Balsam Swamp is a sprawling state forest that stretches almost 5.5 miles east-west across 4 towns. The area is very rural, and the landscape surrounding the State Forest is predominantly forested. Balsam Swamp State Forest is comprised of a mix of native hardwood forests, hemlock swamps, and conifer plantations. There are no designated recreational trails on the forest, but there is ample opportunity for self-guided day hikes to explore the diversity of habitats represented on this State Forest. Additionally, the western section of Balsam Swamp State Forest is adjacent to Five Streams State Forest to the south.
The main attraction of this forest is Balsam Pond. The impoundment is approximately 152 acres and is a popular destination for fishing and paddle boat sports. Balsam Pond is a warm water fishery that contains a mix of largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, chain pickerel, yellow perch, brown bullhead and sunfish. Tiger muskellunge have been stocked in the past with the last stocking occurring in 1995. However, there have been very few reports of anglers catching any of the adult tiger muskies. A shallow gravel boat launch is suitable for launching small fishing boats.
A small rustic camp ground is also located at Balsam Pond. Camping spaces are available at no cost on a first-come, first-serve basis and there is no running water or electricity. A fire ring, outhouse, and picnic table are provided for each camping space. A sign on Balsam-Tyler Road in Pharsalia designates the entrance to the boat launch and camping facility. This is a carry-in carry-out facility. Please do not litter.
After a rather misty, wet but mild Christmas Eve the sun is starting to peak through the clouds. It’s good, I decided I’ll stay an extra night as my family’s holiday party was canceled or more like postponed a week due to the cold that is going around. It’s fine, it’s going to be a fairly nice day to enjoy Christmas walking through the woods, enjoying the birds, wildlife and silence.
Good morning! Mostly cloudy and 37 degrees at the Moscow Hill Camping Area. ☁ There is a south-southeast breeze at 6 mph. 🍃. Temperatures will drop below freezing at Friday around 5 pm. ☃️
I’m enjoying the sun ☀ as it’s peaking through the clouds. My Christmas camping trip has been extended by another night after the family Christmas party was postponed. I’m not that disappointed with the nice weather expected today. Even the breeze will be good as it should help dry things out after the misty and muddy mess that was yesterday.
Christmas Day will be partly sunny 🌞, with a high of 45 degrees at 2pm. Nine degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around November 27th. South wind 6 to 10 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning, remaining cloudy in the afternoon. The high last year was 27 degrees. The record high of 66 was set in 1889. 19.2 inches of snow fell back in 2002.❄
It should be a great day for Christmas 🤶 even if the snow is largely gone. I haven’t decided if I will ride some of the truck trails or just hike, the horse 🐴 trails are closed to mountain bikes for the season 🚵 but the signs are fairly clear that the hardened roads are fine though might be a bit icy. That said, I can always lock up the bike if I want to head off the truck trails.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 23.8° from the due south horizon (-46.8° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 13.6 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:47 pm with the sun in the southwest (230°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (238°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:33 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 26 seconds with dusk around 5:04 pm, which is 37 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the east-northeast (68°) at an altitude of 17° from the horizon, 240,803 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:41 pm. At sunset, look for partly cloudy skies 🌃 and temperatures around 43 degrees. There will be a south breeze at 9 mph. Today will have 9 hours and 5 minutes of daytime, an increase of 14 seconds over yesterday.
Breakfast is done 🥚 and I’m feeling better after the Charlie Horse I had on my leg earlier in the morning. I might have been dehydrated, I drank a bunch of water. 💦 Gathered firewood for the night 🪵, mostly smaller stuff stacked high in hope the sun and breeze will help to dry things out. Last night the fire 🔥 was really smokey due to the wood being so wet. I actually retired to bed 🛏 on Christmas Eve a little after 8 pm as the fire was struggling and I was just kind of tired. Yesterday’s weather was a bit of a let down.
Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌃 , with a low of 34 degrees at 3am. 14 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around November 9th. South wind 8 to 10 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 16 degrees. The record low of -17 occurred back in 1914.
Lookingahead to New Years Weekend 2024. 🎇 Saturday, a chance of snow showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 32. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Sunday, partly sunny, with a high near 34. New Years Day, 35 degrees and sunny. Typical average high for the weekend is 35 degrees.
One week until New Years Eve, might actually be cold and snowy for that. But foggy, damp and everything is kind of mush for this Christmas Eve up in the wilds of Madison County.
