September 10, 2023: Summer in September

The best week of summer 2023 came in September when New Hampshire had a quintessential summer week with hot, hazy, humid weather every day.  With nary a breeze to stir up the lake, the water temperature was more like July without the chilly, early September feel that makes one think twice before jumping in the lake this time of year.  It was the perfect way end to the summer season, ideal for all the Labor Weekend activities.  Well, maybe except for one activity.  Our visitor from Colorado took me on a hike in the northern Presidential Mountains, and even way up there, on the summit of 5774' Mt. Adams (second in elevation only to Mt. Washington) it was hot, hot, hot with barely a breeze blowing on the summit.  

Mt. Madison, seen from a hot Adams summit.

An updraft in the morning was bringing warm air from the valleys up the mountain slopes and we feared we'd be socked into the clouds by the time we reached the first summit, Mt. Madison.

Cloud building on the hike up.

And in fact, the clouds had reached up to Mt. Adams by the time we summited Madison.  

Clouds flowing up the north flank of Mt. Adams.

But when we got down to the saddle between the two peaks, Adams had cleared.  We hiked past Star Lake and had a steamy trip up to Adams, and though hot, there were no complaints about the weather - or the views.

Star Lake.

We picked a good section of the range to hike, as Mt. Washington and the peaks just to the south of us remained under clouds all day while we experienced a sunny hike on the entire trek across the talus fields above treeline.

We had a few glimpses of Washington when the clouds lifted.

It was a grueling day, but we were prepared for the conditions with plenty of water and salty snacks.  It was my best hike of the summer - thanks for the excursion VP!

Just as we arrived at the Madison AMC hut we heard a helicopter come out of nowhere and land right at the hut.

It dropped off a crew of workers in hard hats and left as quickly as it arrived.  But it was back in just a few minutes with a grapple hook hanging below.  The crew had gathered up four empty propane tanks while it was away, which they connected to grapple hook, and off it went.  

A resupply mission to the hut.

It came back twice more, once to remove more material, and again to bring in new supplies.  On the final trip it had dropped off the grapple and landed to pick up the crew.  Madison Hut is now stocked for the last two weeks of its season.  

It's worth noting that foliage season comes early in the northern White Mountains.  There was already a warm yellow glow in the mid-elevation forest with quite a few leaves on the ground.  

Salmicus Falls

The huts will be open for leaf-peeping season, but then close down for the year.  Foliage viewing in the North County will be here soon.

Back at Lake Wicwas I was relieved that the hot weather hadn't brought on a cyanobacteria bloom.  There was obvious cyanobacteria in the lake with many suspended green specks smaller than a grain of sand, but it had the look of what DES calls a "starry night" rather than a "galaxy", so it was at a safe level.  We were fortunate this year.  Even Lake Winnipesaukee has four cyanobacteria alerts right now.  The large amount of shoreline covered by vegetation is a big factor in Lake Wicwas remaining healthy - lots of blueberry and huckleberry, buttonbush, even dogwood line the shore.

Silky dogwood (Cornus amomum)

This silky dogwood is a great species to plant on a shoreline to help with water quality.  It thrives in damp soils, has pretty flowers and light blue berries that are favored by birds because of their high fat content.  It also turns a beautiful deep red or purple color in fall.  

And this shrub won't grow high to block your view of the lake.  

If you're lucky (or if you planted them) you might find pretty turtlehead flowers blooming on the shoreline right now.

Turtlehead (Chelone obliqua), a common shoreline flower.

There was also a dragon at the lake this week, actually a dragonhunter.

Dragonhunter (Hagenius brevistylus)

This is a member of the aptly-named clubtail family.  It's the largest clubtail dragonfly in the northeast, and one of the most handsome with its contrasting yellow, black, and green coloring.  

I think the dragonhunter, the bear, and all the other lake and forest animals are enjoying Summer in September as much as I am.