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.
Not that it will feel anything like seventy degree weather today but it like next week will be far more seasonable.
Good morning! What day is it? The State Budget is Done Day, of course. 🐪 Hump day and it feels good to be over the hump, knowing that there won’t be any really late nights anytime soon. Got home at 11:30 and that wasn’t so bad. And I’m up at six o’clock and out walking 🚶. Managed to get in 8.2 miles of steps in, working in steps into my day anyway possible. Sometimes the best thing to do is maintain a schedule and put one foot in front of the other.
Anotherreally chilly start to the morning. Clouds and 42 degrees in Delmar, NY. ☁️ Calm wind. The skies will clear Friday around 4 am. Hey, at least it’s not raining this morning.
Today will have a chance of showers, mainly after 11am. Cloudy 🌦, with a high of 52 degrees at 3pm. 15 degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around April 1st. Calm wind becoming southeast around 6 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. A year ago, we had cloudy skies in the morning with more sun in the afternoon. The high last year was 67 degrees. The record high of 89 was set in 2001. There was a dusting of snow in 1986.❄
I think I’ll reheat those eggs I made up yesterday 🍳 and a fresh pot of coffee ☕. I have been drinking coffee more black these days as it’s healthier and gives more of a punch 👊 but I’ll probably use some skim milk with the hot coffee. Also want to cook up some rice 🍚 or coos coos this morning for lunch and or future meals. 🍴
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:53 pm with sun having an altitude of 63° from the due south horizon (-7.8° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3.1 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:18 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (286°). 📸
The sunset is in the west-northwest (292°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 7:58 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 7 seconds with dusk around 8:28 pm, which is one minute and 7 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the southeast (129°) at an altitude of 25° from the horizon, 242,709 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:07 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and temperatures around 50 degrees. There will be a north breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 13 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 27 seconds over yesterday.
Decided not to go to Queens night 👑 last night as I wanted to avoid all the unhealthy calories. 🛻 Instead I went home and got Big Red and also stopped by the store and got grapes 🍇. Sweet table grapes are kind of candy but they are better than eating candy. 🍬 Late nights are tough when you are used to going to bed 🛏 early and getting up early.
Tonight will have a chance of showers. Cloudy 🌧, with a low of 43 degrees at 6am. One degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around May 2nd. North wind around 6 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible. In 2022, we had light drizzle. It got down to 50 degrees. The record low of 28 occurred back in 1985.
A picture perfect spring weekend on tap. 😎 Saturday, sunny, with a high near 64. Maximum dew point of 46 at 8pm. Sunday, partly sunny, with a high near 62. Maximum dew point of 43 at 11am. Typical average high for the weekend is 68 degrees.
A little on the cool side of things ⛺ but I’m thinking of taking a half day on Friday to get out of town. I’m still chewing over my options on where I want to go.
As a reminder, next Wednesday is Average High is 70 🐮 when the sun will be setting at 8:06 pm with dusk at 8:36 pm. The grass puppies and honestly myself likes that. On that day in 2022, we had sunny and temperatures between 77 and 39 degrees. We hit a record high of 92 back in 1970.
I guess the way to live a long life to sing songs about the decline of society, at least if you are Gordon Lightfoot.In many ways the 2020s are the new 1970s. Probably the most important lesson of the seventies is while society is going to all shit, take care of yourself as nobody else will.
Good morning! Happy Tuesday. Cloudy and 44 degrees in Delmar, NY. 🌫️ There is a south-southeast breeze at 6 mph. 🍃. The skies will clear Friday around 2 pm.
Out for my morning walk. 🚶 At had to wait for the bus 🚍 after the evening session, so I didn’t get home until 9:30 and went to bed 🛏 shortly thereafter, but later then usual. But I’m up at 6 am walking. There is a a broken water 💦 main on Delaware Ave this morning that looks like a geyser ⛲, I thought about calling it in but a DOT guy just stopped by and I’m sure he knows who to call.
I’m thinking eggs this morning 🍳 as I need power to make it through the day. Plus with the late night I skipped dinner last night in favor of fruit so this is a good chance to boost my intake of vegetables. 🥦 Eggs, especially fortified with vegetables is a good slow to digest protein.
