The intention of this page is to allow friends and family scatttered over the country a method of following the activities, changing seasons, weather and phenology of our little bit of "paradise". I will update often ... Bill
11/21/98
June - Oct 22,2007
The summer continued VERY dry without almost no rain all summer. We had 3.7"
or rain the first 2 weeks in June then no real rain until a gully washer July
26th with 1.75" in 30min. No rain then until Aug 26th when we got 2" total on
Aug 26-27th. Between that date and Oct 22nd we have had an additional 10" of
rain. The lake needless to say was low all summer. We had almost no insects at
all during the summer with the dry and warmer than normal temps. Great vacation
weather, but not a good summer for the trees, yard and gardening.
Pat and I attended the radio conference in Texas the last weekend in July.
Prior to our departure, I replaced the garage "top roof" with rubber roofing
like what we have used with great success on the house and boat house. We
picked up Bill's mom on the return north and she enjoyed a northern Minnesota
vacation for 2 weeks. The "CA Gang" arrived on Aug 8th and spent 2 1/2 weeks
with us. Mom returned to MO with Dustin's MO cousins who came up for a long
weekend. The 3 boys have a great time together. The weather was great during the
entire visit and we started getting our rain as Dave, Tracy and Dustin departed
for CA.
We went down to the "farm" in MO mid Oct for 10days. I was hoping that I would
be of assistance in the harvest, but equipment breakdowns really cut into the
field time. Chuck has since purchased a different combine and I hope that that
will improve the balance of the harvest. The problem is, that the rains have now
arrived in MO too.
April - May 2007
April and May were travel times as much as anything else. We went out to spend
some time with the "CA Gang" from April 6-18th. We returned to temps in the 60's
,very warm for this time of year. It was still freezing at night, but so warm in
the daylight hours. Very dry until we got almost 2" of rain (and some hail) on
the 21st and 22nd. Great weather for some of the spring chores. I (Bill) gave a
talk on my radio activities again in Minneapolis at a radio conference on the
28th. Then on May 7th off to Missouri. VERY busy the entire stay in MO as usual.
Things had been wet at the farm and Chuck was having problems getting into the
field to plant, so very behind. We returned home on the 15th to spring. The
temps in the 60's and 70's are now more seasonal. We had a bit of rain at he end
of the month, but still very dry. The skeeter are "out and about", but not too
bad.
Feb - March 2007
Real winter existed between Jan 8th and Feb 23.. no snow during that period
and cold. On Feb 20th the drain field of the septic system froze, so we are now
without septic except for pumping the tanks every month at @$150 each time,ARGH.
Much of the county rural population is in the same situation, some say as 70%.
A total of 26 inches of snow arrived "too late" for the septic but VERY welcomed
precipitation. The snow arrived Feb 24- March 2. Bill was busy building radio
equipment for 902Mhz and and SDR. Huge break in the weather March 23- 27 with
the temps rise to highs of 60s and 72deg one day before the temps dropped back
to more normal range. Strange weather....
Nov - Dec, 2006, Jan 2007
Strange weather, warmer than average overall. The coldest 13 below on Jan 16th
and the warmest 61deg!! on the 8th of Nov. Interestingly, the lake froze the
same date as last year. I (Bill) enjoyed working moon bounce, until we left for
Califonia for Christmas. We enjoyed the CA gang and even got Dustin a loft bed built. Good project and the results were rewarding. We returned home first week
of Jan, goofy late flights, but at least we didn't have to travel through Denver. At home, ice everywhere from melted snow and no snow on the ground. As
of Jan 29th we have maybe 2 inches of snow and more seasonable temps. On the
"bird front" the chickadees are now doing their spring call and lots of Blue Jay
traffic. The days are VERY noticeably longer now with it still being quite light
at 5:30pm....
Oct 17-31, 2006
Strange as it seems, the temps are now below normal for this time of the year.
The cooler temps have prolonged our drought however, now nothing but the snows
that will follow. So now the woodstove is running almost all the time. On Nov
1st we had the oil tank filled for the times the wood stove is not heating the
house. At $2.23gal,177gals were used in the last year. I was pretty pleased with
that given the poor quality of the wood we burned last year. Better aspen this
year, nice and dry after putting it away early spring. It will be interesting to see the difference in the livingroom with the new Anderson sliding glass door
that I put in this summer. Our first reaction is that there does indeed seem to
be less cold radiation into the room, sure should be! Yea St Louis Cardinals!!
World Champs. Very strange series with all the errors the Tigers had, but hey
that is the way the games went. Pretty neat way to start at the "new" ballpark.
Oct 1-16, 2006
We made an "overdue" trip down to Missouri. AT LAST the contractor was to
arrive and begin repairs on the houses from the March F3 twister, 6 months... We
wanted to be there when he started to get an idea of the repairs. A VERY busy
visit as always. My brother Chuck needs help so badly. Pat helped mom and I
helped Chuck every day but Sunday. Always wonderful to be there even if it is
mostly work. The repairs are at long last started on mom's house and Chuck is
getting the new shop/barn construction started as well as getting started with
the soybean harvest. We returned home on the 14th and started a two day siege on
getting things buttoned up for winter. We had even had snow while we were gone.
The boats are put away, dock in, leaves mulched and brushpile moved, ready to be
burned once it dries out and we get snow that stays... winter will soon be at
hand.
