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My urge for camping 🏕 got the best of me ☃

You know I’m happier in the woods than in any city, next to the fire burning things and having a good ol time. I knew last night was gonna be cold but it turned out not that bad though today will be cooler. Worked out good bar some issues with the camp stove last night and forgetting salt for the icy campsite and I’m glad to get away even if it’s just one night.

Good morning! Happy Sunday. Mostly cloudy with some snow flurries and 30 degrees at the Rensselaerville State Forest. ☁ There is a south breeze at 9 mph. 🍃. The current wind chill is 22.

I decided to take option 3 and do a quick overnight trip to Rennselearville State Forest. ⛺ I think I’m going to take down camp soon and then head home before the front comes through and brings snow squals with strong winds and it’s cold enough the roads will ice up. I kind of wanted to do two ✌️ nights but I decided it’s not that far if it ends up being one night. It is probably my best chance to get away a bit, next weekend I’m busy with the Reszin documentary and it looks even colder. ❄ Winter has arrived as we enter the coldest part of the year. Little worried too that I’m starting to get a bit of a chest cough, you know the one that’s been going around. I’m hoping it’s just a breathed in too much smoke last night.

But first a second pot of coffee ☕. Few snow 🌨 flurries around and I shouldn’t procrastinate but the morning turned out nicer than I had expected with blue skies and a fairly slack wind. Enjoyed the last of the Mariaville Farm Bacon 🥓 from local hogs on sale by Farmer Alice at For the Love of Bacon with the eggs 🥚 and veggies this morning. 🌅 It’s a treat with camping. Wasn’t sure if I was going to get the camp stove working, regulator is giving me trouble again. Wasn’t working at all last night. I slept with it to keep it warm last night and fiddled with the connection and dipped in rubbing alcohol and now it’s working again. Going to add a propane line filter and maybe pick up a second regulator to avoid problems in the future 🔮.

Today will snow showers likely, mainly after noon. Partly sunny 🌦, with a high of 35 degrees at 9am. Two degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around February 9th. Breezy, with a south wind 9 to 14 mph becoming southwest 17 to 22 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 45 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible. A year ago, we had light snow. The high last year was 30 degrees. The record high of 66 was set in 1932. 9.0 inches of snow fell back in 1999.❄

The wind is what concerns me. Some forecasts are talking about windchills especially tonight around 0 degrees. I am not sure I want to be camping out in, plus my camp stove has been acting up in the cold. I’m having issues again with the campstove regulator getting jelled up and plugged with dirt and condensate. I think when I can get home this week, I am going to order a second regulator for the campstove, plus another Big Buddy filter. My other propane stove, whose burners ultimately burnt out a second time, had a few issues with this occassionally but this new stove I got last summer has constant issues now that it’s cold, though oddly not all on the Christmas trip to Madison County, though I stored it in the warmth of my truck. Though if the Big Buddy filter works like it does with the Big Buddy Heater and the lantern, I expect smooth sailing going forward. It’s good to have back ups.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:06 pm with sun having an altitude of 26.1° from the due south horizon (-44.8° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 12.2 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 4:03 pm with the sun in the southwest (234°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (241°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:47 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 18 seconds with dusk around 5:18 pm, which is one minute and 9 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Waxing Crescent 🌒 Moon in the southwest (216°) at an altitude of 29° from the horizon, 226,294 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:53 pm. At sunset, look for snow 🌨 and temperatures around 29 degrees. The wind chill around sunset will be 16. ☃️ Breezy, 22 mph breeze ⛅ from the west with gusts up to 44mph. Today will have 9 hours and 26 minutes of daytime, an increase of one minute and 33 seconds over yesterday.

I am worried enough about the possibility of white out conditions driving home that I want to be on the road by 11 AM. I am going to sip my coffee, then take my campsite down before it gets too late. I could for a walk, and the road is hard enough for a bike ride now, but I think I’d rather just head home and avoid the risk of driving on snow-covered roads. Its not like I am on the other side of the earth — it’s a 21 mile drive that takes roughly a half hour, as most of the road is 55 MPH bar Clarksville and Rensselearville. I’m right on a plowed dirt road, and 1,000 feet from asphalt so I’m not worried about being snowed in, but driving home on those hills in snow and ice, could be kind of miserable.

Tonight will be partly cloudy 🌤, with a low of 17 degrees at 4am. One degree above normal, which is similar to a typical night around February 11th. Maximum wind chill around 9 at 3am; Breezy, with a southwest wind 17 to 22 mph decreasing to 9 to 14 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 33 mph. Other weather reports are calling for a wind chill closer to 0. I don’t mind such cold when I’m in the truck protected from the wind, but during the evening next to campfire that would be downright cold, I’m afraid. Wind worries me more then cold, as it sucks the heat away from your body. That said, my gear is really good for camping down to about 10-15 degrees, much colder then that at night in my unhreated truck cap it gets cold. In 2023, we had light snow in the evening, which became cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 19 degrees. The record low of -20 occurred back in 1957.