Good morning on this somewhat damp Christmas Eve ! 🎄 Cloudy, damp, foggy and 35 degrees at the Moscow Hill Camping Area. 🌥 There is a south breeze at 9 mph. 🍃. There is a dusting of snow on the ground. ☃ Temperatures will drop below freezing at Friday around 3 am. ☃️
It was drizzle when I first awoke 🌧️ after heading to bed 🛏 early last night due to the rain. It tapered off early this morning but left everything a damp slushy mess. Eggs for breakfast were good, I’ve been poking around camp ⛺ sitting by the heater and slowly gathering firewood and chopping it up for the night ahead. 🪵🪓
Today will have a chance of showers, mainly before 3pm. Cloudy 🌦, with a high of 39 degrees at 5pm. Three degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around December 14th. South wind 5 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning with some clearing in the afternoon. The high last year was 15 degrees. The record high of 72 was set in 2015. 13.0 inches of snow fell back in 1966.❄
I swear there are two types of winter days when camping. 🌬️☃️ Bitterly cold but sunny and rainy and damp. Today is the later. It’s fine but the forecast was so much more optimistic a few days back. I was hoping for sun ☀ today for a nice walk 🚶 in the woods and some Christmas Eve bird 🐦 watching. Tomorrow, Christmas might be slightly better but I have my doubts. It’s still nice to be away and it’s not real cold.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 23.8° from the due south horizon (-46.8° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 13.6 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:47 pm with the sun in the southwest (230°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (238°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:33 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 26 seconds with dusk around 5:04 pm, which is 34 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the east-northeast (78°) at an altitude of 25° from the horizon, 237,846 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:41 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and temperatures around 37 degrees. There will be a south breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 9 hours and 5 minutes of daytime, an increase of 9 seconds over yesterday.
Christmas Eve will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 33 degrees at 6am. 13 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around November 12th. Light south wind. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 11 degrees. The record low of -22 occurred back in 1969.
Yesterday I went down to Hamilton.🦆It was chilly at Woodman Pond and the Old Chenango Canal so I didn’t stay long or spend much time poking around the village. Instead I went to Price Chopper got a few extra groceries and headed over to Moscow Hill to set up camp ⛺, have a nice lunch and gather firewood for the night to come. Drizzled a bit midday then snow and sleet in the evening and rain around 8 pm.
The corn fields for the most part have been chopped, manure spread. Roads are heavily covered with sand which then covers the cars. The farms and dirt roads are muddy from the lack of snow and relatively mild temperatures. Cows just do their thing with their hooves tearing up their exercise yards. Really the gray skies and the melting piles of snow just accented how brown and gray the land is really, dorimant, waiting for a new growing year to be upon us.
It might be a fair bit warmer today but with the breeze and clouds it feels pretty cold. I’m taking down camp to head to Hamilton and ultimately Brookfield to camp and explore that forest through Christmas Day. Then maybe on Christmas I’ll head down to Cooperstown and then home. My parents have been sick with a bad cold so it seems likely Christmas will be remote. I’ll still probably head home on Christmas Day though I also have boxing day off.
Good morning! Cloudy and 31 degrees at the Stoney Pond State Forest. ☁ There is a south breeze at 9 mph. 🍃. Things will start to thaw out at around 9 am. 🌡️
Oatmeal pancakes 🥞 for breakfast though I wish I had more bananas 🍌 to use in the mix. They blacken in the cold quickly but they’re still good but I eat them all up yesterday. I’ll have to stop at the Price Chopper in Hamilton. 🚲 Thinking I might ride around the village a bit too though it depends on if it’s raining and the weather. Outdoor activities can be tough in December, the weather kind of sucks.
Dropped my phone 📱 this morning when I was stacking wood and couldn’t find it until I heard the hour chime. ⏰ I was lucky 🍀 I heard that otherwise it would be likely lost. Not that my phone 📞 is worth much – the touch screen is increasingly malfunctioning. But I’m glad I found it.
Today will have a chance of rain and snow showers before 5pm, then a chance of rain showers. Cloudy 🌦, with a high of 37 degrees at 1pm. One degree above normal, which is similar to a typical day around December 21st. South wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Little or no snow accumulation expected. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning, which and some light snow in the afternoon. The high last year was 53 degrees. The record high of 64 was set in 1990. 8.8 inches of snow fell back in 1947.❄
Not a real nice day ahead 🌥 which is why I figured it would be a good day to move campsites then I can spend the bulk of Christmas Eve exploring Charles Baker State Forest 🐦 watching birds and hiking when hopefully it will be somewhat nicer. This weekend after looking beautiful has somewhat slid downhill unfortunately. 😔
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 23.7° from the due south horizon (-46.8° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 13.7 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:47 pm with the sun in the southwest (230°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (238°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:33 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 26 seconds with dusk around 5:04 pm, which is 32 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the east (90°) at an altitude of 32° from the horizon, 234,965 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:41 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and snow 🌨 and temperatures around 36 degrees. There will be a south breeze at 9 mph. Today will have 9 hours and 4 minutes of daytime, an increase of 5 seconds over yesterday.
