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.
Maybe rain showers on Monday through Wednesday, but even that isn’t too hopeful. Continuing to loose a lot of daylight in the evening, and even in the morning as we head into the second half of August.
Today. Feels like … September 1st.
Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny.
North wind 6 to 8 mph.
and
79 degrees
,52 max dew point,
8:01 sunset.
Tonight. Feels like … September 14th.
Mostly clear.
Northeast wind around 5 mph becoming light and variable after midnight.
and
53 degrees
,
5:59 sunrise.
Sunday. Feels like … August 22nd.
Sunny.
North wind 3 to 5 mph.
and
81 degrees
,53 max dew point,
8:00 sunset.
Sunday Night. Feels like … August 30th.
Mostly cloudy.
East wind 3 to 5 mph.
and
58 degrees
,
6:00 sunrise.
Monday. Feels like … September 11th.
Scattered showers after 2pm. Mostly cloudy.
Northeast wind around 6 mph becoming southeast in the morning. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
and
76 degrees
,58 max dew point,
7:58 sunset.
Monday Night. Feels like … August 13th.
Scattered showers, mainly before 8pm. Mostly cloudy.
Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
and
61 degrees
,60 max dew point,
6:01 sunrise.
Tuesday. Feels like … August 28th.
A chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Partly sunny.
Chance of precipitation is 30%.
and
80 degrees
,60 max dew point,
7:57 sunset.
Tuesday Night. Feels like … July 31st.
A chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8pm. Mostly cloudy.
Made it to the weekend. It was a busy week, but today should be a nice day when I go up to Thacher Park in a bit to hike, hammock and read.
Mostly sunny and 59 degrees in Delmar, NY. 🌞 There is a north-northwest breeze at 6 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 52 degrees. The skies will clear around 9 am.
Just kind of busy, crazy week. 🚶♀️ Somehow I did manage to get my steps in yesterday, 👣 and had a nice walk in the evening to the town park. Fell asleep reasonably well, and I think I got a pretty decent nights sleep for a change. I certainly feel better then I did yesterday morning.
Finished off the peanut 🥜 butter after packing lunch and tossed it in the burn garbage. 🔥 I do recycle ♻ plastics in the winter but peanut butter containers are the worse and they burn just fine. Some day when I own my own land it all will just be burn garbage year round bar the food scraps I feed to the pigs 🐽 and the metal I scrap.
Today I am heading to Thacher Park, 🏞 on the Nature Bus and it should be a fairly nice day. Not too hot, lots of sun, chance to hike and explore and do some reading with no reason to rush anywhere. Tomorrow I’ll probably go out to the folks house for Sunday dinner.
While I have a parks pass 🎫 I just like taking the bus 🚍 and it forces me to spend a set time period at the park when I’m free to hike and do whatever I want. No 😴 sleeping in or finding reasons to delay my trip to the park.
Been doing a lot of research into the Digital Forecast Model and GRIB data. 🗺 I would like to be able to do more weather mapping and temperature/local conditions mapping based on their model, rather just point data. Forecast data is widely available but the file formats are a bit technical. But there is quite a bit you can do with R using this data.
Only get to say that two more times in August. A beautiful morning on my ride to the bus downtown. But I am so tired and worn out from this week. Just everything seems to be frying me, but I’m hopeful for a quieter weekend ahead.
Mostly sunny and 65 degrees at the Exit 23 – Albany (I-787). 😎 There is a north breeze at 6 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 55 degrees.
Tomorrow I will probably catch the Nature Bus up to Thacher Park. 🚌 Always a fun and relaxing day hiking and hammocking at Thacher Park. Pack a nice lunch, and it should be clear and not too humid. I still have a few books to finish up since vacation. I like the Nature Bus as it’s free and it means I am on a schedule so I get a nice early start.
Yesterday it was bringing more work home 💻 and working down at the library. This year work from home is something that I do after hours. Things have just been crazy at work and things just piled up further and further while I was on vacation.
What they don’t tell you about making more money is that the work levels also increase. 💵 But I’m still trying to save whatever I can for a better tomorrow but it’s hard with inflation and the markets in the capper. Interest rates on savings are up though and the market is up somewhat. But despite the extra money the future just seems further away.
I tell you when I get to my age, the weeks don’t last nearly as long. Seasons come and go at the blink of the eye. Partly sunny and 67 degrees at the Elm Ave Park and Ride. ☀ Calm wind. The dew point is 61 degrees.