Still I’m glad I got away for one day. Just a night in the woods puts a smile on my face. Despite the woods being wet from rain we’ve had, it was cold enough up here in the State Forest that ground was frozen solid and was able to have a good fire. I’ll head home, get unpacked — it’s not that much stuff for one night — and shower. Maybe go for a bike ride this afternoon or down to the library if conditions aren’t too harsh. Or maybe cook up a big pot of chicken soup, especially if I’m not feeling good. I am thinking my next trip will be Presidents Day to Moscow Hill Horse Camp in Madison County, but we’ll see. Get some nice weather, and maybe I’ll head back to the wilderness sooner for a weekend trip, like during my 41st birthday weekend, though winter is tough. Next weekend will be too cold it appears, plus the Reszin documentary.

Looking ahead, next Sunday starts the Coldest Week of the Year 🌬 when the sun will be setting at 4:57 pm with dusk at 5:26 pm. Martin Luther King 👑 weekend is early this year. On that day in 2023, we had snow showers, cloudy and temperatures between 33 and 30 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 32 degrees. We hit a record high of 61 back in 2006.

State of the State Day 🏫

I wonder if this means any new swimming pools will open up at State Parks near where I like to explore. More like shouting protestors and State Troopers swarming the Capitol complex. I kind of wish at this point I was moved to the new office to avoid all the craziness. But summer time at State Parks is on my mind, not the ice fog of today.

Good morning! Happy State of the State Day. 🏫 For me that just means avoid the Concourse and Capitol like the plague or risk crowds of people yelling you, probably about the Isreal and Palestine conflict which is on the other side of the world and I have nothing to do about. Ice fog from the snow and 20 degrees in Delmar. 🌫 Calm wind. There are 5 inches of snow on the ground. ☃ ️Things will start to thaw out at around noontime. 🌡️Then rain tonight.

Ironing my shirt and pants 🕴🏻getting ready for another session day. Drinking coffee ☕ and enjoying the very good pancakes 🥞 I made topped with frozen wild Maine blueberries 🫐, Greek yogurt and pure maple 🍁 syrup. Very tasty, I used more whole wheat flour 🌾 then oats in the mix with an egg, some milk, water and baking powder for fluffiness. I’m just now waiting for the inevitable blood sugar crash😔. Been a bit heavy on the carbs lately so I skipped making bread for now. 🍞 Maybe knead more tonight. I took salmon 🐟 out of the freezer for cooking tonight after work.

Today will have a chance of snow between noon and 3pm, then rain and snow. 🌧 High of 35 degrees at 3pm. Three degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around February 14th. Light southeast wind increasing to 11 to 16 mph in the morning. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Total daytime snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning with a few breaks of sun the afternoon. The high last year was 36 degrees. The record high of 62 was set in 2008. 9.9 inches of snow fell back in 1953.❄

I like my early morning bike ride 🚲 and will head out at 6:45 again after it’s no longer pitch black. 🐮 I like seeing the cows and the mountains along Meads Road. It’s a good ride with the hills on Orchard Street, and while they were a bit icy yesterday, there was enough sand on them that I could maintain traction with my bike. 🌨 Not sure if tomorrow I’ll be able to ride to work, it’s not a session day but it depends on when the rain ☔ stops and how much snow is left on the rail trail. I guess I could take in city streets. 🚘 Going to certainly be mild by tomorrow morning but windy.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:03 pm with sun having an altitude of 25.2° from the due south horizon (-45.6° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 12.7 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:55 pm with the sun in the southwest (232°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (240°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:40 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 21 seconds with dusk around 5:11 pm, which is one minute and 2 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:47 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and snow 🌨 and temperatures around 35 degrees. Breezy, 16 mph breeze ⛅ from the southeast. Tomorrow will have 9 hours and 19 minutes of daytime, an increase of one minute and 19 seconds over today.

Tonight will rain, possibly mixed with snow, becoming all rain after 7pm. ☔ Temperature rising to around 49 by 4am. Windy, with a southeast wind 23 to 28 mph decreasing to 15 to 20 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 46 mph. 🌬️ Chance of precipitation is 100%. Little or no snow accumulation expected. In 2023, we had light snow in the evening, which became partly cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 22 degrees. The record low of -13 occurred back in 1968.