Aug 20-Sept 30 2006
"Summer" broke about the 17th of August. The temps left the upper 80's and
fell into the 60's and 70's for the most part. We even saw at last some rain. On
Sept 17th we entered into a one week period with rain almost every day for a
week. SO needed was this precip, we are so far behind. The temps stayed moderate
through the entire period with never a frost. I "gave up" and picked the apples
on the 30th. This was the best apple crop we have ever had, both in quanity and
quality. Perfect apples in every way. Except for being so dry, a great summer.
July 30-Aug 19, 2006
Got ready for Dave, Tracy and Dustin's visit. This is the highlight of every
summer. We SO enjoy sharing "The Lake" with Dustin and family. We drove down to
MSP and picked them up on the 5th and they returned home on the 19th. They had
very nice weather for almost the entire visit. We had our ONLY rain in August on
the 15th, one and a half inches. Dave and Dustin both enjoyed the thunder and
lightning. Lots of swimming, playing with the cats, walks in the woods and just
goofing around. On the flight back home, Dustin said "I'm sure going to miss
Grandma and Pa." We miss all of them as well.
On the 13th and 14th Lou and Sally Macknic arrived for a two day visit. Lou
and Sally have been friends since Lou was attending school at the U of MO back
in 1965. Pat and I had visited them in OH, HI and WV over the years and this was
their first chance to visit us! Wonderful to spend some time with them and share
memories as well as make new ones.
July 27-29, 2006
Pat and I attended a radio conference in Minneapolis where I was asked to be a
presenter. It was a 3 day conference with amateur radio operators from all over
the USA and in fact, the world attending. I spoke on my "moon bounce"
operations, where I bounce radio signals off the moon to communicate with "hams"
all over the world. Nothing new, except I am using a very small antenna and am
having very good results. My talk was very well received. A great honor to be
asked to share my experiences.
July 9-26, 2006
Summer has arrived like never before, HOT and DRY. It has been in the mid 80's
and 90s for 23 of the last 27days. Very little rain, 1.2" for period. Not at all
like what we expect of a Minnesota summer. The local eagles did indeed kill the
baby loon last week. Nature can be so horrid. Yesterday our next door neighbor, Jim passed away. It has been a bad few years now, with so many friends moving
on to the next life.
We are watering like crazy trying to keep the flowers and garden alive. It seems
that no amount of water makes a difference, but we know that it must since the
plants are not dead. The trees and plants in the woods are sure showing the
signs of stress from the lack of moisture. I reroofed the boat house and also
replaced the electrical entrance panel for this house in the last 2 weeks. Nice
to have those big jobs done. Next I will be replacing the sliding glass door in
the living room. That will be a tough job since the new door is slightly wider,
ARGH
.
May 27 - July 9, 2006
The spring early summer weather has been nice except it is very dry. We need
rain so badly. While we were in Missouri at the end of May we had several days
here that were in the upper 80's and 90s, so we returned to a jungle of a yard.
It seems that everything quickly "jumped" ahead of schedule. Very odd really. We
still are blessed with many wild birds. The local loons have a baby as well as
the eagles that nest near by. We only hope that they co-exist and we don't have
the eagles killing the baby loon like they did 2 yrs ago.
The neighbors had some trees cut, so I got the wood and spend over a week with
my old "monster maul" turning them into firewood for the winter. It is very nice
to have some firewood in the woodshed drying. I have several household projects
that I hope to get done this summer. After 35yrs there are no shortage of things
that need to be done to the place.
We are looking forward to the annual "Grandson family visit", this year scheduled starting the second week of August.
May 26,2006
My Dad passed away this afternoon at age 97. One "long journey" completed and
another began.
May 8-25,2006
The weather cooled off and we had a cool dry early May until the last few
days.The rain and warmer weather kinda arrived at the same time. Of course the
bugs also showed up too. With temps in the 70's this week, the trees are almost
fully leafed out. The tulips are beyond their peak as are the trillium. The
birds are now more visible and vocal, during the cooler weather many were no
where to be seen. Pat and I had our SECOND boat ride yesterday, so that is how
bad it had been. The forecast for Memorial Day weeked is temps in the upper 80's
or lower 90s ... ARGH.We are "dog setting" for Laura while she vists a friend in MI. The poor dogs don't like the hot weather.
May 08 - April 6, 2006
Pat and I spent two weeks in Corona, CA with Dave, Tracy and Dustin. We had a
nice visit and it was nice to enjoy the warm weather. The odd thing was that the
weather turned warm in Minnesota the moment we left and we came back on April
18th to no snow, no ice on the lake and the early stages of spring. Of course
this was not to be the case for too long before it cooled off again. But now
into the second week of May the leaves are half size and we have the spring
blooms as well. I would guess that the lawn will have to be mowed before the
week is out. It is not real long, but ragged. The wood ducks are in the yard
each morning and each night for corn. We put the boat in yesterday and had our
first boatride. Pat was planting flowers yesterday in the 70deg temps. Spring
must be here or close to hand.
March 13 - April 5, 2006
Progress at the Missouri farm is slow and steady. Pat and I went down and helped
for a week. Good neighbors have been busy as bees. It will now be a time of slow
start/stop progress as the insurance numbers are settled and work can be begun
to repair, instead of "clean up". Of course the crops will need to be planted
soon as well. The ice is gone from the driveway and little snow remains, a bit
here and there in the woods. Warm weather in the forecast, spring is right
around the corner.
