Good morning! Didn’t quite get the tent down before the rain but most of camp is down. Moderate  rain and 44 degrees in East Otto. There is a south-southwest breeze at 7 mph. Most of the rain is expected to clear by 1 pm and while I expect my tent to be wet when I take it down, it should dry over the next few days. Going to hang out in the tent until the rain shows or stops, which should happen within the next hour. 

Today will have showers likely, mainly before 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high of 51 degrees at 1pm. Three degrees above normal. South wind around 8 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 22 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. Last year, mostly sunny with a high around 59. The record high of 71 was set in 2006. There was 3.4 inches of snow back in 2002.

Yesterday I refilled the propane tank. Went to a local welding gas store and they filled it for $12 plus tax. A lot cheaper than in Albany but it seems like propane is cheaper in this part of the state, possibly because it’s produced locally. 

I was surprised that it ran down so quickly. Two nights ago I occasionally smelled propane while cooking. Just a whisp here and there. I used soap to check for a leak but couldn’t find it. The smell went away when I disconnected the stove. Didn’t think much of it. The next evening with the tank refilled I noticed the smell again and found bubbles on the line and a small leak. I shut off the propane tank, made sure there was no open flame nearby and just let the line bleed out before permanently retiring it. I think tossing the line around in the cold, coiling and uncoiling it, it developed a crack. 

Driving out to Zoar Valley Unique Area was a nice scenic, kind of agricultural landscape with the hills of Cattaraugus County to the south. Something about a ramshackle dairy farm with Vote Trump spray painted on an old cardboard box from a washing machine just tickled me. You know the type, falling down barns, a vertical bunk of silage in the front lawn and just general junk and old farm machinery strewn around everywhere.  

Yesterday was closing day of trout season, and the Zoar Valley’s Valentine’s Flats was packed with fisherman hoping to net at least one more trout before the season closes. That said, water levels were pretty low on the Cattaraugus Creek, especially the south branch. Saw somebody there with a 22 rifle on their back but it looked like they were mostly there fishing. 

The sun will set at 4:51 pm with dusk around 5:21 pm, which is 51 seconds earlier than yesterday. Maybe a little later as I’m heading west this afternoon. Today will have 9 hours and 42 minutes of daylight, a decrease of 2 minutes and 5 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will be partly cloudy, with a low of 38 degrees at 4am. Seven degrees above normal. West wind 5 to 8 mph becoming calm after midnight. Winds though could gust as high as 24 mph. One year ago, mostly clear with a low around 26. The record low of 7 occurred back in 1972.

There are 2 weeks until First Day with Temperatures Recorded Below Zero when the sun will be setting at 4:43 pm with dusk at 5:14 pm. The average high temperature is 42 degrees, with a record high of 67 in 1933.