I have my doubts about the evening walk. 🌧 That said, I didn’t bother bringing an umbrella to work this afternoon, as there is no reason to have an umbrella with that kind of wind. Just going to get wet waiting for the express bus. 🚌 It’s fine, I’ll head home, change into dry clothes, cook my salmon and brocolli 🐟 🥦 and whatever else I want for dinner, then knead the bread 🍞 and put it in the oven to rise.

Saturday looks to be quite wet.🌧️ Saturday, rain, mainly before 1pm. High near 48. Breezy. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Then it turns cold for Sunday into MLK Day. ❄ Sunday, mostly cloudy, with a high near 31. Breezy. MLK Day, mostly cloudy, with a high of 33. Typical average high for the weekend is 33 degrees. Deep and dark of winter.

As previously noted, there are 2 weeks until National Cheese Lovers Day 🧀 when the sun will be setting at 4:58 pm with dusk at 5:27 pm. I like cheese but I enjoy it in moderation these days. But the good news is we are almost to the 5 pm sunset then. On that day in 2023, we had snow and temperatures between 34 and 30 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 32 degrees. We hit a record high of 64 back in 1906.

Waiting on the sun to ride after yesterday’s snow 🌅 🚲

Figured if it’s a dress-up day for work, I won’t be able to ride to work or want to take the stairs up to my office. So it best to get out riding early. It looks like the main roads will just be wet, not super icy though I might run into some snow on side-streets, like Meads Road and Orchard Street. I don’t expect it will be that bad of a ride this morning, and it’s not super cold. But first the sun needs to rise a bit more. I have lights on my bike but I don’t want to ride in the pitch black, especially past the street lights on NY 32 and Meads Road.

Good morning! Happy Monday on this Bubble Bath Day. 🛀 Back to work today, no time for bubble baths. 🧼Partly cloudy and 23 degrees in Delmar. ⛅ There is a northwest breeze at 14 mph. 🍃. The current wind chill is 11. There are 7 inches of snow on the ground. ☃ ️Things will start to thaw out at around 10 am. 🌡️ Probably want a bubble bath by the time I get home from the ride this morning. And more oil on the bike chain.

This morning I made cornmeal paddies with an egg, milk, red onions, garlic, spinach, red pepper and salt. 🍔 I think with the garlic, salt and red pepper I might next time dial back it back a bit, as they were a bit more punchy then I’d like in the morning, but they were good. The spinach helped boost the fiber content plus topping them with greek yogurt and the egg in them really boost the protein content. I was pretty happy with how they came out, and will make them again though I still think I’d want to tone them back a bit. Just too spicy for morning food. Is corn as healthy as oats or whole-wheat? Probably not, but it has the different sweeter and oiler taste. Don’t need to add any oil to the paddies for sure, and they were good.

Today will be mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 37 degrees at 1pm. Four degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around February 18th. Northwest wind 7 to 14 mph. Between the warm weather, breeze and sun I don’t expect the snow to stick around. But we can really stick a fork in it come Wednesday with the rain expected. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning with some clearing in the afternoon. The high last year was 35 degrees. The record high of 60 was set in 2008. 8.3 inches of snow fell back in 1923.❄

Yesterday, I decided to make up some chicken soup 🍲 for dinner, which was followed by pea soup and a small bowl of cornmeal porridge. Interested in finding new ways to use cornmeal. Shredded a full orange in the food processor, to get all the flavor, taste and fiber of both the inside and outside of an orange. Didn’t make up any bread last night, I was kind of tired, but I probably will tonight when I get home.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 25.1° from the due south horizon (-45.7° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 12.8 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:54 pm with the sun in the southwest (232°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (240°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:39 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 21 seconds with dusk around 5:10 pm, which is one minute and 2 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:46 pm. At sunset, look for partly clear skies 🌃 and temperatures around 34 degrees. There will be a northwest breeze at 7 mph. Tomorrow will have 9 hours and 18 minutes of daytime, an increase of one minute and 14 seconds over today.

I’ll be the first to admit yesterday wasn’t the most productive day ever. Just a lot of reading, and watching Youtube and Udemy videos to learn more about machine learning and other topics. I probably should have gone out for a walk yesterday, but it was cold out and I wasn’t super interested in heading out. I kind of want to just get through winter at this point.

Tonight will be partly cloudy 🏙, with a low of 22 degrees at 6am. Five degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around March 1st. Light and variable wind. Should be a nice night for the evening. In 2023, we had clear skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 18 degrees. The record low of -20 occurred back in 1968.

Right now, a split verdict on the weekend. 😕 Saturday, rain. High near 45. Breezy. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Sunday, partly sunny, with a high near 32. Breezy. Typical average high for the weekend is 33 degrees. Things could evolve but Saturday isn’t looking great for heading out of town but Sunday into King’s Day might be good. I kind of would like to get at least one night in the woods, preferrably two if I decide to head up to the Adirondacks or Central NY. Rensselearville isn’t so bad for just one night, but it still requires quite a bit of packing.