March 12, 2006
BAD news from the farm. A tornado hit tonight and did major damage. Three barns
look to be a total losses. All three houses are damaged, the "little house" was
pushed a couple feet on it's foundation. The porch torn off and the east wall
badly damaged. The "big" house and Chuck's house have major roof damage where
the roofs were lifted on one side and torn loose from the top of the wall plate.
One grain bin was lost as was a livestock trailer. Two tractors were damaged
and Chuck's pickup. Many shade trees were lost and damaged. What a mess! Thank
the good Lord, no one was hurt.
Jan 22, 2006 - March 11, 2006
After a "warm" January the weather has returned to a more "normal" winter
like pattern. We have had a good amount of snow and have about 2 feet in the
woods at this point. As of late the temps have started to peak about 30deg
or so during the day with the approach of spring. This has caused a real "ice
flow" problem in the driveway. I fact we are parking at the top of the driveway
hill. Sanding the hill almost daily to try to keep "safe" as we go to the mail
-box. The wood stove has been busy to try to keep the furnace off.
Dec 14, 2005 - Jan 21, 2006
We spent Christmas at the farm in Missouri with the folks. My sister Carolyn
also came home, so it was great for the folks to have all the "kids" home. We
had a very enjoyable stay. My brother had a 1/2day flu episode, but other than
that everyone remained healthy. The travel weather was very good and we had no
travel issues at all. We did delay our return for a couple of days to miss snow.
I was able to help my brother quite a bit with a barn/machine building that he
is working on. Hated to leave with all that he has on "his plate". Our Jan
weather has been the warmest ever and the wood heat is keeping the oil usage
down. This morning was our first sub zero morning all month (-6deg). It has been
wonderful. Almost every day the temp has been in the 20's. We have maybe 6
inches of snow on the ground. The bird population is mostly finches, jays,
woodies, grosbeaks and chickadees. The last two trips to MO I have brought back
ear corn and we put two half ears each day. The squirrels have been a scream,
they all want the ears and it is a "race" to see who packs them off first and
the jays are in hot on thier heals. They want in on the action too. Too cute.
Sept 28 - Dec 13, 2005
We had a late fall this year allowing apples to be harvested well into Oct. We have had three different sessions of 50mph winds for hours each time. This is not a common thing for us at all. In the last wind we lost a 65ft tree north of the driveway and the neighbor lost a 50ft tree as well. I spent parts of 10 or 12 days before that trying to cleanup dead falls and also cuting and splitting several dead trees. The neighbor had a tree service come in and cut a bunch of trees, so I got several of those which I cut and split. We have been running the woodstove all the time trying to avoid burning that expensive oil.
At the end of Oct we went out to California to visit the gang out there for 2 weeks. We had a great time. We were very worried about how the cats would do,
having never been left alone, just the two of them. They did great. Gizmo seems
to suffer far less, we think she finds it comforting to have "Cowboy Bob" here,
even if they arn't "pals". I have been radioing a bit more, enjoying bouncing
signals off the moon again off and on for the last month. For that I am using a
temporary antenna out in the yard again with a few improvements over last year.
"Worked" a fellow in Moscow last night. The lake froze within a week of normal
time and we have about 6inches of snow. We have had some below zero temps as
well. The weather forecast includes another 6 inches or so, so we need to get
serious about winter. Our winter feathered friends are here in great number for
all to enjoy watching. Season's Greetings to all.
Aug 25 - Sept 27, 2005
We have been dismayed, with the rest of the nation, with all the damage from the hurricanes hitting AL, LA, TX. At least "Rita" was less damaging than what could have been. Gas prices were over $3/gal during Labor Day weekend and our heating
oil for the winter (with discounts) was $2.19/gal. This will indeed be a costly
heating season. September has again been mild and as of today we have not even
had frost here on the lake. The tomatoes are "hanging on", but without the hot
weather they are not doing much. On Pat and my 44rd wedding anniversy, we took
the boat up the Mississippi to Schoolcraft park last Thursday. It was a pretty
43mile round trip, but the north wind was bad crossing the open lake. We saw
hundreds of coots (ducks) "rafted" up in the wild rice as we entered the river.
We never had seen so many of them. They are fueling up for that trip south. Not
much other wildlife on the trip other than a few eagles, hawks and herons. We
have had a bit of rain here and there, thank heavens, but the fall colors are
not near as deep as normal because of the drought. Pats cat is working out fine
but is very needy and demands lots of Pat's time. Mr Wiskers (or "Cowboy Bob",
because of the way he walks on the leash) is quite happy here at The Lake.