Tonight will have a chance of rain and snow showers before 1am, then rain showers likely. Cloudy 🌧, with a low of 34 degrees at 6am. 13 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around November 9th. South wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. Little or no snow accumulation expected. In 2022, we had light snow in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 7 degrees. The record low of -15 occurred back in 1989.
Yesterday morning got kind of a late start 🥶 because it was so cold out. Plus I wanted to chop wood 🪵🪓 so I’d be ready when I got back to camp ⛺. Then I did a hike at Oxbow Falls County Park 🏞 and looked off the escarpment. A fairly clear day.
Rode 36 miles yesterday from Canastota to East Verona on the Old Erie Canal Trail then back via NY 46 to Oneida, then the Oneida Rail Trail to the Oneida Waterline Trail to Wampsville back to Canastota. 🚲 It was cold this morning so I got a late start, plus I visited Oxbow Falls in the morning, but I hit the trail at noon and returned back at four.
Drove back to camp before dark, made turkey soup 🦃🍅🍲 with lots of delicious vegetables. No bacon 🥓 this meal even though next Saturday is bacon day.
Looking ahead, next Saturday is Bacon Day 🥓 when the sun will be setting at 4:38 pm with dusk at 5:09 pm. On that day in 2022, we had mostly cloudy, mild and temperatures between 57 and 43 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 35 degrees. We hit a record high of 53 back in 1984.
While I was warm and comfortable under the covers in my unheated truck cap last night my toes were cold and stiff. Cold getting up but the heater was warm as was the coffee and eggs with all the fixings. Didn’t get up until after seven as the morning was so cold and dark.
Good morning! Partly sunny and 17 degrees at the Stoney Pond State Forest. There is a south-southeast breeze at 5 mph. 🍃. Things will start to thaw out at around 1 pm. 🌡️
That coffee is good. ☕ Stove is still a bit slow from the plugging to got last time I was camping but it’s working fairly well. The heater is nice and warm. Eggs for breakfast. 🍳 Plus enjoying a grapefruit. 🍊Watching the sun rise this morning, very cold but still.
Today will be sunny 🌞, with a high of 33 degrees at 2pm. Three degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around January 5th. South wind around 6 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning, which became light snow by afternoon. The high last year was 34 degrees. The record high of 60 was set in 1990. 12.3 inches of snow fell back in 1969.❄
The plan for today is to visit Oxbow Falls County Park then head to Canastota. 🚲 I want to ride the Erie Canalway to Rome as time allows. Should be a good day, hoping it warms up a fair amount by midday. ☀ At least it shouldn’t be cloudy and it looks like the wind will die down.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 23.7° from the due south horizon (-46.8° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 13.7 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:47 pm with the sun in the southwest (230°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (238°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:33 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 26 seconds with dusk around 5:04 pm, which is 30 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Waxing Gibbous 🌔 Moon in the east-southeast (104°) at an altitude of 38° from the horizon, 232,306 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:41 pm. At sunset, look for partly sunny skies 🌃 and temperatures around 31 degrees. There will be a south-southeast breeze at 6 mph. Today will have 9 hours and 4 minutes of daytime, a decrease of over yesterday.
Yesterday when I got to camp it was a mess. 🚯 There had apparently been a party 🍻 at the campsite since I was last here and a ton of broken glass, beer bottles and half burnt pallets everywhere. 🔥 Nails too, I’m a bit worried about getting one in my tires. I tried to pick things up to the best of my ability, at first sorting out as many of the recycling as possible ♻ but ultimately just scooping a lot up into the ever growing ash pile at the edge of the campsite.
Tonight will be partly cloudy 🌃 , with a low of 27 degrees at 6am. Six degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around December 2nd. Maximum wind chill around 23 at 6pm; South wind 6 to 9 mph. Much warmer than yesterday. In 2022, we had light rain in the evening, which and it cleared oytby the early hours of the morning. It got down to 9 degrees. The record low of -12 occurred back in 1955.
Last night 🌃 I had a nice camp fire 🔥 and the moonlight was great but it was cold ❄ with lows in the single digits and a breeze that slackened a bit as the night progressed. 🥓 The bacon I got was good though.