Next Monday is Martin Luther King Day 🖤 when the sun will be setting at 4:48 pm with dusk at 5:17 pm. We are picking up quite a bit of time in the evening now, even if when I move to the Enterprise Drive office in the suburbs, there will be enough light in evening to ride back and catch the express bus home. The question now is just cold and snow. On that day in 2023, we had partly cloudy and temperatures between 33 and 19 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 32 degrees. We hit a record high of 65 back in 1995.

Places I Camped in 2023

While this year was a rainy one, and it rained during many of my trips, I was able to get out for 53 nights in the wilderness — mostly fairly close to home but I also did a trip down to West Virginia in late October with several trips to the Adirondacks, Central New York and summer vacation in the Finger Lakes.

Martin Luther Kings Day – January 14-16 (2 nights)

To start out my camping adventures in 2023, I drove out to Charles Baker State Forest and Brookfield Horse Camp. There wasn’t a lot of snow — just a dusting but it was a fun weekend, topped off by a beautiful sun-full glittery hike up Tassell Hill after a hoar frost. Explored Lost Pond and several of the trails in the middle of state forest.

40th Birthday – January 27-29 (2 nights)

For my fortieth birthday, I took off the Friday leading up to my 40th birthday to cross country ski and winter camp at Rensselaerville State Forest. It was a beautiful weekend with lots of blue skies, sufficient snow for skiing but not so much that was a ton of snowmobiles out on the trails.

Presidents Day – February 17-19 (2 nights)

I decided for Presidents Day Weekend to do another trip out to Charles Baker State Forest and Brookfield Horse Camp. Slightly more snow then last time but again largely a snow-less winter, with some nice days for hikes through the various truck and horse trails. I hiked around much of state forest, especially the more southern part of the forest.

Easter Weekend – April 7-9 (2 nights)

On Good Friday through Easter I camped at at Rensselaerville State Forest. The snow was gone and it was fairly mild though at times it was a bit cool. Spent a fair amount of time walking around and exploring the new OSI Parcel that has been recently added to state forest and is still largely open fields with sweeping views of the Catskill Mountains.

Duck Pond Trip – May 5-7 (2 nights)

The first Friday in May I took a half day from work and headed out to Schoharie County to camp at Duck Pond at Burnt-Rossman Hills State Forest. Originally the plan was to camp two nights at Duck Pond, hiking along the Long Path and exploring the state forest and then on Sunday hiking the Catskill Scenic Trail. That part of the trip changed when driving along Duck Pond Road the low tire pressure light came on I found a pallet nail in my truck tire. I was able to top off the truck tire and then change the tire when I got home and got the nail pulled and plugged. But it wasn’t the best way ever to end a trip early.

Overnight at Cole Hill – May 13-14 (1 night)

After visiting the folks on Mother’s Day Weekend, I decided to do a quick overnight hammock camp on Cole Hill State Forest in Berne. Nothing fancy or formal, it was as much a way to test out sleeping in my hammock with the bug screen. Kind of a chilly night, I took camp down fairly and headed home early in the morning.

Memorial Day Weekend at Cole Hill – May 20-22 (2 nights)

This year I decided to eschew the Adirondacks and Greene Mountains for Memorial Day Weekend due to the black flies, my desire to look at bicycles, and work I had to do on the Saturday morning leading up to the holiday weekend. I decided to hammock camp again Cole Hill State Forest in Berne. This was a three-day two night trip, so it it gave me a chance to bring more gear up the mountain, set up a more formal camp. Cooked on the fire, hiked around the forest. It was a warm weekend, but I enjoy the solitude, along with having good cell service for listening to podcasts and watching videos.

Juneteenth Weekend on Piseco-Powley – June 15-20 (4 nights)

To kick off summer, I did my usual Juneteenth weekend camping trip, tacking on some days on the Juneteenth Holiday Weekend. It was a bit of a cool and rainy weekend to kick off summer, one that would actually be followed by many cool and rainy weekends where I would stay home. Camped at House Pond for the first three nights, spending time down floating in the tube on East Branch while the final night I camped up at Powley Bridge site and kayaked along the East Branch. Really, like often is the case, the best weather was the day I took down camp.

Catskill Scenic Trail Trip – July 22-24 (3 nights)

After several months of researching and visiting various bike shops, I finally got a mountain bike. I decided it would be fun to do as much of the Catskill Scenic Trail as I could before my summer vacation got underway. Actually did quite a bit of riding and hiking that weekend — started out hiking Pratts Rock’s then riding from Grand George to Hobart. Sunday, I rode from Fultonham to Middleburgh on NY 30, doing a quick climb up Vromans Nose, then stopping at the farm market then going to Mine Kill State Park to swim. Monday I rode from Hobart down to Bloomville, getting caught in a major thunderstorm and downpour a few miles north of Bloomville with no shelter in sight. The trail became super boggy, then I went to Mine Kill State Park for one more swim, and then out to folks house for Sunday dinner a day later then usual.