July 28 - Aug 24, 2005
The drought continues. We have had a total of 2 inches of ran in all of July
and August. Very dry and nice temps. The heat broke Aug 10th and we have been
in the 60's and 70's since. Beautiful vacation weather, but not very good for
the garden. Dave, Tracy and Dustin arrived on Aug 2nd and departed Aug 20th. We
have a wonderful time with them. Dustin told David when they left "Dad I told
you 18 days would NOT be long enough!" He sure knows what GrandPa/Ma like to
hear. Lots of swimming and water time this visit. The first weekend they were
here, Bill's nephew Andy and his family, Wendy, Logan (8yrs) and Cooper (5yrs)
came up for a visit. The "boys" had a GREAT time together. Not one cross word,
such fun they had. The weather was hot to warm and they spent most of their time
in the water. The boys got in some fishing too. Dustin caught a nice large
mouth bass that would weight around 1 1/4lbs.. a beautiful fish. The livewell
had over 20 fish in it. Small "sunnys", perch, rock bass and Dustin's fish. We
turned them all loose except for a couple of the larger perch. Dressed them
and the boys had fresh fish. Mr Wiskers, Pats new cat, was WONDERFUL with the
boys. This kitty is going to be a keeper. Gizmo is getting used to him too. Pat
now at last has a lap cat again. BUT ... he is a "live wire" and talks like
crazy. So Pat is now raising another "child" ... He wants nothing to do with me, just Pat ... just the way she wanted it!
July 1 - 27, 2005
The drought has returned, so dry. The heat has been a drastic change from the
last few summers, but no rain. Well, we had 1/4" over the weekend but that was
it for the entire month of July. With 18 days of highs in the 79-92 degree range
things are as brown as Missouri in August, well .. close. We were to have headed
off for Colorado Springs tomorrow, but plans changed at the last minute and we
are staying home. Dave, Tracy and Dustin are scheduled to be here starting next
week for thier vacation, can't wait. Mr Wiskers has been introduced into the
house (days only, garage at night). I think things are better than with Mr Meow
but still not as smooth as we would like. Gizmo rules this house and any change
will be on her terms. Poor cat, this will be a struggle for her. Few birds are
at the feeders now. The families are raised and most everyone are now deep in
the the woods. A few finches, chickades, and woodies are all that we see. No
loon babies this year on "Sherry's Arm" and only one eagle "baby". The loon
adults still remember the eagles killing the chick last year and raise a fuss
every time the eagles appear over the horizon.
June 1 - 30, 2005
All and all a nice June from my point of view. We had ten days with highs in
the 60's, all the rest 70s and 80s. A considerable number of just "Wonderful"
days. About 5 1/2" of rain that has been so needed. Only one real "gully washer"
all the rest the kind that every drop soaks in. The flowers are close to summer
peak and the garden is starting to look good too. The black kitty "Mr Meow" has
been taken to the shelter. I so hope he can find a good home. We were going to
pick up a kitten from the shelter to try, but never had the chance. 36hrs after
Mr Meow was out of the equation, Mr Wiskers showed up in the driveway. "How do
they know?" .. So Pat is working hard with this Jr Tom cat that is a bit over
one year old. Now we start shots and he needs to be "fixed" to. Seems to be a
very loving cat, but Gizmo wants nothing to do with him! He is a cute little
gray and white tabby, long hair with white chest and paws. Wish us luck....
Oh do we ever LOVE SUMMER .... heaven on earth right here ...
May 10 - May 30, 2005
Slowly, spring is arriving. We have now had over 4 inches of rain in the last
three weeks, but almost no sun or warm weather. Last Wed we got 2.75 inches of
rain in a 30hr period. That rain really "greened" things up. Only two 70 deg
days in all of May, so everything has been very slow. The trees are still that
very "spring green". During the cool spring I have been working on several radio
projects and Pat has been busy the last week or so getting the flower beds in
shape. The garden "cold crops" are hardly even up, very discouraging. We can
only hope that this will not be another "summer" like last. We NEED sun and the
70's! Right now clouds, 60s and buggy :>(
April 28 - May 9, 2005
Pat returned from California yesterday and had a great trip. I stayed at home
and worked on a number of household projects. The "biggie" was the complete re-
shingling of the south facing roof of the house. I did the north side in the
summer of 2000 when I built the addition. I have always called the south side
"the great wall" ... What a job! I started the 28th and completed it on the 3rd.
Laura and Dean came done and helped one day. The entire job has to been done
from ladders once you are too high to reach. ARGH ..Very happy with the results
it should be good now for another 30yrs like the last time. I put the boat in the lake on the 6th. Now we just need spring!
April 7 - April 27, 2005
Since our return from Florida etc, the weather turned cold again. We did have 3
days in the 70's but lots of highs in the 30's. The ice left the lake the 13th
and the loons have returned. I put the dock in on the 16th. Pat has been doing
some work in the yard cleaning things up for spring. She is planning a trip to
California and wants to have the yard in order before she leaves. Too cold for
rain and it is very dry.
March 17 - April 6, 2005
We just returned from three weeks in GA,FL and a stop at "The Farm" on the way
home. Bill's Dad is not doing very well (95 1/2 yrs), grandma has a lady helping
her now during the day five days a week. We hope that this will help Dad.
Our trip south was a nice trip, but interstate highway travel was poor. The
second day down we had one delay of 2hrs in a detour due to an incident and 2
other delays of 1/2hr each due to construction. The first day on the return
trip involved 5 1/2hrs of stop and go traffic to get out of Florida. We left the
interstate in GA and headed cross country via dual lane highway and returned via
AL, MS and southern MO. Saw some beautiful country.
We spent one day in Savannah GA, four days in the Jekyll Island GA area then
a week in the Sarasota FL visiting friends. Spring arrived the day after we
left with some days even in the 50s and 60s. We enjoyed seeing friends,the break
from the snow and returned to NO SNOW!
