The Elm Avenue Park and Ride offers a convenient way to get downtown without the hassles of urban traffic. Located next to the Elm Avenue Park at the end of the Delmar Bypass (NY 32), it is serviced by several buses that will quickly transport you downtown.
There is a new, expanded schedule for the Elm Avenue Park and Ride. 5 morning buses depart there, 5 buses in the afternoon plus a mid-day bus schedule. Very convenient. http://www.cdta.org/uploads/Route719.pdf
Good evening! Partly clear in Delmar. 🌉 Sixty two degrees. There is a west-northwest breeze at 6 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 47 degrees. All things considered, a pretty pleasant evening.
I told myself that I should work outside today ☀ with the great weather but I was super busy with work so I didn’t go outside except for my morning stroll around the Swift Preserve. And then in the evening, a walk around the Albany Pine Bush. 🌲🌲
Also attended the Save the Pine Bush protest at Guilderland Town Hall 🏛️ and held up signs wearing masks. 😷 Town leaders were so afraid 😨 of the public and a bunch of senior citizens 👵🏻 and television reporters 📺 they had to enter the back door 🚪 of Town Hall by police escort. 👮🏼 Not sure why the town planning board is so afraid of a bunch of elderly 👵🏻 seniors with paper signs.
The fight for the Pine Bush seems endless and thankless against the big developers 🏗️ but it’s worth it because if you don’t fight in the trenches, who will. Even though the battle is ongoing its worthwhile. While eventually when I own my off-grid property 🏚️I’ll probably be non political when I’m in Albany it’s fun to fight the developers the best I can and keep pour wild land wild. 🐦 We got good media coverage tonight. 🎥
The walk around the Pine Bush 🦋 was really nice but it got dark quickly with some clouds pushing in after sunset 🌇. Grass was super high 🌾and I didn’t want to catch Lyme disease🕷️ again so as soon as I got home I took a shower 🚿 because I was wearing shorts while I was walking in in the Pine Bush. 😳
Tonight will have a chance of showers, mainly after 2am. Mostly cloudy 🌧, with a low of 54 degrees at 2am. Four degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around September 9th. Maximum dew point of 50 at 6am. Northwest wind around 6 mph becoming light and variable after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. In 2019, we had partly cloudy skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 53 degrees. The record low of 41 occurred back in 1969.
Tonight will have a First Quarter 🌓 Moon with 64% illuminated. At 9 PM, the moon was in the south-southwest (197°) at an altitude of 23° from the horizon, some 231,153 miles away from where you are looking up from the earth. 🚀 At the state speed limit of 55 mph, you’ll make it there by February 18th. Buckle up for safety! 💺 The darkest hour is at 12:58 am, followed by dawn at 5:46 am, and sun starting to rise at 6:15 am in the east-northeast (75°) and last for 2 minutes and 59 seconds. Sunrise is one minute and 4 seconds later than yesterday. 🌄 The golden hour ends at 6:53 am with sun in the east (82°).Tonight will have 10 hours and 36 minutes of darkness, an increase of 2 minutes and 43 seconds over last night.
Tomorrow will have a chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8am, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 8am and 2pm, then showers and thunderstorms likely after 2pm. Some of the storms could be severe. Mostly cloudy 🌩, with a high of 74 degrees at 3pm. Five degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around September 11th. Maximum dew point of 65 at 2pm. Southeast wind 5 to 7 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible. A year ago, we had sunny skies in the morning with some clearing in the afternoon. The high last year was 75 degrees. The record high of 97 was set in 1948.
I think I’m happy 😊 with the haircut 💇🏻 I gave myself. That sharper trimmer did a nice job although I may want to trim behind my ears 👂🏻 a little closer. I think next time I might also use a slightly longer cutting guard. My sideburns though are growing in quite gray now. 🧔🏻
I don’t see myself heading out of town the next two weeks ✌️ although I guess depending on how many Zoom Meetings I have coming up I could take a long weekend at some point. I don’t mind using my phone 📱 or the cellular internet on my work laptop but I really need Wi-Fi for Zoom. I guess I could go up to the Spectulator Library. Maybe after the holiday weekend when they crowds filter out from the Adirondack Park. The only concern then is the days are starting to get short and the sun angle is decling which means less solar power.
In four weeks on September 23 the sun will be setting in the west (270°) at 6:50 pm,🌄 which is 48 minutes and 54 seconds earlier then tonight. In 2019 on that day, we had humid, partly sunny, warm weather, rain showers and temperatures between 86 and 66 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 69 and 49 degrees. The record high of 97 degrees was set back in 1895.