Finger Lakes National Forest – July 28 – August 6 (9 nights)

Every year for nearly a decade and a half I’ve been doing summer vacation out in the Finger Lakes — camping in the National Forest and exploring as much as possible during my days there. The past few years I’ve been driving there on a Friday, to get a better campsite before they’re taken by the weekend campers. This year was no exception. With Blackie, my mountain bike, I did nearly all of the bike trails in the near vicinity, from the Black Diamond Trail to the Cayuta Valley Trail to Dresden – Penn Yan Canal Trail. Kayaked on both Cayuga and Scenic Lakes, swam many days at Watkins Glen State Park and Taughannock State Park, explored the Cornell Campus and Botanical Gardens on my bike. Got some good ice cream at the Spotted Duck, explored the Geneva Waterfront along with the Cayuga-Seneca Canalway. Some rain but compared to the wet summer that was, this was a pretty good week.

Piseco-Powley – House Pond Campsite – August 18-20 (3 nights)

The next few weeks for rainy and by the time I got away for one more long weekend, it promised to be fairly nice weekend but turned out to be fairly cool and cloudy with some rain. Back at the House Pond Campsite, did some swimming in East Branch, but with the mercury in the 60s most of the weekend, I didn’t spend a lot of time in the water. Hardly what I had dreamed when the I planned the weekend. Rode Blackie up to Goldmine Stream Falls and relaxed down by the falls for a bit, also sat down by the swimming hole off of the Old Edick Road Snowmobile Trail, watching the rain fall, bemoaning the wet and cold weather. Still it was good to get away for a bit, and I did do a fair amount of reading in hammock, under the protection of the bug net, as the bugs were bad after such a wet summer.

Labor Day at Perkins Clearing – September 1-4 (3 nights)

I took the Friday off before Labor Day to get a jump on the holiday season travel, and set up camp at the site I really enjoy up at Perkins Clearing overlooking the mountains. Did a fair amount of riding along the various dirt roads of Perkins Clearing, including over to Mason Lake and on Sunday rode most of the way to the Spruce Lake Trailhead, though didn’t make it there in time as I got a bit of a late start as I spent the balance of the day reading and swimming in the Jessup River Bridge swimming hole. Labor Day, I rode around the Spectulator Tree Farm, doing a large loop, through the tree farm, past the north end of Elm Lake, then down to Austin Falls and Old Route 8B. I had hoped to get ice cream, but by the time I got to the ice cream shop they were out of soft-ice cream, and there was a long line. Summer was dragging to a close.

September Trip to Rensselearville State Forest – September 15-17 (2 nights)

With time being fairly tight and the weather only so-so I decided to do a two night trip close to home out in Rennselearville to ride some of the gravel trails, explore the OSI Parcel further and just enjoy an early autumn weekend camping.

Columbus Day at Rensselearville State Forest – October 8-9 (1 night)

Columbus Day Weekend was cold and rainy for the first half of the weekend, but the Sunday heading into Columbus Day was nice, so I decided to head out to Rensselaerville for a quick overnight at the campsite on CCC Road. Leaves were late this year, so not a lot of color, but it still was nice to get away for a night and ride some of the trails around.

West Virginia Trip – October 21-29 (8 nights)

The banner trip of the year was my trip down to West Virigina. While it started and ended in rain, it was a very enjoyable trip with lots of new adventures this year. Camped the balance of the week — 6 nights in Canaan Heights — doing day trips from that area. Overnighted one night driving down at County Bridge Campground in Pennsylvania, and a on the way back camped overnight at Long Pond State Forest in New York. Adventures in West Virginia included hiking at Dolly Sods, mountain biking at night in the sods of Canaan Heights, riding up and hiking to Table Rock, exploring Blackwater Falls State Park on the mountain bike, MonPower Mountain Bike Park, Thomas Rail Grade and the Olson Firetower. Rode part of the Great Allegheny Trail through the Cumberland Passage, and the two sections of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canalway, including the Paw Paw Tunnel.

Stoney Pond – November 4-7 (3 nights)

A little over a week back from West Virginia, I headed out to Madison County to ride the Tassel Hill Mountain Bike Trails at Alfred Woodford, the Chenango Canal Trail in Hamilton and Erie Canalway from Chittenango to Green Lakes State Park and then to Canastota and Wampsville. The first night was cold at Stoney Pond but the subsequent nights were quite pleasant and mild.