Feburary 4 - March 16, 2005
Winter has it's hold on Minnesota, but the temps have been more moderate. Most
daily highs in the 20's. We have close to 4ft of snow on the ground. Bill has
been very busy on the radio bouncing signals off the moon. He has had a "blast"
talking to 60 different stations world wide, 5 continents and 26 countries. Pat
is looking forward to a vacation from winter. Mr Meow and Gizmo are not getting
along at all. Pat continues to "bug" the shelter hoping to find him a good home.
Jan 9 - Feburary 3, 2005
At last the cold weather has broken with a January thaw in February. Hey we
will take it any time! Several days into the 40's after our low of 35 below
on Jan 17th. The snow is beautiful, all 2 feet of it, but we needed a break
from just shoveling and blowing snow. The wildlife is enjoying the break in the
weather too. We have 100s of finches today and I heard crows yesterday. The
crows really give on hope, they are about the first to return after a very short
trip farther south. We had a snowshoe hare show up eating under the lakeside
deck last week. He was really cute all decked out in his white duds. The length
of the days now gain over 2min a day and the increased length of the day makes
a huge difference in ones "attitude". Too early to think spring, but not too
early to think that most of the "bad stuff" should be behind us.
November 23, 2004 - Jan 9, 2005
Very cold temps for much of the last month and more in the forcast, 30 below
by the weeks end, again. The lake froze on Dec14th. We just returned from three
weeks with Dave, Tracy and Dustin for Christmas. We had a great visit and the
California flights went well for the most part. Laura and Dean took care of the
second cat while we were gone, they enjoyed having a "visiting" cat. It sounds like he was a very good guest. We now have him back here and things are worse
than before. The two cats can not be in the same room without a fight. Things
were better before, but he has only been here 3 days since we got back. We had another 4 inches of snow today, for a total of about a foot on the ground. Now
the long haul of winter starts ....
November 13 - 23, 2004
The weather has continued to be above normal with many days into the 40's,
this morning we are at 12 degrees which is the coldest it has been. Still no
snow and none in the forecast. Pat and I have continued being busy outside and
the wood from the the cut trees is all split except for one more wheelborrow
load, I should get that today. It has been SO nice to have the wood heat again
the house has been so comfortable and the furnace has not ran for over two
weeks. Pat has been subing at school quite a bit the last couple of weeks and
continues to enjoy the time with teaching friends. The "new cat" is now in the
house after getting the last of his shots on Monday. Both cats figure that they
should be THE alpha cat, so this may be a long transisition. Gizmo would like
to see this intruder "hit the road". T^2 or Mr Meow or Gadget, what ever the
poor things name will be, has gained 2 pounds since he arrived and has been
spending his night (some time in the day as well) locked in the back bedroom.
We need to supervise the time that the two cats are "together". Off to Laura
and Dean's for Thansgiving topmorrow. It should be a wonderful day :>)
October 25 - November 13 2004
What WONDERFUL weather we have had for the last several weeks. Temps in the
40's or warmer and only this week below 20 degrees at night. I feel very guilty
enjoying the weather, given it's departure from "normal". Pat and I have a
"guest" cat that has joined us during the last month (a dumped kitty we guess).
We hope that "Tommy Tucker" or "T Squared" will be able to join us inside soon.
He is jet black and the vet figures between 3 and 5yrs old. He has had some
medical problems that we hope are now behind us. He is very loving and Pat has
bonded. We so miss our Samatha. Poor Gizmo is not quite sure what is going on at
this point. She is the Queen and figures T^2 is "trouble"!
The last week has been spent cutting dead trees, burning brush and splitting
wood for the winter. With the weather, it has been a joy to be working in the
woods, even the hard work. No new wildlife to report except for the return of a
couple deer to the yard at night.
September 26 - October 24 2004
Pat and I made another trip to Missouri last week. We attended our 40yr
college reunion. How could it have been anywhere near that long? We had a fun
time and a great trip. The weather was perfect for the reunion, 70degrees even
at 8pm. We enjoyed visiting with college friends and seeing the campus after so
long, was a real treat. Looking real good in places and not so good in
others. Since it was Central's 150th birthday, I guess not too bad.
The weather has been up and down for several weeks now. Highs in the 40's or
50's for the most part with lows in the 30's. The dock has been pulled ashore
and the boats are tucked away for the winter. We have been trying to clean up
some deadfall trees and also removed a balsum tree from the front yard that was
leaning toward the house. The woodpeckers had been working on it and it was not
looking to good at the base. All the leaves are gone, so the raking and
mulching has to be completed before we get that blanket of snow. The juncos are
back in large flocks on the way south, so the snow will not be far behind.
August 16 - September 26 2004
Pat and I made a trip up to Wawa, Ontario the weekend of August 21 and ended
up with a "loop trip" around Lake Superior. The reason Wawa, was that I had a
radio contest and was trying to see if I could communicate across the lake east
to west. We left on Thursday and returned on Monday, 1400 miles. It was a great
trip. Beautiful country but we had cool and wet weather during the trip. The
week of Sept 5th we made a trip down to "The Farm" in MO, nice trip as always,
SO good to see family and "home". Pat and Laura made a trip to St Louis last
weekend for Gene and Lynn's 50th Anniversary, (Gene is Pat's brother). I was in
western MN, again with the second weekend of the same radio contest.