I joined a group on Facebook about backyard pig raising. 🐖 Some people raise some beautiful hogs including here in New York. After finishing up that book 📙 I was reading 📖 I find that Facebook group endlessly fascinating. Maybe because farming and homesteading is so much different than my every day work. That said a pair of hogs and two ton of grain run through them can turn some pretty marginal dirt or bare rock into good soil. 💩 I do wonder about invasive species – while grain isn’t likely to introduce them any time you disturb soil it makes it so much easier for them to take root. Next I think I’ll get a book 📙 about goats. 🐐
Looking ahead, Average High is 55 🍂 is in 9 weeks, Day After Election Day 🛀 is in 10 weeks, Veterans Day 🇺🇸 is in 11 weeks, Thanksgiving 🦃 is in 3 months, Earliest Sunset of the Year ⌛️ is in 15 weeks, Tea Party Day 🐍 is in 16 weeks, Festivus 🍖 is in 17 weeks, Boxing Day 🥊 is in 4 months, Bacon Day 🥓 is in 18 weeks, Make Your Dream Come True Day 🏡 is in 20 weeks, Inauguration Day ✅ is in 21 weeks, 5:30 PM Dusk 🌆 is in 5 months, Clean Your Computer Day 🧹 is in 24 weeks and Presidents Day 👴 is in 25 weeks.
Decided to go for a walk after work at Five Rivers 🐦 🐸 🦉🦋
Kind of a nice low humidity evening with blue skies and a breeze. Definitely feel like autumn this evening and the sun is setting earlier now that I’m back east. While I do miss the wild country of the Finger Lakes it’s still nice to know there are nice places to walk to close to home and observe nature.
I do wish I had brought my banada as a mask 😷 but it’s not really proven necessary this evening.
Good evening! Mostly clear and 70 degrees in Delmar, NY. 🌌 There is a northwest breeze at 5 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 57 degrees. It’s a very pleasant evening. Lots of stars ✨ out back and the crickets 🦗 are singing 🎶 their song.
I went over to John Wolcott’s house 🔎and we went through the most interesting file 📂 of old photos and documents relating to preservation or lack therefore of the Fort Orange site now buried ⚰ under Interstate 787. 🌉 I took some pictures of the files and I’ve posted some and will continue to post more in coming days. 🖼
It was a pretty quiet day at work 💻and I was able to get the quick photo 📸 uploader up and working. This allows me to quickly upload photos from my smartphone 📱 to the blog and some of the other content as an alternative to the traditional uploader which is better for uploading several maps or photos at once. 👆 Combined with the better camera on my new phone I should be able to post high quality pictures from my trips on the fly.
I got next week off from work 🏖️ and I’m heading out to the Finger Lakes this weekend for a week or socially distant vacationing. It’s a real vacation, none of this remote work from the wilderness. 💻🌲🌲 This year I don’t expect to spend every day at a state park 🏞 but instead will do more hiking and kayaking 🛶 away from the crowds. The first half of the week looks pretty nice ☀ but if the second half kind of is rainy ☔ I have lots of books to read 📖.
Might try to camp at that site with more limited cell reception as I kind of want more quiet. 🔕 I’m not saying I won’t visit the Glen Dairy Bar 🍨🍦 a few times or maybe get up early one or two mornings and get a spot to swim 🏊 at the Watkins Glen pool but it’s not going to be the focus of some years. 🌻I want to do different things, more hiking and paddling and less crowded gorges or touristy places during the pandemic. 👾 Nothing wrong with staying in camp a few days with a book 📙 or watching the cows graze on the pastures 🐮. I really do get tired of all the emails 📧 and social media 😜 especially the trolls send emails that are downright harassing.🤬
I picked up most of the supplies and food 🍲 I will need for the first few days of my Finger Lakes trip. I also got two waterproof cases for my phone and camera 📸 should I decide to bring them kayaking 🛶. I also have a knock off Go Pro camera 📹 which I should figure out how to attach to my kayak. I’ll need some night crawlers 🐛 for fishing 🎣 but I’ll get them once I get out there. I’m also looking at getting another water container with a spigot that I can put on a table and turn the spout 💧 for water.
Tonight will be mostly clear 🌃, with a low of 56 degrees at 4am. Five degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around September 3rd. Maximum dew point of 57 at 9pm. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening. In 2019, we had mostly clear skies. It became sticky as the night progressed. It got down to 63 degrees. The record low of 45 occurred back in 1994.
Tonight will have a Waining Gibbous 🌖 Moon with 93% illuminated. The darkest hour is at 1:02 am, followed by dawn at 5:21 am, and sun starting to rise at 5:53 am in the east-northeast (66°) and last for 3 minutes and 10 seconds. Sunrise is one minute and 3 seconds later than yesterday. 🌄 The golden hour ends at 6:32 am with sun in the east-northeast (73°).Tonight will have 9 hours and 42 minutes of darkness, an increase of 2 minutes and 19 seconds over last night.
Tomorrow will be mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 80 degrees at 3pm. Two degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around August 18th. Maximum dew point of 58 at 8am. Light northwest wind. Hell, that’s going to feel like a an autumn day. 🍂 Low due point, cool temperatures and deep blue skies. 🗻 A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies. The high last year was 84 degrees. The record high of 98 was set in 1900.
Tomorrow as downtime allows I’m going to pack 💼 and clean my apartment 🚿getting ready to leave probably early Friday and working remotely from camp in Madison County. I could change my mind depending on how busy Thursday and Friday are but actually prefer to get up early rather than making the evening slog especially with the sun setting earlier now. 🌇 I also need to go to the laundromat, 👚 probably work from my truck there plus the atm 🏧 although I guess I could do that in Friday morning.