Today will have a chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 2pm. Some of the storms could produce small hail. Mostly cloudy 🌦, with a high of 52 degrees at 2pm. 15 degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around April 1st. Brr. South wind 6 to 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. A year ago, we had light rain in the morning, which became cloudy by afternoon. The high last year was 58 degrees. The record high of 90 was set in 2018. There was a dusting of snow in 1986.❄
My goal 🥅 is just to get through this epic budget week. My division doesn’t have much to do with the budget and it’s kind of slow, a 🐢 lot of waiting for the next project to come in. 📄 It’s just kind of tiring though waiting not knowing what is next or how late I’ll be in the office. 🍏 Eating healthy helps. Plus doing laps around the office 🏢 and Capitol with my phone on forward. ☎️ Ended up walking 7.3 miles yesterday, squeezing in steps wherever possible. It was so cold ❄ in my office last night.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:53 pm with sun having an altitude of 62.7° from the due south horizon (-8.1° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3.1 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:17 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (286°). 📸
The sunset is in the west-northwest (292°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 7:56 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 7 seconds with dusk around 8:27 pm, which is one minute and 8 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the southeast (135°) at an altitude of 35° from the horizon, 245,456 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:05 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and temperatures around 50 degrees. There will be a south-southwest breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 10 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 30 seconds over yesterday.
Tonight will have a chance of showers, mainly after midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 41. 🌃 South wind around 5 mph becoming calm after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
A picture perfect spring weekend on tap. 😎 Saturday, mostly sunny, with a high near 69. Maximum dew point of 43 at 8pm. Sunday, mostly sunny, with a high near 73. Maximum dew point of 48 at 8pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 68 degrees.
Really my focus is on the nicer weather for the weekend. ⛺ I really want to get out of town 🌲 though I’m still chewing over the Adirondacks vs Schoharie vs Rennselearville. I think we are definitely in black fly season now. 🐜 But I do like starting my spring camping season on the East Branch Sacandaga River, it’s a tradition now.
Looking ahead, there are 7 weeks until Primary Day 🗳️ when the sun will be setting at 8:38 pm with dusk at 9:11 pm. On that day in 2022, we had mostly sunny and temperatures between 82 and 47 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 81 degrees. We hit a record high of 97 back in 1953.
Total change in state economic activity over the past decade, in 2012 chained (inflation-adjusted) dollars.
Rank
State
Change
Q4 2012
Q4 2021
1
Utah
49.2%
$130b
$194b
2
Washington
47.6%
$399b
$589b
3
Idaho
46.1%
$58b
$85b
4
Colorado
39.5%
$279b
$389b
5
Florida
39.1%
$779b
$1,084b
6
Oregon
38.6%
$172b
$238b
7
California
35.9%
$2,142b
$2,911b
8
Georgia
33.4%
$447b
$597b
9
Texas
32.7%
$1,448b
$1,921b
10
Arizona
32.5%
$272b
$360b
11
Nevada
31.0%
$128b
$168b
12
Tennessee
29.8%
$287b
$373b
13
South Carolina
29.2%
$176b
$228b
14
North Carolina
27.5%
$442b
$564b
15
Maine
23.8%
$53b
$65b
16
Massachusetts
23.7%
$443b
$548b
17
New Hampshire
20.5%
$69b
$83b
18
Nebraska
19.7%
$103b
$123b
19
Kansas
19.5%
$138b
$165b
20
Indiana
18.8%
$297b
$353b
21
Arkansas
18.3%
$108b
$127b
22
Minnesota
18.0%
$298b
$352b
23
Montana
17.9%
$42b
$50b
24
Ohio
17.8%
$543b
$640b
25
Michigan
16.3%
$422b
$491b
26
New York
16.3%
$1,349b
$1,569b
27
Virginia
15.9%
$445b
$516b
28
District of Columbia
15.9%
$112b
$130b
29
Kentucky
14.5%
$177b
$202b
30
Alabama
14.4%
$188b
$215b
31
New Jersey
13.9%
$514b
$585b
32