Our weather in August was one of the coldest in recorded history. Our
September weather has been much more "summer like", go figure. Beautiful weather yesterday and again today with temp around 70 with bright sun. Since
the beginning of September we have had over 6" of rain, SO NEEDED rain. Almost
all of our brid friends are gone. Chickadees and woodies are about all that are
at the feeders any longer. Sad .. Yesterday on a boat ride, we found over 30
loons south of the islands. These are the immature and bachelors that have not
or are not ready to fly south. This group was the largest we recall. Really
neat. The leaves are slowly turning color, but very slowly. The oddest "color"
season we have ever experienced. Hang on summer!!
August 8 - 15 2004
Things are very quiet here now, Dustin, Dave and Tracy have returned home,
Laura and Dean moved in. We are now trying to "adjust" to a quieter life again.
The weather was cold and damp all week, little beach time for the end of the
visit. One Chipmunk that Dave and Dustin "be-friended" is still looking for
free handouts. We had about 1 1/2" inches of rain with the cool weather this
week, that will help for everything for a while. This morning is beautiful,
sunny and 55deg. The birds are all "a chatter" and the flowers are looking
better after the beating from the rains. With the COOL summer, the garden is
still very far behind and now fall is not far off. I noticed a couple of Maples
have a few colored leaves this morning.
August 7 - July 14 2004
Today we returned from Max, MN after helping Laura and Dean unload the moving
van and they are settling into their new home. It has been a long and hard 6
months on both and we are glad all of that is over. Dave, Dustin and Tracy have
been here for a week from California and had a chance to help as well as see the
new spot. We are really enjoying our time with all our family.
Our weather has been cool all summer and dry. The local eagles killed one of
the baby loons last week. Sad, the poor loons have been such wonderful parents
It has been very interesting to watch the "eagle warning network" that the gulls
and loons have. First we will hear gulls screaming as they chase/ dive bomb the
eagles and then the loons will all cry out to warn others up and down the arm.
The duck numbers were up from last years and the lake clarity has stayed at
around 18 1/2ft all summer. The flowers are doing well, but notr great and the
garden is VERY slow. The temps at night are now in the 40's and warn us of what
is to come.
July 13 - June 15 2004
During the last month, Pat and I have spent time all weekends but one up at
Max helping Dean with the addition to his and Laura's house. They are hoping to
move sometime during early to mid August. Our summer was VERY slow to arrive.
We at last have had some 80deg temps for the better part of a week. It was a
very dry June, over 3 inches short of average rainfall. Last weekend we had a
big gully washer with 3 inches of rain in a couple of hours. Pat and I have
seen lots of birds as of late. They are in the canopys of the trees and are
very quiet. Jays, Scarlet Tanagers, Grosbeaks, Finches, "Woodies", Cedar Wax
Wings, Poebee and the Chickadees, just to name a few. The Loons in the arm have
two chicks as do our local Eagles. It is such a joy to observe the birds each
summer. The garden is slow .... and the flowers are getting into the full swing
of summer with the rain and heat.
June 15 - May 23 2004
Our bird friends, for the most part, have moved on. Very quiet now when we
are outside. The exception is that the ducks on the lake are busy with their
young and we see many of them. The weather is most mostly in the upper 60's and
is very nice, but below normal for highs. The woods have closed in this week and
the flowerbeds are a riot of color.
Laura and Dean closed on a home and 30 acres about 45miles north of us and are
in the second week of construction on an addition. We are so excited about
having them closer to home and pray that things will be to their liking and
that they will enjoy Minnesota life for many years to come. Pat and I love the
area and think they found a GREAT spot.
May 13-22 2004
One more 70 deg day and 1.3 inches of rain in the last 10 days. Cold yet with
highs in the low 60's and lows in the 30's and 40's. The bird traffic has been
unreal. With the cool temps, many birds have stopped thier "trip north" and have
hung around for a while. The finches are still with us and the warblers have
just now moved on. We had Yellow-Throated, Blackwhite, Cape May and Nashville
Warblers, Indigo Buntings and White Throated Sparrows to just name a few. The
Orioles are eating oranges as fast as Pat puts them out, over 20 oranges at
this point. We put the boat in last weekend and had one boatride before the
weather became cooler and wet. The trees now have leaves as of yesterday and
the trillium, tulips and many wild violets are in bloom. The cool weather is to
continue at least for the next week.
April 22 - May 12 2004
Three days this year have reached 70 degrees, slow spring. We have only had
rain twice for a total of 1/2 inch in the last 7 weeks. The cool weather has
helped in that things would be much dryer if it had been warm. The "hummers"
returned two days ago and the Orioles yesterday, they are right on time, even
if spring isn't. Pat has been trying to get some garden and flowers out, but
the ground is so cold and most nights so cold, plant growth will be slow.
Laura and Dean have bought a house 50miles northwest of us and will be
returning to Minnesota. We are excited, but Laura really loved Wisconson. We
sure hope that this will be work well for both of them. They purchased a great
spot and it will afford lots of wildlife entertainment. It will be so nice for
Pat and I to have family closer by.
April 14-22 2004
There have been more indicators of spring, but still no spring weather. Cold
nights, upper 20's or low 30's and the days the been mostly in the 50's. On
the 17th we had a thunderstorm and a good rain, our first this spring, another
1/4" then on the 20th. The ice left on the 20th and the loons were back the day
before. We had a fox trot through the backyard on the 14th. The wood frogs have
been very loud at the top of the hill the last two days. I was even able to
sneek up there early this afternoon and observe them at "work". No flowers at
all yet, the daffys and tulips are up, but no blooms. I put out the dock this
afternoon and it towers above lake since the lake is so low.
