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.
Here are the 155 races from the last 4 General Elections in Albany County, adjusted to the new EDs based on the Voter Age Population block data.
Actually it’s slightly less then 155 because a few of the vote for two races aren’t in the spreadsheet as my crunching program hasn’t implemented them. I’ve not done primaries, though at some point I will. I also haven’t done anything before 2019 as the State Board used to only posted enrollments in PDF which are more challenging to accurately export.
Good morning! Happy Saturday. Finally the weekend! Snow and 30 degrees in Delmar, NY. 🌨 There is a north breeze at 10 mph. 🍃. There are 2 inches of snow on the ground. ☃ ️Things will start to thaw out at around 9 am. 🌡️
Out for the morning walk at 5:45 am today. 🚶 Dark at the start of the walk especially with snow coming down but pretty. I wanted to get used to getting up early and maximize my weekend – plus avoid walking in the rain ☔ should it warm up later in the day.
Today will rain showers and snow before 1pm, then a slight chance of rain showers between 1pm and 3pm. 🌧 High of 41 degrees at 2pm. One degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 8th. North wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Total daytime snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. A year ago, we had cloudy skies in the morning with more sun in the afternoon. The high last year was 51 degrees. The record high of 70 was set in 1977. 4.1 inches of snow fell back in 1941.❄
Not sure how nice a day it’s going to be today ☔ so my plan is when I get home 🏡 from the morning walk 🚶 to explore some various things in code and maybe work on some blog content 🖥 and do some reading 📖. I also want to go down to the library 📚 before five 5⃣ and then my evening walk.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:06 pm with sun having an altitude of 43.6° from the due south horizon (-27.2° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 6.3 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 5:20 pm with the sun in the west (259°). 📸 The sunset is in the west (266°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 5:57 pm after setting for 2 minutes and 54 seconds with dusk around 6:24 pm, which is one minute and 12 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 6:58 pm. At sunset, look for partly cloudy skies 🌃 and temperatures around 39 degrees. There will be a north breeze at 10 mph. Tomorrow will have 11 hours and 48 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 54 seconds over today.
Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 25 degrees at 5am. Typical for tonight. North wind 6 to 10 mph. In 2022, we had cloudy skies in the evening, which became heavy snow by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 19 degrees. The record low of -12 occurred back in 1948.
Today in 1993, Janet Reno is confirmed by the United States Senate and sworn in the next day, becoming the first female Attorney General of the United States. ⚖️ I’m not going to say anything more except to say history is her judge. I don’t have warm and fuzzy thoughts about the 1990s.
Looking ahead, there are 3 weeks until April Fools Day 🤡 when the sun will be setting at 7:22 pm with dusk at 7:49 pm (Daylight Savings Time). On that day in 2022, we had partly cloudy, rain showers and temperatures between 53 and 36 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 52 degrees. State budget is due that day, I bet I will be as tired as shit that morning even if I can work from home. 🎣 Probably no hitting the trout hole that weekend. Maybe the following weekend. We hit a record high of 77 back in 1986.
Daylight Savings Time Begins – Sunrise on Sunday, March 12 is at 7:11 am
7:00 am sunrise – Saturday, March 18 6:45 am sunrise – Sunday, March 26 6:30 am sunrise – Tuesday, April 4 6:15 am sunrise – Thursday, April 13 6:00 am sunrise – Saturday, April 22 5:45 am sunrise – Wednesday, May 3 5:30 am sunrise – Tuesday, May 16 5:45 am sunrise – Saturday, July 15
Good morning! Yeah, it’s Friday! As they say, one month from now will be mid April and at least in the city it probably be starting greening up a bit. 🌿 Hello black flies.
Partly sunny and 21 degrees for the morning walk in Delmar. 🌅 Calm wind. A little bit cool but sunny which is nice for a change. But it’s not expected to last. ️Things will start to thaw out at around 9 am. 🌡️The sun is in my eyes 👀 for the walk today though that won’t be an issue next week with the time change.