Pennsylvania
13.7%
$644b
$733b
33
Wisconsin
13.5%
$275b
$312b
34
Iowa
13.1%
$156b
$177b
35
Maryland
12.0%
$330b
$370b
36
South Dakota
12.0%
$44b
$49b
37
Missouri
11.7%
$270b
$302b
38
Illinois
11.0%
$720b
$800b
39
New Mexico
10.8%
$86b
$96b
40
Oklahoma
10.6%
$175b
$194b
41
Vermont
10.0%
$29b
$32b
42
Delaware
9.4%
$61b
$66b
43
Rhode Island
8.5%
$51b
$56b
44
Mississippi
6.1%
$99b
$105b
45
Hawaii
5.5%
$72b
$76b
46
West Virginia
5.2%
$69b
$73b
47
Connecticut
5.0%
$241b
$253b
48
North Dakota
0.3%
$53b
$54b
49
Wyoming
−3.4%
$38b
$37b
50
Louisiana
−5.2%
$230b
$218b
51
Alaska
−12.1%
$57b
$51b
Andy Arthur, 5/1/23. Data Source:
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Real Gross Domestic Product: All Industry Total in New York [NYRQGSP], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/NYRQGSP, May 1, 2023.
I guess it’s May so they stopped the rain showers for like two minutes. It’s only a few minutes before they crank the outdoors thermostat to 95. My neighbor already has his air conditioner installed. Me, I’ll open my windows and get the fan out as needed and make plans to head to the Potholers.
Good morning! Clouds 🌥 the rain has pulled off and 48 degrees in Delmar for the morning walk. There is a west breeze at 11 mph. 🍃 with gusts up to 22 mph 💨💨💨
Kind of a chilly morning 🍃 to start off the month with the breeze and dampness making it feel a bit cool. I’m out walking 🚶 like usual, last months total worked out to be 320 miles walked. Probably that contributed to some of my weight loss plus my general reduction in calorie intake.
Today will have a chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 2pm. Mostly cloudy 🌦, with a high of 60 degrees at 2pm. Six degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around April 17th. Southwest wind 11 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies in the morning with some clearing in the afternoon. The high last year was 69 degrees. The record high of 86 was set in 2001. There was a dusting of snow in 1978.❄ It’s funny, I turned off the internal snow depth monitoring system on the blog on May 1st and there was that one year I awoke to a ton of snow at Moose River Plains. Okay maybe just a dusting but that’s a ton by May standards.
Last night got a good night’s sleep 🛏 by getting to bed by 8. If I’m going to get going early each morning I should at least plan to get to bed early. Rained and rained last night but it was good for my sleep. 😴
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:53 pm with sun having an altitude of 62.4° from the due south horizon (-8.4° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3.1 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:16 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (285°). 📸
Need to get milk 🥛 this morning for the coffee ☕ as over the weekend the milk in the fridge got kind of rancid. I might just get a half gallon of skim just because I’m not drinking as much milk these days. 🐮 Mostly just for coffee. It will probably last longer than the gallons of milk I used to get and take less room in the cooler this weekend. Plus the paper carton is probably greener when it gets burnt and makes an excellent fire starter. 🔥
Thought about pancakes 🥞 or eggs 🥚 this morning but decided for the lighter fare of oatmeal 🥣 as last night at the folks house I had quiche. Mom insisted it was healthy, but I took a small slice of it which was good because the healthy portion with spinach was small the greasy sausage in it part was large. 🥧 I’ve gotten so sensetive about unhealthy food after reading how much damage it does to your body. 🤮 Maybe tomorrow I’ll do “oatmeal – banana – egg” pancakes or cut my remaining unhealthy sqpancake mix with old fashioned whole oats and banana.
The sunset is in the west-northwest (292°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 7:55 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 7 seconds with dusk around 8:25 pm, which is one minute and 8 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Waxing Gibbous 🌔 Moon in the southeast (142°) at an altitude of 45° from the horizon, 247,882 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:04 pm.