Sunday I talked to 5 other Amateur Radio operators by bouncing 10Ghz signals off
of a line of thunderstorms NE of Minneapolis. I even had my most distant contact
on 10Ghz when I talked to Mike down near Souix Falls, 310 miles distant, Cool!
These were my first "contacts" with this equipment that I assembled over the
winter.
March 22- April 13 2004
Spring still has not arrived to our corner of the world, sorry to say. The
temps have even been into the teens again. The daffies are up next to the house
but of course no blooms yet. The lake is still frozen, even to the edge. There
is still a bit of snow in the woods. Our highest temp so far this season is
61deg and that was when we were in Missouri last week. Yep, just came back from
a one week stay at the farm. Nice to see everyone. When we got back, we were "greeted" by a kitchen frig that must have "died" shortly after we left..
what a mess. The interior of the thing was HOT! So before we even unpacked, we
were in town trying to get a new frig and replacing food that had spoiled. A
shame that the "cat sitter" didn't notice the SMELL and the fact that Gizmo's
food would have been hot instead of cold!
The tree swallows were checking out the bird houses early this afternoon and
there is green grass in Missouri ... so maybe sping will be here before too
long.
March 8-21, 2004
The weather has once again turned colder at night, tonight near zero is in the
forecast. The daytime melting and night time freezing has turned the entire
driveway into a sheet of ice. The paths to the birdfeeders and lake are no
better. One has to been VERY careful to avoid a fall and worse. We have had a
couple of days with highs in the mid 40's, so the snow continues to slump. We
still have 18" or more in the open areas. The Pileated woodpeckers and the
40mph winds yesterday took care of the top 30ft of the dead Apsen at the "point" of the driveway. We were very lucky, the falling top missed all of
the pines and baslam. I was so sure that we would loose several "good" trees
when the tree fell. The remaining 30ft or so will be easy to fell in the
driveway later this spring. Pat and Gizmo saw the first chipmunk Wednesday. In
the past week, Pat and I are both another year "older".
Feb 19 - March 7, 2004
The weather has moderated considerable now with temps in the 30's almost every
day. Last week we saw lots of melting and slumping of the snow as we saw temps
even into the mid 40's two days. We have had several more several inches of snow now again this week. Yesterday afternoon 5 deer came to the bird feeders
in the middle of the afternoon. Real pretty deer they were. If this continues,
we will have no flowers or garden next summer. The bird traffic has fallen off
considerable, but the "woodies", finches and chickadees are still busy. We
heard crows doing their spring calls last week. Road restrictions start tonight
so I guess spring will be along soon. So it won't be too long and we will have
to start planning for those spring projects.
Jan 30- Feb 18, 2004
We have enjoyed these days in Corona,CA visiting Dave, Tracy and Dustin. Dustin
is now 4yrs old, and we helped him celebrate his "Big 04". Tracy baked a neat
cake and he had his best friend over for a party. Pat and I helped with tree and
flower planting in the backyard. The sod is looking good and the concrete work
is a great improvement over the old. We got in a trip to the San Diego Zoo and
also a trip to the beach. Pat thinks it was one of the best beach trips. (Less
walking and more "playing" in the water.) The weather was wonderful. The first
couple weeks we had some of the clearest weather we had seen in CA.
Jan 18 - 29, 2004
The subzero temps have continued every day but one. On that one day the result
was 12" of new snow. The coldest night was 30 below on the night of the 29th. No
records, just cold January weather. Looking forward to warmer weather during an
upcoming trip to CA. We have burned about 280gal of oil heating the house, and
another 280 gal is left. A couple of the colder days we burned the woodstove.
Gizmo continued to really enjoy the warmth of the basement those days.
Jan 3- 17, 2004
Ten days out of the last 14 have had lows of zero or below, so we are looking
at a "normal" January. We had another 5 inches of snow this week as well. The
snowmobiles are busy running up and down the lake. We made a trip down to "The
Cities" last weekend and were suprised to see that there was no snow on the
ground by the time we were 50miles or so south. This weekend we have been around
20 for highs, but the 20+mph wind makes it quite unpleasant outside.
Northwest Airlines announced yesterday that they are cutting airline service to
Grand Raids. We were served by Messabi Airlines (NWA Airlink). Messabi was born
in Grand Rapids and this is a very low blow to our community. NWA had done us
dirty since "9-11" cutting our 5 flights to only 2 and those remaining flights at HORRID times with poor connections anywhere and more expensive than the other
communities in our area. They always said one thing and did another until now.
What a shame that those of us in Minnesota have NO OTHER airline.
The 2 deer are here every night at dusk and the bird population remains about
the same. Lots of pinesiskens. They seem to know that the colder weather is on
the way again and have been here in large numbers for the last several days.
Dec 1, 2003 - Jan 3, 2004
Chrismas has come and gone as well as another year. So Happy New Year! We
enjoyed a wonderful Christmas with Laura and Dean at thier home in NE
Wisconsin. We were gone for almost a week and had to endure hearing that the
Minnesota Vikings were again out of the playoffs due to another loss on the
last play of a game. ARGH The weather was good for the drive over and back.
