Good afternoon! Partly cloudy and 89 degrees in Albany, NY. There is a south-southwest breeze at 9 mph. The dew point is a somewhat sticky 62. Not a terrible summer afternoon, even if summer doesn’t technically occur until 6:34 pm.

With this long and hot day, I’m going to head out kayak fishing on Lawson Lake this evening once I get home. I’ve heard there are some decent sized large mouth in that lake, and I am hoping to get some bites in the deeper parts of the lake, as it starts to get dark and cools off a bit. Dusk is at 9:11 PM, so I figure I’ll have some time, especially if I have a quick micro-zapped dinner. It will be cool on the lake, especially once the sun drops behind the mountain.

I was going to go out fishing last night after I left my parents house, but I accidentally left my tackle box at home after unpacking from camping. I was also pretty tired last night. But I left my kayak on the roof of my truck, in preparation for going fishing tonight. I usually go down to the Hudson River, but I figure if I get out on Lawson’s Lake, I might catch something actually worth keeping.

The express bus driver is taking us over through the south end to help us avoid delays on the 787, which is good because I really want to get fishing. The bus is frigid tonight, so it will feel extra hot once I get home.

Tonight will have a chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after midnight. Some of the storms could produce gusty winds. Increasing clouds, with a low around 65. Seven degrees above normal. South wind 9 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Seven degrees above normal. The record low of 41 occurred back in 1970.

June Solstice (Summer Solstice) officially starts at 6:34 PM tonight in Albany. At 15 hours 19 minutes 23 seconds, this day is 6 hours, 17 minutes longer than on December Solstice. Earliest sunrise is on June 14 or June 15. Latest sunset is on June 26 — a few seconds later.

Tonight the sun will set at 8:36 pm with dusk around 9:11 pm, which is 14 seconds later than yesterday. Tonight is June’s Strawberry Full Moon — the first full moon on the Summer Solstice since the Summer of Love in 1967.  July’s Buck Moon is on Tuesday, July 19th.

Tomorrow will be mostly sunny, with a high near 80. One degree above normal. West wind 10 to 14 mph. The record high of 97 was set in 1938.

So far it looks like a warm and sunny weekend. Saturday, sunny, with a high near 88. Sunday, mostly sunny, with a high near 88. Typical average high for the weekend is 80 degrees. I am undecided about whether I’ll spend the weekend in Schoharie County at the Mine Kill State Park or go up Stewart Landing, camp, fish, and paddle West Canada Lake, and possibly visit the Potholers. If it’s really hot the Potholers would be wonderful.

In four weeks on July 18 the sun will be setting at 8:28 pm, which is 8 minutes earlier then today. The average high is 83 degrees, and the record for that date is 100 degrees was set back in 1953.

Grocery shopping last night I kind of forgot about buying coffee, so I’m almost out. There are few other things I need to get, that somehow fell off my list. But I should be good for a few more days, until I need more coffee. I’ll just re-heat what is in the pot, which is what I normally do in the summer months. Probably will need more supplies by then at any rate. I did pick up some sparkler fountains, and will probably buy more in the coming weeks, so I can have lots of fun this Fourth of July.

I took off July 1st along with the last week of July. For the Independence Weekend, I’m heading up to Moose River Plains. Probably will be modestly on call that weekend, so I’ll probably end up heading out to Inlet to make phone calls and check my email a few times during the weekend. But I haven’t been up to the Plains since last autumn, so it will be nice to get away for the holiday weekend — hopefully early enough to get a nice campsite.

That last week of July will be spent out in the Finger Lakes, probably most of pool side at Watkins Glen State Park Pool. I really like that pool with the wonderful Adirondack chairs and free entrance and exit to the pool. Bring a snack, sit out in the sun, go for a swim on the hottest day of the year. Pretty close to paradise in my book. Maybe end my trip in Erie, Penna. and go swimming at the amazing Presque Isle State Park.

Did I mention I am a bit of a fan of the summer months?