Today will have a chance of rain, mainly after 5pm. Increasing clouds 🌞 👉 🌥 , with a high of 42 degrees at 2pm. One degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 8th. Light and variable wind. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. A year ago, we had mist in the morning with more sun in the afternoon. The high last year was 44 degrees. The record high of 72 was set in 1977. 5.7 inches of snow fell back in 1964.❄
Yesterday was a Thursday and it was a busy one with a big background on my desk so edit. 📄 So time went by quickly. 🍌🍎 I eat a lot of fruit and then came home and had a small bowl of pasta with lots of green beans. And saved lots of pasta for future use. 🍝Finished up my 10,000 steps minimum over 50 days though ultimately I believe I walked closer to 800,000 steps 👣 over that time period.
Last night I was been doing some research on Kriging and election mapping though I realized it’s a bit more difficult without having the voter file geocoded and the Census household survey data not released yet from the Census for block level data. 🖥 Plus I’m actually not sure how valuable the results are as election districts are pretty small to start out. It’s going to be even harder in coming years as they’ve reduced the number of election districts to 231 from 319 in 2023.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:07 pm with sun having an altitude of 43.2° from the due south horizon (-27.6° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 6.4 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 5:18 pm with the sun in the west (259°). 📸
The sunset is in the west (265°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 5:56 pm after setting for 2 minutes and 54 seconds with dusk around 6:23 pm, which is one minute and 11 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 6:57 pm. At sunset, look out for rain showers 🌧 and temperatures around 40 degrees. There will be a northeast breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 11 hours and 42 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 53 seconds over yesterday.
Tonight will rain and snow likely before 8pm, then snow. 🌧 Low of 30 degrees at 3am. Five degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around March 27th. North wind 6 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible. In 2022, we had cloudy skies. It got down to 22 degrees. The record low of -10 occurred back in 1939.
Today in 1969, in Memphis, Tennessee, James Earl Ray pleads guilty to assassinating Martin Luther King, Jr. 😵💫 He later unsuccessfully attempts to recant.
Tomorrow will have rain showers and snow likely before 2pm, then a slight chance of rain showers between 2pm and 3pm. Cloudy 🌧, with a high of 40 degrees at 2pm. Three degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 2nd. North wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. A year ago, we had mist in the morning with more sun in the afternoon. The high last year was 51 degrees. The record high of 70 was set in 1977. 4.1 inches of snow fell back in 1941.❄
Looking ahead to Sunday, partly sunny, ☀ with a high near 44. Light northeast wind. Typical average high for the weekend is 43 degrees.
Looking ahead, next Friday is St. Patrick’s Day 🍀 when the sun will be setting at 7:05 pm with dusk at 7:31 pm (Daylight Savings Time). That’s why the Saint Patrick’s Day parade is on Saturday of this week. On that day in 2022, we had partly cloudy, mild, rain showers and temperatures between 55 and 43 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 45 degrees. We hit a record high of 75 back in 1990.
Good morning! Happy Thursday. The direct drive of the week. Tomorrow we shove it down to over drive and the weekend. Mostly cloudy and 28 degrees for the morning walk in Delmar at 6:15 am. ☁ There is a northwest breeze at 8 mph. 🍃. There is a dusting of snow on the ground. ☃ ️Things will start to thaw out at around 9 am. 🌡️
And so the cycle repeats. 🔴 Like a red rubber ball. Cold start to the morning but it’s still March. Going to be so dark come next week but I’ve already been practicing getting to bed 🛏 earlier. Today assuming that I finish up my 10,000 steps 👣 it will mark a 50 day straight run of walking my goal 🥅 though most days I beat my goal. Session day but I was out walking 🚶 early and there is no reason why I can’t do an evening walk 🌃 too.