I am not sure how late I’ll get home today 🏢, it could a late night or maybe not. I could use some comp time, especially as I don’t currently have much and I’d kind of like to use a get out of jail free card 🎫 to leave early on Friday.
At sunset, look out for rain showers 🌧 and thunderstorms 🌩 and temperatures around 52 degrees. There will be a south breeze at 10 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 8 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 30 seconds over yesterday.
Tonight will have scattered showers and thunderstorms. ⛈ Mostly cloudy, with a low around 44. South wind 7 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Tomorrow we will have showers 🌧️ before 11am, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 11am and 5pm, then showers likely after 5pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 54. South wind 8 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Almost picture perfect spring weekend on tap. 😎 Finally. I mean really the past two weeks have been real bummers. Things should be real green but the black flies 🐜 will be out in mass, at least up north. Saturday, mostly sunny, with a high near 67. Maximum dew point of 44 at 8pm. Sunday, mostly sunny, with a high near 72. Maximum dew point of 46 at 7pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 68 degrees.
I was thinking about either Old Route 8B or East Branch Sacandaga River for the weekend ⛺ but now I’m leaning towards Schoharie and maybe hiking from Grand Gorge to Stamford on Sunday. 🚶 Might be a nice hike with everything greening up that way. Spring turkey 🦃 starts today, well regular spring turkey, youth season started a few days ago so I will want to stay out of the woods before noon but I could fish or do road hikes on Saturday before then.
One month 📅 from now will be 9 PM Dusk 🌆 when the sun will be setting at 8:27 pm with dusk at 9:00 pm. The average high temperature is 34 degrees, with a record high of 61 in 1895.
The rain let up and I’m up for my morning walk at 6:20. 🌧️
It was raining pretty hard at 5:30 so I delayed getting out of bed for a while but I’m moving forward. 13.9 miles walked on the rainy Saturday though I doubt I’ll make it that far today.
Good morning! Where did April go? I don’t know, I think I was too busy searching 🔎 for Jesus on my own ⛪, playing that dirty old John Prine record, walking 🚶 and eating kale. 🥦 And watching as the wrinkles grew 👴🏻 as I lost the chubbiness.
Clouds, a few sprinkles and 49 degrees in Delmar for the morning walk. ☔ There is a southeast breeze at 5 mph. 🍃. The skies will clear tomorrow around 7 am. Just in time for the work week. 🏢
I’m out walking 🚶 at the park 🏞 trying to get as many steps in as possible early. I don’t know how much it is going to rain so it’s best to get in as many steps in as possible before it gets wetter out.
Today will rain, with thunderstorms also possible after 5pm. Cloudy 🌦, with a high of 60 degrees at 1pm. Six degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around April 17th. Maximum dew point of 53 at 1pm. Southeast wind 6 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half 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 64 degrees. The record high of 86 was set in 1903. There was a dusting of snow in 2008.❄
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:53 pm with sun having an altitude of 62.1° from the due south horizon (-8.7° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 3.2 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:15 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (285°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (291°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 7:54 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 6 seconds with dusk around 8:24 pm, which is one minute and 8 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Waxing Gibbous 🌔 Moon in the south-southeast (152°) at an altitude of 54° from the horizon, 249,862 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:02 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and thunderstorms 🌩 and temperatures around 57 degrees. The dew point will be 53 degrees. Breezy, 16 mph breeze ⛅ from the east with gusts up to 29mph. Today will have 14 hours and 5 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 32 seconds over yesterday.
This evening will rain ☔ and possibly have a thunderstorm, before 5am, then a chance of rain and thunderstorms after 5am. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain. Low around 47. East wind 9 to 16 mph becoming west after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.
Monday with have a chance of showers before 8am, then a chance of showers after 11am. Partly sunny, with a high near 62. 🌥 👉 ☀ South wind 9 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
As previously noted, next Sunday is 8 PM Sunset 🌇 when the sun will be setting at 8:03 pm with dusk at 8:33 pm. On that day in 2022, we had mostly cloudy and temperatures between 59 and 45 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 69 degrees. We hit a record high of 92 back in 1930.