Prospect Mountain – East Branch Sacanadaga – Buttermilk Falls/Hudson Special Management Area – November 24-28 (3 nights)

Strangely enough, I had never been up Prospect Mountain. So I decided the day after Thanksgiving (Black Friday) to hike up Prospect Mountain, and then spend the next two nights camping on East Branch of the Sacandaga River. The Saturday and Sunday was fairly cold, so I ended up spending the bulk of day hanging around camp, doing a bit of hiking around Fox Lair. Sunday, evening around 8 PM it started to sleet, then snow, then rain, Monday morning, it turned into a white globby snow, and I ended up taking down camp fairly early after discovering I was out of propane and then spent much of the day exploring the Hudson River Special Management Area – Buttermilk Falls.

Stoney Pond – Charles Baker – December 21-26 (5 nights)

On the days leading up to Christmas I decided to take a second trip to Madison County. I was originally planning to camp two nights at Stoney Pond then two nights at the Charles Baker Horse Camp but my family’s holiday plans were cancelled due to illness in my family, so I ended up staying an extra night at the horse camp, through the day after Christmas. On Friday, I rode the Erie Canalway from Canastota to East Verona, nearly to Rome. On Christmas Day I rode around many of truck trails at Charles Baker with my mountain bike, leaving my face splattered with mud. Many of the days were fairly cold and cloudy, but that’s too be expected in late December. Still it was a special way to spend Christmas.

A better Thursday closing out 2023 ☺

The days go by so quickly it seems, though in the case of yesterday maybe not quick enough. Things just got off on the wrong start with the smoke alarm yesterday, compared to today with warm fresh carrot bread and banana oatmeal pancakes.

Good morning! From here on out the sun will be setting after 4:30 PM 🌆 . Slowly but surely the days are getting longer out, step by step. Rain and 44 degrees at the Elm Ave Park and Ride. ☔ There is a north breeze at 5 mph. 🍃. Temperatures will drop below freezing at Saturday around 11 pm. ☃️

After slamming my way through the morning yesterday, 💥 it turned out to be a pretty decent day and things went fairly smoothly. I caught the express bus 🚍 home and between the lunch time and an evening walk 🚶 got my steps in for the day. Made up a bunch of whole wheat bread 🍞🥖 – one loaf with rye and the other with carrots 🥕 and was in bed by nine 🛏 and got a good night’s sleep.

Today will have a chance of showers. Patchy fog before noon. Otherwise, cloudy 🌦, with a high of 47 degrees at 2pm. 12 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around November 22nd. North wind 3 to 5 mph. Another mild day ahead. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning with a few breaks of sun the afternoon. The high last year was 41 degrees. The record high of 61 was set in 1982. 7.0 inches of snow fell back in 1967.❄

Another dreary day on tap 🌨️ but we could be slip sliding our way through it but it’s too warm and I’m not paying for the heat. 👣 It’s not a bad day for walking laps around the Plaza before work and I’ll turn on that brass lamp that I like a little too much when I get to my office 🏢. I wonder if my new office will have a brass table lamp. After all that is what is truly important in the world these days. I just like shinny things that don’t harbor viruses and bacteria. 🛋️

Solar noon 🌞 is at 11:57 am with sun having an altitude of 24.1° from the due south horizon (-46.7° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 13.4 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:44 pm with the sun in the southwest (231°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (239°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:30 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 25 seconds with dusk around 5:01 pm, which is 43 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:37 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and temperatures around 47 degrees. There will be a north breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 9 hours and 7 minutes of daytime, an increase of 27 seconds over yesterday.

I have to admit it just was difficult to shift gears from Madison County 🐮 back to work. It was just so much fun spending Christmas at the horse camp. 🎅 Yes, it was damp and cold at times, with that tangy taste of manure on the air 💩 but it seemed so far away from Albany. The mornings were so dark that I slept in pretty late. I was fortunate that I was able to get away for six days.

Tonight will have a chance of showers. Cloudy 🌧, with a low of 41 degrees at 5am. 22 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around October 17th. Light northwest wind. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 22 degrees. The record low of -18 occurred back in 1933.

I haven’t decided if I will work from home tomorrow, 💻 I have those end of the month reports to run and it would be easier to do from the office though I have bandwidth on my phone 📱 to do it if I wanted. I would kind of like to get propane at lunch time 🏮 and food and supplies for camping 🏕 this weekend. 🪥 In particular, I need toothpaste, I forgot to get that last time I was shopping on Tuesday 🛒 along with all important tumeric.

Mild and less wet weather to close out the 2023.🌤️ Saturday, a chance of showers, mainly before 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 42. West wind 7 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. New Years Eve, partly sunny, with a high near 39. New Years Day 2024 looking at 40 degrees with more sun as the day progresses. Typical average high for the weekend is 35 degrees.