Today will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a high of 40 degrees at 3pm. Three degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around March 2nd. Northwest wind around 10 mph. A year ago, we had cloudy skies in the morning, which became light snow by afternoon. The high last year was 35 degrees. The record high of 81 was set in 2016. 6.9 inches of snow fell back in 1961.❄
I don’tthink it will reach into the eighties today, 🏖 but I remember those days well and the big ol fire 🔥 I had up at Burnt Rossman that weekend. It was beautiful weekend that week, no snow and not bone dry either as it rained a few days before.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:07 pm with sun having an altitude of 42.8° from the due south horizon (-28° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 6.5 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 5:17 pm with the sun in the west-southwest (258°). 📸
I was annoyed that the remaining oranges I had bought 🍊 just this week went soft and moldy by Wednesday. I checked them at the store 🏬 and they were good there. Two weeks in a row, once at Wally World and the other at Hannaford. I guess I need pigs 🐽 and chickens 🐔 to eat them. Regardless, I think they must be getting out of season. I have sufficient apples 🍏 and bananas 🍌 at work to make it through the week though and frozen fruit at home. I missed the farmers market this week to get potatoes 🥔 and mushrooms 🍄 yesterday which is annoying.
The sunset is in the west (265°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 5:55 pm after setting for 2 minutes and 54 seconds with dusk around 6:22 pm, which is one minute and 12 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 6:55 pm. At sunset, look for mostly cloudy skies ☁ and temperatures around 38 degrees. There will be a north-northwest breeze at 8 mph. Today will have 11 hours and 42 minutes of daytime, an increase of 2 minutes and 53 seconds over yesterday.
I finally fixed the button on my salmon pink dress shirt 👚that popped off in January. I didn’t have any needles I could find 🪡 and then I got busy and forgot about it as I had recently bought additional shirts but I kind of like that shirt.
Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 25 degrees at 6am. One degree above normal, which is similar to a typical night around March 11th. North wind 5 to 7 mph becoming calm in the evening. In 2022, we had light snow in the evening, which became mist by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 20 degrees. The record low of 0 occurred back in 1996.
Today in 1959, Barbie doll makes its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York. 🧒 Dogs have been enjoying their heads every since. 🐶
Right now, a split verdict on the weekend. 😕 Saturday, a chance of snow, mixing with rain after 11am, then gradually ending. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 39. North wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. I’ll have to plan to walk early. Sunday, partly sunny, with a high near 43. About average for Sunday. Typical average high for the weekend is 43 degrees.
The average high temperature reported on the news is actually a lie. 🌡
They don’t usually report the average high but the climate normal high, which is not the average of recorded high temperatures over the past thirty years but a smoothed data set that has various adjustments to account for missing data and errors in measurements, along with suppressing other statistical anomalies like record breaking heat or cold on any one particular day.
Difference Between Climate Adjusted Average High and Actual Average High (March 1991-2020)
When they report on news the average high, it’s not what you think it is.
Day
Climate Normal High 1991-2020
Highs Averaged Together 1991-2020
Difference
1
40.0
39.7
0.3
2
40.0
39.7
0.3
3
41.0
38.0
3.0
4
41.0
37.5
3.5
5
41.0
38.6
2.4
6
42.0
39.8
2.2
7
42.0
40.8
1.2
8
42.0
43.8
−1.8
9
43.0
42.8
0.2
10
43.0
43.8
−0.8
11
43.0
42.3
0.7
12
44.0
41.6
2.4
13
44.0
41.9
2.1
14
44.0
43.6
0.4
15
45.0
45.6
−0.6
16
45.0
44.0
1.0
17
45.0
44.8
0.2
18
46.0
43.5
2.5
19
46.0
44.7
1.3
20
47.0
45.8
1.2
21
47.0
45.3
1.7
22
48.0
43.5
4.5
23
48.0
42.9
5.1
24
48.0
47.1
0.9
25
49.0
48.8
0.2
26
49.0
49.0
0.0
27
50.0
51.3
−1.3
28
50.0
51.6
−1.6
29
51.0
52.4
−1.4
30
51.0
52.2
−1.2
31
52.0
53.3
−1.3
Andy Arthur, 3/6/23. Data Source:
National Weather Service, Albany.
