Seneca Lake stands as the largest among the glacial Finger Lakes within the state of New York. Renowned for its substantial size and depth, it remains entirely contained within the state’s borders. The lake has earned distinction as the preeminent locale for lake trout angling, exemplified by its role as the host of the esteemed National Lake Trout Derby. Positioned at the northern terminus of Seneca Lake, the city of Geneva, New York, commands attention, serving as the domicile for Hobart and William Smith Colleges, along with housing the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, a constituent entity of Cornell University. Conversely, the village of Watkins Glen, situated at the southern extremity of the lake, boasts a notable reputation due to its association with motorsport, primarily due to the presence of Watkins Glen International racetrack, as well as its picturesque cascades.
Seneca Lake possesses an uncommon macroclimate that has bestowed it with the distinction of nurturing over 50 wineries, predominantly characterized as farm wineries. Its geographical attributes have led to the designation of the Seneca Lake American Viticultural Area (AVA), solidifying its reputation within oenophilic circles.
In terms of dimensions, Seneca Lake stretches across a length of approximately 38 miles, securing its position as the second longest Finger Lake. Remarkably voluminous, it is estimated to contain an impressive 3.81 cubic miles (15.9 kmยณ) of water, accounting for nearly half of the cumulative water volume across all the Finger Lakes. The lake’s profundity is notable, averaging 291 feet, while plunging to a maximum depth of 618 feet. The expansive water body covers a surface area of approximately 66.9 square miles (173 kmยฒ).
Good evening! A nice evening after a hot day swimming. ๐โโ๏ธ
Sitting by Foster Pond for a while, saw two shooting stars but also a fair amount of haze around.
Partly clear and 77 degrees at the Town of Hector. โจ Moderate breeze, sometimes humid sometimes cool and refreshing. Seems to be mixing of the air currents between the lakes. The dew point is 62 degrees.
Spent the bulk of the day at Enfield Glen ๐โโ๏ธ hiking in the morning through the Glen and the Lucifer Falls Loop and exploring the Grist Mill followed by spending the bulk of the day swimming in the gorge. Refilled my propane tank and camp back to camp, bought sweet corn ๐ฝ and made burgers ๐ on the grill and then read ๐ until around 9:15.
It was kind of a nice day but hot by afternoon. ๐ The swimming was nice but it was hot especially when I had to stay out of the water ๐ฆ for a while for a work conference call. ๐ I think I might have picked up swimmers itch from the water but the stuff I use on my feet can be sprayed on my balls โฝ to address that. ๐
Yesterday was a quieter day at camp โบ, cloudy โ but rain free and quiet. Dusty though when cars went by from it being so dry. Got through two books, ๐ took a nice afternoon nap after some fishing ๐ฃ and wildlife observation at Potomac Ponds. Kind of hot and dry, did a fair bit of drinking ๐ป. I kind of enjoy the more relaxed pace this year.
Somebody emailed ๐ง yesterday about making some KML Google Maps up and it sent me down the long journey of thinking ๐ญ how I could do it in R in an automated way. I had previously been doing it by exporting the geopackages from R into QGIS but I want more control and automation over the process.
A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms before 11am, then a slight chance of showers between 11am and noon. Mostly sunny.
Northwest wind 10 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
and
79 degrees
,66 max dew point,
8:27 sunset.
Tonight. Feels like … August 13th.
Mostly clear.
Northwest wind 5 to 9 mph becoming calm in the evening.
and
61 degrees
,62 max dew point,
5:59 sunrise.
Wednesday. Hot !
Sunny.
Calm wind becoming south 5 to 8 mph in the morning.
and
86 degrees
,61 max dew point,
8:25 sunset.
Wednesday Night. Muggy !
A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2am. Partly cloudy.
South wind around 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
and
73 degrees
,66 max dew point,
6:00 sunrise.
Thursday. Muggy !
A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 2pm. Mostly sunny.
South wind 6 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
and
91 degrees
,72 max dew point,
8:24 sunset.
Thursday Night. Muggy !
Showers and thunderstorms likely before 11pm, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 11pm and 2am, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2am. Mostly cloudy.
Chance of precipitation is 60%.
and
71 degrees
,71 max dew point,
6:01 sunrise.
Friday. Feels like … August 22nd.
Showers likely.
Chance of precipitation is 60%.
and
81 degrees
,71 max dew point,
8:23 sunset.
Friday Night. Muggy !
A chance of thunderstorms before 8pm. Mostly cloudy.
Chance of precipitation is 30%.
and
70 degrees
,70 max dew point,
6:02 sunrise.
Saturday. Muggy !
A chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Mostly sunny.
Chance of precipitation is 30%.
and
86 degrees
,71 max dew point,
8:22 sunset.
Saturday Night. Muggy !
A chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8pm. Partly cloudy.