The only concern was from the snow melting and the ice that was being formed.
The forcast for the next week is for lows around 20 below for almost all of
next week. As strange as it seems, it's nice to see "normal" weather in the
forecast. We have had a very easy winter thus far with moderate temperatures.
Pat has been feeding two deer that have been eating under the bird feeders in
the yard. They are VERY alert and mostly are seen at twilight, but have been
seen midday by the neighbors when we are gone. The bird life is mostly Blue Jays
Woodpeckers and Chickadees. We have about 8 inches of snow on the ground.
Nov 7 - 29, 2003
The snow has come and gone and is back again, I expect for the winter now. We
have about 12 inches on the ground that arrived last weekend. Monday morning
everything was pretty much shut down. I got the old Simplicy snowblower out and
after not being ran much for two years, it was a bit slow coming to life, but
it did. Pat and I had Thanksgiving alone but had Don & Diane Walter were over
Monday before Thanksgiving for dinner. A very enjoyable visit and meal. We are
very much back in the winter routine after our trip into the warm country. The
lake is trying to freeze yet, the ice in front of the house has been frozen for
several days now, but we can see open water just to the north. Lots of 30s,20s
and even some 40s during this month so it will take colder weather to really
freeze the lake. We have stuck pretty much at home since we returned. Pat had a
shopping trip to Duluth one day and another to Remer for a craft fair and Bill
had an overnight in "The Cities" working on some radio equipment. Now it's the
push toward Christmas.
Sept 24 - Nov 7, 2003
Both Sept 28 and 29 were 30 degrees and the forecast was for the low 20's so
it was time to pick the apples. A great crop this year from the single tree. We
froze and canned apple sause, froze pies and still have over a bussel to eat.
Pat cleaned out the garden and we took the fishing boat and the dock out. After
two days in the low 20's, Oct 7th warmed up to 82 degrees! A perfect day. We
drove up the north shore of Lake Superior as far as Tofte and enjoyed a little
fall color. By the end of the week high winds had stripped the trees of all
leaves at home.
On Oct 16th we left for another driving trip to the west cost. Saw Dick and Sher
Bauman in Portland OR. We visited Kristan in San Mateo CA on the way down to see
Dave, Tracy and Dustin in Corona. The fires that burned over 750,000 acres made
several days "inside days" because of the smoke and ash, but we enjoyed every
moment of our visit. Celebrated Halloween and David's birthday as well as
helping with a few projects. On the way back we came back through Missouri and
helped Bill's Dad celebrate his 94th birthday. By taking the southern route home
we avoided the snow and ice in UT and CO. We arrived home on Nov 7th to 4 inches
of snow after an earlier 6 inches had melted and an overnight low of minus 6
degrees ... Winter is here.
Sept 6 - 23, 2003
A very pretty day here for the first day of fall. The high is expected to be
around 67 degrees. We still have not had a frost and the tomatoes and apples
are "hanging on". There is a very good chance that we WILL be getting frost
later in the week. We put the ski boat away last week as we had cooler temps
and rain in the forecast. The rain was MUCH welcomed, only about 2.4 inches
total, but every drop was valuable. Some leaves are turning and even some on
the ground, but only a few. The humming birds left last weekend. A few
butterflys are seen on the sunny days, but just a few. The "visiting" squirrels
are long gone, guess they were just traveling through.
August 22 - Sept 5, 2003
The lake clarity continues to improve, it is up to 13 1/2 ft and now a more
normal color. After more hot dry summer weather a DRY front came through day
before yesterday and we have had temps in the 60's the last two days. We have
had only seven tenths of a inch of rain in 7 weeks. Pat and I took our annual
trip by boat up the Mississippi Labor Day, to Schoolcraft Park. The river was
BEAUTIFUL, nice breeze in the shade at the park and the picnic lunch was great
under the pines. The beans and lettuce are gone, but the tomatoes are great. We
have so much shade in the garden ours are coming in where everyone elses are
done. The Bluejays have returned and a few finches, the hummingbirds are
drinking like crazy, the chickadees and woodies are as busy as the squirrels.
Last weekend we had two "visiting" squirrels, a solid black one and a "sable"
colored one. They seem to have moved on and have not been seen except for those
couple of days. We wonder if they are looking for a new home and food with all
the oaks being killed by the drought and the twin line Chestnut beetle, thats
going to be tough on the squirrels too. Day length now 13hrs and 9 min ... low
temp last night 37 degrees ... our first night into the 30's for the season.
Argh .. fall is close at hand.
August 6 - 21, 2003
The lake clarity is now improving, I am glad to say. It was up to 12 1/2 ft a
week ago and I am due to get another reading soon. The color has even returned
to a more normal color. We find that kinda interesting given the very hot (90's)
and dry weather we have been having. The weather broke last night when a cold
front came through. 70's now for several days. We got little rain out of this,
we like so many others continue VERY DRY. Pat and I had a "day trip" over to
Bayfield, WI last Saturday, hot there but the lake was BEAUTIFUL, nice breeze in the shade and good food at "Maggies". Pat has been picking beans and tomatoes
from our garden and the flowers continue to look so pretty. The Phlox are so
nice this time of the year. The apple tree's branches are heavy with beautiful
apples. Few bird friends remain, chickadees and woodies for the most part now.
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