I think I’ll head up to camp ⛺ early on Saturday morning as Friday looks kind of wet. Two more nights is plenty to close out the year. 🎆 Use up some of those sparklers and toast away the year as there is much to look forward to both good and bad in the 2024. And make sure to start dating things correctly. 🗓

And so this is… Merry Christmas 2023 🎅

After a rather misty, wet but mild Christmas Eve the sun is starting to peak through the clouds. It’s good, I decided I’ll stay an extra night as my family’s holiday party was canceled or more like postponed a week due to the cold that is going around. It’s fine, it’s going to be a fairly nice day to enjoy Christmas walking through the woods, enjoying the birds, wildlife and silence.

Good morning! Mostly cloudy and 37 degrees at the Moscow Hill Camping Area. ☁ There is a south-southeast breeze at 6 mph. 🍃. Temperatures will drop below freezing at Friday around 5 pm. ☃️

I’m enjoying the sun ☀ as it’s peaking through the clouds. My Christmas camping trip has been extended by another night after the family Christmas party was postponed. I’m not that disappointed with the nice weather expected today. Even the breeze will be good as it should help dry things out after the misty and muddy mess that was yesterday.

Christmas Day will be partly sunny 🌞, with a high of 45 degrees at 2pm. Nine degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around November 27th. South wind 6 to 10 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies in the morning, remaining cloudy in the afternoon. The high last year was 27 degrees. The record high of 66 was set in 1889. 19.2 inches of snow fell back in 2002.❄

It should be a great day for Christmas 🤶 even if the snow is largely gone. I haven’t decided if I will ride some of the truck trails or just hike, the horse 🐴 trails are closed to mountain bikes for the season 🚵 but the signs are fairly clear that the hardened roads are fine though might be a bit icy. That said, I can always lock up the bike if I want to head off the truck trails.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 12:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 23.8° from the due south horizon (-46.8° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 13.6 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:47 pm with the sun in the southwest (230°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (238°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:33 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 26 seconds with dusk around 5:04 pm, which is 37 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the east-northeast (68°) at an altitude of 17° from the horizon, 240,803 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:41 pm. At sunset, look for partly cloudy skies 🌃 and temperatures around 43 degrees. There will be a south breeze at 9 mph. Today will have 9 hours and 5 minutes of daytime, an increase of 14 seconds over yesterday.

Breakfast is done 🥚 and I’m feeling better after the Charlie Horse I had on my leg earlier in the morning. I might have been dehydrated, I drank a bunch of water. 💦 Gathered firewood for the night 🪵, mostly smaller stuff stacked high in hope the sun and breeze will help to dry things out. Last night the fire 🔥 was really smokey due to the wood being so wet. I actually retired to bed 🛏 on Christmas Eve a little after 8 pm as the fire was struggling and I was just kind of tired. Yesterday’s weather was a bit of a let down.

Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌃 , with a low of 34 degrees at 3am. 14 degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around November 9th. South wind 8 to 10 mph. In 2022, we had cloudy skies in the evening, which became mostly clear by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 16 degrees. The record low of -17 occurred back in 1914.

Looking ahead to New Years Weekend 2024. 🎇 Saturday, a chance of snow showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 32. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Sunday, partly sunny, with a high near 34. New Years Day, 35 degrees and sunny. Typical average high for the weekend is 35 degrees.

More Gluten Monday 🍞

What can I say. Adding that vital wheat gluten to my whole wheat bread added some extra fluff and it really made things less crumbly with much better texature. I’ll see how it holds up over the next few days, as I slowly slice off slices to dip in soup, make french toast and enjoy dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Good morning! Monday’s come back around again. ☔ Hope you know where your umbrella is and your windshield wipers work during this dire emergency winter storm, comma lol. Rain and 36 degrees in Delmar, NY. 🌧️ There is a northwest breeze at 11 mph. 🍃. Temperatures will drop below freezing at around 9 pm. ☃️

Taking the express bus 🚍 in on this rainy ☔ morning. Not the early one either, as by the time I was done cooking 🧑🏻‍🍳 and getting ready it was a no go for the earlier express. I’m not super excited about doing a lot of walking 🚶 this morning, though I’ll try to get in my steps 👣 for the day, maybe even if that means bundling up and going for the evening walk. Going to be cold by evening especially with the wind. 🌬️

There is a closure through the Empire State Plaza tunnels due to a water 💦 main ⛑ break which might cause delays but I don’t care I’m not driving 🚘 and it’s not a big deal if I’m a few minutes late. Looks like the driver is taking an alternative route through the city to avoid traffic. It’s not like next year when I’ll be transferring to the shuttle 🚀 bus out to the suburban office. I do miss riding in on my bike but not with the cold and wet rain. 🚲 Tomorrow I’ll be back riding to work. January is going to be tough on the biking, due to the cold and inevitable snow on the trail, not to mention it’s not safe to be riding Water Street after dark in the evening.