Tomorrow will have a slight chance of showers after 1pm. Mostly cloudy 🌦, with a high of 38 degrees at 2pm. Two degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around December 17th. South wind around 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning, which became light snow by afternoon. The high last year was 53 degrees. The record high of 64 was set in 1990. 8.8 inches of snow fell back in 1947.❄
Looking ahead to Sunday, a chance of showers. Cloudy, with a high near 39. South wind 6 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Typical average high for the weekend is 36 degrees.
I’m kind of a dirty hick no matter how you look at it. I just kind of like the look and feel of dirt and mud, the smells of nature. Cleaning is difficult and I’m not sure how healthy it really is with harsh chemicals and the destruction of healthy bacteria that builds the immune system. Plus it’s often hard to get things cleaned without a lot of hard scrubbing.
It is pretty common on dairies for parents to bring babies out in a stroller and plop them out between the feed aisles so they can breathe in the barnyard air with the breathe of cattle and the pungent smells of silage and manure. The cows mooing are soothing and the natural bacteria healthy. Barnyards are hardly sterile, they are living natural things.
My apartment is dirty as is my truck and my camping gear. I do some cleaning but I’m not particularly worried about a little bit of mud or dirt. Sometimes things smell bad – I do my best to clean them but I’m not perfect. I probably should do more but what is the harm? Living close to nature means living in the dirt.
Cleanliness has its benefits in the city, although it’s hard to argue most cities are particularly clean – people track in mud and dirt and pollution from buses, trucks, cars and factories can make cities quite gross. Cleanliness can help slow the spread of viruses without vaccines like the common cold virus but even that is somewhat over stated. It looks nice and smells better to be clean but it’s debatable if it’s that much healthier.
Just reviewing my packing list and finishing getting ready, doing some cleaning and double checking things.
Good morning! Partly cloudy and 31 degrees in Delmar, NY. ⛅ There is a north-northeast breeze at 13 mph. 🍃. Things will start to thaw out at Saturday around 10 am. 🌡️
Kind of a cool day to start out my trip with the breeze 🌬️ but it will be sunnier later and then a cold night 🌃 is ahead. But my propane tank is full 🏮, I’ll have a good fire 🔥 and enjoy the cold. Winter starts at 10:27 pm. ☃️ Going to be a cold night, I’m not sure if I’ll stay up that late. Maybe.
Today will be partly sunny, then gradually becoming sunny 🌞, with a high of 32 degrees at 2pm. Five degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around January 15th. North wind 9 to 14 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning with some clearing in the afternoon. The high last year was 34 degrees. The record high of 62 was set in 2018. 6.6 inches of snow fell back in 2008.❄
Today’s plans are to head out to Stoney Pond State Forest 🏞 and camp there. I’m thinking about stopping at For the Love of Bacon 🥓 to get some of the name sake, and maybe to ride the Chenango Canal Trailway and explore Hamilton NY on my bicycle 🚲 as time allows. That said, the sun sets early this time of year. Looks like it will be a nice day but maybe somewhat cold. But it’s to be expected in December a few days before Christmas.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 11:54 am with sun having an altitude of 23.9° from the due south horizon (-46.9° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 13.5 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:40 pm with the sun in the southwest (230°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (238°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:25 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 25 seconds with dusk around 4:56 pm, which is 28 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Waxing Gibbous 🌔 Moon in the east-southeast (120°) at an altitude of 43° from the horizon, 229,997 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:33 pm. At sunset, look for sunny skies 🌃 and temperatures around 30 degrees. There will be a north breeze at 9 mph. Tomorrow will have 9 hours and 6 minutes of daytime, an increase of one second over today. Days are getting longer.
Working from home 🏡 or in my case the library 💻 was good yesterday, it gave me an opportunity to get packed and get supplies before camping 🏕. I ended up working late as it took longer than I expected at the store midday 🛒 but all was good. Came home made bread and had it ready to bring camping.
Tonight will be clear 🌃, with a low of 12 degrees at 5am. Nine degrees below normal. Maximum wind chill around 9 at 12am; North wind 6 to 8 mph. That’s going to be a cold night for sure. In 2022, we had cloudy skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 19 degrees. The record low of -8 occurred back in 1955. At least not that cold.
Clouds for theweekend but warmer. ☁️Saturday, mostly cloudy, with a high near 39. South wind around 7 mph. Sunday, mostly cloudy, with a high near 43. Typical average high for the weekend is 36 degrees.
Looking ahead, next Thursday is 4:30 PM Sunset 🌆 when the sun will be setting at 4:30 pm with dusk at 5:01 pm. A sign of longer days ahead. On that day in 2022, we had partly cloudy and temperatures between 41 and 22 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 35 degrees. We hit a record high of 61 back in 1982.
