-southeast breeze at 6 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 20 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 20 seconds over yesterday.

Thinking ๐Ÿ’ญ today I’ll go to Buttermilk Falls State Park ๐Ÿž and hike the gorge and swim. ๐ŸŠโ€โ™‚๏ธ I don’t love the idea of parking ๐Ÿ…ฟ in that tight little parking lot so I might find a city park to park at or on street, and ride some of the Ithaca bike ๐Ÿšฒ trails to get there, bypassing delays at the toll booth to boot not that it matters as I have an Empire Passport ๐Ÿ›‚.

Tonight will have a chance of showers and thunderstorms before 1am, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 1am and 5am, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 5am. Increasing clouds ๐ŸŒง, with a low of 66 degrees at 6am. Four degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 66 at 5am. South wind 6 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies in the evening, which became cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It was very sticky. It got down to 76 degrees. The record low of 46 occurred back in 1994.

Yesterday I mountain biked ๐Ÿšต riding both gravel and trails at Sugar Hill State Forest. Posted many pictures to Facebook some on the blog. About a fifteen mile loop. Swam at Watkins Glen pool ๐ŸŠโ€โ™‚๏ธ but didn’t ultimately go floating on my tube โญ• on Seneca Lake as it was too cool and the lake choppy ๐ŸŒŠ by afternoon. Rode another ten miles down Rock Cabin Road, ๐Ÿšฒ along old Airport Road at Catharine Valley WMA, then down to Montour Falls. Rode over to Glen Dairy Bar ๐Ÿง via the Catharine Valley Trail and the Watkins Glen High School ๐Ÿšธ and had a great hot apple pie ๐Ÿฅง sundae with vanilla soft ice cream. Rode over to the Watkins Glen Pier and watched the sun set โ›ต and then through Clute Park ๐Ÿž back to my truck and back to camp by nine. Dinner was sweet corn ๐ŸŒฝ, peppers and peaches ๐Ÿ‘ that I got at the Burdett Exchange ๐Ÿ’ฑ along with a hard boiled egg ๐Ÿฅš. Night rode over to Foster Pond, sat and looked at the stars โœจ for a while but didn’t see any shooting stars but I didn’t stay that long as it was chilly and I wanted to get back to camp โ›บ as it was after 10:30 PM for a small campfire to warm up ๐Ÿ”ฅ before lights out.

Looking ahead, there are 5 weeks until 6:30 Sunrise ๐ŸŒ‡ when the sun will be setting at 7:27 pm with dusk at 7:54 pm. On that day in 2022, we had mostly sunny, patches of fog and temperatures between 83 and 56 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 77 degrees. We hit a record high of 96 back in 1931.

Over the Pine Creek

Map: Coulumbe Creek Trail
Map: Pine Orchard Trail

Been playing around a bit with PANDAS and ArcGIS Feature Servers for Tax Data

Been playing around a bit with PANDAS and ArcGIS Feature Servers for Tax Data … ๐Ÿ“œ

For example, to find the most valuable parcels in Albany County.

from arcgis.features import FeatureLayer
lyr_url = 'https://gisservices.its.ny.gov/arcgis/rest/services/NYS_Tax_Parcel_Centroid_Points/MapServer/0'
layer = FeatureLayer(lyr_url)
query_result1 = layer.query(where="COUNTY_NAME='Albany' AND FULL_MARKET_VAL > 100000000",
                                    out_fields='PARCEL_ADDR,CITYTOWN_NAME,FULL_MARKET_VAL,OWNER_TYPE', out_sr='4326')

df=query_result1.sdf.sort_values(by='FULL_MARKET_VAL', ascending=False)
df['Full Market Value'] = df['FULL_MARKET_VAL'].map('${:,.0f}'.format)

df
  OBJECTID PARCEL_ADDR CITYTOWN_NAME FULL_MARKET_VAL OWNER_TYPE SHAPE Full Market Value
11 26652 64 Eagle St Albany 1204254925 2 {“x”: -73.75980312511581, “y”: 42.650469918250… $1,204,254,925
3 9150 1200 Washington Ave Albany 886298715 2 {“x”: -73.81092293494828, “y”: 42.679257168282… $886,298,715
4 10208 1400 Washington Ave Albany 642398287 2 {“x”: -73.82369286130952, “y”: 42.685845700657… $642,398,287
0 885 251 Fuller Rd Albany 440042827 2 {“x”: -73.83559002316825, “y”: 42.690208093507… $440,042,827
5 18164 632 New Scotland Ave Albany 377568201 8 {“x”: -73.80381341626146, “y”: 42.655758957669… $377,568,201
1 906 141 Fuller Rd Albany 321199143 2 {“x”: -73.83323986150171, “y”: 42.693189748928… $321,199,143
19 108087 See Card 1067 Watervliet 280898876 1 {“x”: -73.70670724174552, “y”: 42.719628647232… $280,898,876
15 65380 737 Alb Shaker Rd Colonie 263916100 3 {“x”: -73.80365248218001, “y”: 42.747956678125… $263,916,100
9 21923 304 Madison Ave Albany 234265418 2 {“x”: -73.76227373289564, “y”: 42.648000674457… $234,265,418
2 907 201 Fuller Rd Albany 203426124 2 {“x”: -73.83362605353057, “y”: 42.692609131686… $203,426,124
16 69999 515 Loudon Rd Colonie 166065600 8 {“x”: -73.74958475282632, “y”: 42.719321807666… $166,065,600
7 20592 47 New Scotland Ave Albany 162276338 8 {“x”: -73.77597163421673, “y”: 42.653565689693… $162,276,338
6 20574 132 S Lake Ave Albany 146296360 2 {“x”: -73.77970918544908, “y”: 42.654390366929… $146,296,360
8 20597 113 Holland Ave Albany 143498501 2 {“x”: -73.77306688593143, “y”: 42.650762742870… $143,498,501
17 78203 Mannsville Colonie 142570400 1 {“x”: -73.71245452369443, “y”: 42.718124477080… $142,570,400
18 95509 1 Crossgates Mall Rd Guilderland 130554700 8 {“x”: -73.84702700595471, “y”: 42.687699053797… $130,554,700
10 24521 86 S Swan St Albany 128436403 2 {“x”: -73.75980563770365, “y”: 42.653931892804… $128,436,403
13 46883 1916 US 9W Coeymans 110000000 8 {“x”: -73.83388475575597, “y”: 42.488730743021… $110,000,000
12 35152 380 River Rd Bethlehem 105263158 8 {“x”: -73.76445503554325, “y”: 42.595925419330… $105,263,158
14 65097 15 Wolf Rd Colonie 101967213 8 {“x”: -73.81423716588279, “y”: 42.709939498581… $101,967,213
Map: Normans Kill Ravines Preserve
Thematic Map: 2022 Lands Planted with Corn in NYS