Today will rain and snow before 11am, then a slight chance of rain between 11am and noon. 🌞 High of 41 degrees at 12pm. One degree above normal, which is similar to a typical day around December 8th. Breezy, with a northwest wind 11 to 16 mph increasing to 17 to 22 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 39 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Little or no snow accumulation expected. I’m sure at some point we’ll have snow. 🌨 A year ago, we had light snow throughout the day. The high last year was 30 degrees. The record high of 61 was set in 1952. 4.3 inches of snow fell back in 1970.❄

Adding the vital wheat 🌾 gluten to my 100% whole wheat bread added a tad bit more fluff to the bread but it didn’t make it as light as white bread. 🍞 Did make things stick together a lot better though for better slicing and texture. I bet it will hold up better in my bean soup.🍛 I’ll have to experiment with different amounts of yeast again but ultimately whole wheat is going to whole wheat. I wouldn’t say though it’s a flat bread as it was much more fluffy then what I had. White bread might be a lot more fluffy but it’s less healthy. I guess a reasonable compromise might be whole-white wheat, which is whole grain but the white wheat rather then the slightly more protein rich red wheat.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 11:49 am with sun having an altitude of 24.4° from the due south horizon (-46.4° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 13.2 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 3:38 pm with the sun in the southwest (231°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-southwest (239°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 4:23 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 24 seconds with dusk around 4:53 pm, which is 4 seconds later than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 5:30 pm. At sunset, look for partly cloudy skies 🌃 and temperatures around 37 degrees. The wind chill around sunset will be 26. ☃️ Breezy, 22 mph breeze ⛅ from the west-northwest with gusts up to 38mph. Tomorrow will have 9 hours and 9 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 42 seconds over today.

Looking forward to tonight with the bean soup and bread. 🍞 🍲 It should be a good evening, but cold with the wind. But I want to walk at any rate, I’ll bundle up. 🚶‍♀️ Then settle back down home under the heated blanket. Not super cold tonight, but it will be windy. But it could be a lot colder — look at the record low of negative 12.

Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 28 degrees at 5am. Four degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around November 29th. Maximum wind chill around 22 at 5am; Northwest wind 7 to 15 mph becoming south after midnight. In 2022, we had light snow in the evening, which became partly cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 20 degrees. The record low of -12 occurred back in 1988.

I was noticing that Price Chopper has raw walnuts for sale 🌰 🎅 which might be a lot of fun when I go camping next week to roast over an open fire. I am still thinking of heading out to Madison County in the lead-up to the Christmas Holiday but it really depends on how much snow there is. ❄️ Right now there is quite a bit of snow but I think much of it might melt by next weekend. I could do Stoney Pond or the Charles Baker Horse Camp. I know the mountain bike trails are closed but I can hike or ride the roads. 🚴‍♀️

Today in 1997, The Kyoto Protocol opens for signature. 🌎 The US would never ratify the agreement, and while some countries would participate, it was a lot of talk and not a lot of action. Every year the earth gets a little bit warmer and it ain’t because I drive a big jacked up truck 🛻 or burn those Styrofoam egg cartons I stuff in my trash and ultimately the fire. 🔥 Seriously though we are making some technological progress but things are still going in the wrong direction as the population increases and every year we burn more fossil fuel.

A picture perfect weekend on tap. 😎 Saturday, partly sunny, with a high near 44. I am thinking Saturday of doing a bicycle ride out to the Albany Pine Bush — and maybe taking the bus back home after dark, after doing some maul walking or similar activities, just to see how crazy it is. I think I can go past the Industrial Depot and the Guilderland National Guard Rifle Range to Willow Street and out from there. Then mountain bike 🚵‍♀️ around the Pine Bush. Sunday, partly sunny, with a high near 44. 🌞 Sunday, I am going to a family event watching the Nutcracker 👪 and then out to dinner. Not too bad for the weekend before Christmas 🤶. Typical average high for the weekend is 38 degrees.

Looking ahead, next Monday is Bake Cookies Day 🍪 when the sun will be setting at 4:25 pm with dusk at 4:55 pm. I got to bake cookies actually on Wednesday for the Cookie Share Day in the office on Thursday. I am thinking homemade cranberry-sugar cookies, going to try making with whole-wheat flour and stevia along with butter, so they aren’t quite as much junk food. On that day in 2022, we had partly cloudy and temperatures between 35 and 25 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 37 degrees. We hit a record high of 60 back in 1921.

Andy Arthur.org

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