I got two more books out of the library today. 📙 Some how with the online ordering I ended up with more books than expected – I kept ordering things I thought I wanted to read 📖 and with delays I kept ordering more. Kind of like AliExpress 📦 but only free. Most of the books are on farming and homesteading – it’s a topic I’ve been doing a lot of reading about this summer plus one book on solar power and off grid living. 🏡 Also got Storey’s Guide to Raising Pigs 🐖. My fascination with pig farming started with Cam Edwards and maybe my neighbors raising pigs growing up and has only grown since learning about the grazing breeds like this Idaho Pasture Pig 🐽 that is so trendy these days at least on the internet.
In four weeks on September 2 the sun will be setting in the west (281°) at 7:27 pm,🌄 which is 42 minutes and 51 seconds earlier then tonight. In 2019 on that day, we had rain and temperatures between 76 and 62 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 77 and 57 degrees. The record high of 100 degrees was set back in 1953. It’s funny to think we’re talking about September so soon. I should see about updating the countdown clock, it’s been a while since I’ve done that. 🕒 Maybe tomorrow – got to find the dates of all the upcoming autumn holidays. 🍂
Good morning! Happy Thursday. Partly sunny and 61 degrees at the Speculator Village Park. There is a west breeze at 10 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 56 degrees. It was neat watching the deer graze along the river early this morning.
So I’m up in the Adirondacks for an indeterminate time period 🗻 like most of us are living through these days. Working from my phone and the Speculator library Wi-Fi, 📶 might as well take advantage of the nice weather and remote work before the office reopens at some point in the near future. Wearing a banada over my face won’t be fun while working, although I have a private office at my current job 🏢 so I doubt I’ll have wear a mask in the office.
It should be a nice weekend up north, ⛺ although I’ll have to watch out for thunderstorms and plan appropriately with the battery 🔋 bank to keep things properly charged. I have enough food and supplies through probably Monday but I’ll need ice from Speculator before then so I can get additional supplies as needed if I decide to stay longer. I will have to move to a different campsite if I stay beyond Sunday but next week is kind of up in the air. Once I’m set up at camp I probably won’t drive anywhere, instead just hanging out and relaxing and walking wherever I need to go like down to the swimming 🏊 or fishing 🎣 hole.
Today will be mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 77 degrees at 3pm. Two degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around June 10th. Maximum dew point of 56 at 9am. It should be a great day outside. West wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies in the morning, which became light rain by afternoon. The high last year was 70 degrees. The record high of 97 was set in 1919.
Today’s plan between the emails and the messages and calls 📞 is to some birding 🐦 and enjoying the sun before setting up camp. After 11 am I expect a fairly busy day but my laptops are fully charged and ready to go so I anticipate no issues. 💻 Plus I should have ample solar. ☀
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:57 pm with sun having an altitude of 69° from the due south horizon (-0.9° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.3 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:52 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (296°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (303°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:35 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 29 seconds with dusk around 9:09 pm, which is 44 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the southeast (134°) at an altitude of 14° from the horizon, 230,416 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:56 pm. At sunset, look for partly clear skies 🌄 and temperatures around 71 degrees. The dew point will be 55 degrees. There will be a west-southwest breeze at 8 mph. Today will have 15 hours and 16 minutes of daytime, an increase of one minute and 7 seconds over yesterday.
Tonight will be partly cloudy 🌤, with a low of 57 degrees at 5am. Four degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around June 15th. Maximum dew point of 56 at 4am. Southwest wind 6 to 8 mph. In 2019, we had light rain in the evening, which became cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 55 degrees. The record low of 39 occurred back in 1990.
I am glad that the state is forcing stores to take back cans 🍻 starting this week. While ultimately I found eight cans in my refrigerator I didn’t buy any more beer for camping in ground I didn’t have a lot of space for empties. I didn’t want to have to make a special trip to the transfer station to dispose of them – it’s not like you can burn aluminum cans. ♻ Most Coronavirus is passed by close physical contact indoors so it seems silly to ban returns. Instead I bought apple 🍏 juice which is not only cheaper but also slightly more healthy even if it junk food with all the natural sugars and calories. But I plan to be splitting wood and hiking this weekend so I’ll have plenty a chance to burn calories.
Next week I’m going to call the mechanic 🔧 about the toe in on the rear left tire which is now showing very noticeable wear. I think something was bent when I damaged that shock bushing back in 2017. I’ve known about the issue for a while but rotating the tires addressed it but now that things are getting worn down its more noticeable. I was hoping to wait to do repairs and get a full alignment when I got new tires in a year or two but it needs to be addressed sooner than later. I know it should have been the responsible thing to do some time ago. 🙍
Right now, a split verdict on the weekend. 😕 Saturday, a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 72. West wind 9 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Maximum dew point of 57 at 6am. Sunday, mostly sunny, with a high near 66. Maximum dew point of 45 at 8am. Typical average high for the weekend is 75 degrees.
It’s actually going to be pretty cool up north 🍃 but hopefully with the sun won’t be too bad. I left the kayak home 🚣 as I didn’t want to have to bother taking it on and off for the needed solar power for work.