More clouds this morning but still a nice morning. The breeze makes it pleasantly cool, when the sun dips under the clouds, it actually feel quite cool.
Partly cloudy and 74 degrees at the Finger Lakes National Forest. โ There is a west-northwest breeze at 10 mph. ๐. The dew point is 66 degrees. The skies will clear around 10 am.
Yesterday, I headed into town at worked down at the library for a couple of hours. ๐โ๏ธ While not so hot up here in the National Forest, down in Watkins Glen it was really hot and a library was very cold. So I ended my day at the Watkins Glen Pool, got ice cream ๐ฆ sat down briefly by Seneca Lake until I decided that sun was super hot and glaring, and I headed back to camp.
Today is a hang out and hike from camp day. ๐ฃ Do some fishing,some wildlife observation. Supposed to have more sun later on. I am continuing on the plan of spend one day around camp, and one day out and about. That said, with the exteme heat expected to bake New York State in the second half of the week, I doubt I’ll be doing much hiking — more like hitting up swimming holes. I like hanging around camp though every other day, as I don’t have to feel rushed to do things and can have some beer.
This table shows the average high, median, and low temperatures for the next year. Previous year values are shown in parenthesis. The sun angle is the maximum sun angle at solar noon for the day.
Continues to look like a good week for vacation ๐
Should be a good evening for star ๐ gazing but later in the week looks more unstable but hot. Not a lot of rain though in the forecast which is nice.
Today. Feels like …
July 15th.
Mostly sunny.
South wind 5 to 9 mph.
and
84 degrees
,64 max dew point,
8:28
sunset.
Tonight. Muggy !
A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy.
South wind around 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
and
69 degrees
,68 max dew point,
5:58
sunrise.
Tuesday. Feels like …
September 1st.
A chance of showers before 8am, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms between 8am and 11am, then a slight chance of showers after 11am. Partly sunny.
Northwest wind 7 to 11 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
and
79 degrees
,68 max dew point,
8:27
sunset.
Tuesday Night. Feels like …
August 20th.
Mostly clear.
Northwest wind 5 to 8 mph becoming calm in the evening.
and
60 degrees
,
5:59
sunrise.
Wednesday. Hot !
Sunny.
South wind 3 to 7 mph.
and
86 degrees
,61 max dew point,
8:25
sunset.
Wednesday Night. Hot !
Partly cloudy.
and
72 degrees
,64 max dew point,
6:00
sunrise.
Thursday. Muggy !
Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 2pm. Mostly sunny and hot.
Chance of precipitation is 60%.
and
92 degrees
,71 max dew point,
8:24
sunset.
Thursday Night. Muggy !
Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm before 2am, then a chance of showers. Mostly cloudy.
Chance of precipitation is 60%.
and
71 degrees
,71 max dew point,
6:01
sunrise.
Friday. Feels like …
September 1st.
A chance of showers.
Chance of precipitation is 50%.
and
79 degrees
,70 max dew point,
8:23
sunset.
Friday Night. Muggy !
A chance of thunderstorms before 8pm. Mostly cloudy.
Day four of summer vacation. Cool start to the morning with the breeze but it should warm up later on.
Mostly sunny and 62 degrees at the Finger Lakes National Forest. There is a south-southeast breeze at 5 mph. ๐. The dew point is 61 degrees.
The coffee โ is percolating, birds ๐ฆ chirping and cows ๐ฎ are mooing with a gentle breeze this morning. ๐ Going to be pretty hot later on – I need to finish up some work stuff down at the Watkins Glen library at 11 then I’ll probably do a hike and swim ๐โโ๏ธ and hang out the Watkins Glen Park until 6 pm, get some ice cream ๐ฆand return to camp. โบ
As planned, yesterday was a pretty quiet day ๐ด with a lot of hammock time, some fishing ๐ฃ, reading ๐ and a hike up to the top of Hector Backbone. By afternoon it was hot, muggy with that gray glare that often dominates on those not super nice sultry summer days. ๐ป Also spent a few hours doing work things on my laptop and sat and watched it get dark by Foster Pond.
While gas prices are my excuse, taking every other day or so to do things around camp โบ just makes vacation less hectic. I have plenty of battery ๐ bank and solar to work such schedule and it saves on having to spend so much time moving things around in the truck. That said, two days is about the maximum I can expect for the ice at camp.
I need to get ice and milk ๐ฅ this morning and then I will head down to the Watkins Glen library to work. Such a nice morning so I want to maximize it. But first I should get some firewood as I think I want to have a fire ๐ฅ this evening after star gazing at Foster Pond. โจ
I think Wednesday I will hike Enfield Glen and swim ๐โโ๏ธ there. I have a 9:30 work call I need to do in the morning but after that I should have the rest of the day. Assuming Enfield Glen swimming is open, which I’ll have to check in advance as it often closes due to turbidity and other water quality issues.