March 10, 2024: Weakening Winter

It's looking like Old Man Winter is getting tired early these days - I don't think he's going to hang on much longer.

Ice on Wicwas is deteriorating quickly.
Crockett's Ledge, March 8.

We had over an inch of rain on Wednesday night into Thursday which eroded all our snow except at higher elevations and well-shaded spots.  There are a few vestiges left over from ski season, but that's about it.

Just a couple of old ski tracks on the leaves.

It's a little better farther north in the mountains, but even there the snow is melting fast.  I went for a hike in Franconia Notch to see the streams in their late winter glory and there was snow, but the ice bridges across the streams had melted making stream crossings difficult, and in fact, I wasn't able to cross one of them and had to turn back, changing my plans for the hike.

Cascade Brook flowing down from Kinsman Pond and Lonesome Lake.

And that was Monday, before the rain and 50 degree temperatures.

I made my last ice thickness measurement on Wednesday morning after a cold night which firmed up the ice along the shore and allowed me to get out onto firm ice where I measured six inches of solid black ice under two and half inches of soft, porous ice you could cut with a spoon.  When the warm, moist air coming in with the rain hit the cold ice, the fog thickened.  

That white spot is where I cut a hole to measure the ice.

The rain puddled on the surface of the ice.

That would have made for some good skating.

On Friday I saw a fisherman at the boat ramp assessing the situation - he decided not to chance it, as by then the ice was starting to have that gray color that says it's really degrading.  

Looking pretty soft out there on Friday.

It's too early to predict ice out, but if this keeps up it will be another early one.  The earliest ice-out date we've recorded is March 18;  I doubt the ice will gone in just eight days, especially if we get more snow.  Fresh white snow lets the ice last longer as it insulates the ice and reflects the sun better than the darkening ice we have now.  Too bad the inch of wet snow that fell last night all melted into the wet, gray surface of the lake.

Not a very pretty Sunday morning.

Regarding the sun's rays, an interesting phenomenon observed this week was a sundog, where the sun's rays are refracted by ice crystals in the atmosphere, creating a rainbow effect.  The refraction at 22 degrees means sundogs always appear at a 22 degree angle from either side of the sun.  [Ref:  NOAA]  I always seem to see these right around the equinox which is less than two weeks away.

Sundog near sunset, March 8th.

I saw the first geese of the season on the lake this week as well as multiple flocks of ducks circling overhead looking for enough open water to land.  Snow is melting, ice is softening, tree buds are swelling, the snowdrops are blooming - all the signs of spring are here.  But as last night's snow reminds us, this is New England, and Old Man Winter has given us some surprises in the past, so I'm not counting him out just yet.

Snowdrops, March 3rd.

October 16, 2022: Sundogs

It's not a new breed of canine but rather an interesting atmospheric condition that occurs when sunlight and clouds interact in a special way.  When I first saw the bright spot in the sky I thought it was the sun behind a cloud.

Sundog, or "mock sun"

But then I realized the sun was actually quite a ways to the left of the rainbow, about to set behind the trees.  

Sunlight refracts through ice crystals in the cloud, then reflects off the lake.

The angles weren't right for a rainbow, and it wasn't raining anyway.  This is a phenomenon known as a "sundog" which is caused by refraction of light through ice crystals in a cloud and usually occurs when the sun is low in the sky.  It's similar to a rainbow, but with a distinct difference:  rainbows are refracted and reflected by raindrops which is why you see a rainbow with your back to the sun.  In a sundog, light is only refracted through the ice crystal so it appears at a 22 degree angle from the sun - both the sun and the sundog are in front of you.  NOAA has a short description of sundogs and several other atmospheric effects on their website.  A meteorologist in Chicago named Tom Skilling says they got their name from Greek mythology:  "Sun dog" means "mock sun" and supposedly Zeus is walking his dogs and the false suns are the dogs.  

I don't know if Zeus's dogs are retrievers, but duck hunting season has begun and we're starting to see migrating ducks stop by the lake.  This week I saw a pair of pretty wood ducks in the morning light.

It's always nice to know that some have evaded the hunters' early morning ambush.

One of my favorite aspects of writing this journal is sharing what happens around the lakes during the off-season with those who depart for warmer climes, and this week I was repaid with the reverse!  A frequent contributor of great photographs at Lake Wicwas sent me a couple of pictures of nature from Florida.  First a beautiful painted bunting, a bird I've never seen myself.

Painted Bunting.  Photo by Debby Crowley

And second, a bobcat.

Bobcat, probably stalking that painted bunting!  Photo by Debby Crowley

I was surprised to see such a thick, warm coat on an animal that far south especially this early in the season, but I guess just like humans, animals get used to the warmer climate and need warm clothes to feel comfortable.  But what a beautiful animal - thank you Debby for sharing!

I caught a glimpse of Maddie this week and it appears her parents have both left the lake.

Maddie, three months old today. 

But they seemed to have taught her well.  I saw her wearing out a large sunfish that she had caught.

  

But when she was done with it she just left it floating dead in the lake.  I guess she's eating so well she didn't need it but is still practicing her fishing skills.  She'll need those skills soon enough when she moves on to the large, cold ocean.  I was on the lake yesterday in the kayak - it was a beautiful, calm, warm day - but I didn't see her to get a close up look.

No loons yesterday, just leaves.

The leaves are falling fast now, and there can't be too many more days like this left in the year.

A rainbow of color on the forest floor.

Finally, I want to give a shout out to Huckins Farm, a two hundred year old dairy farm in New Hampton, and the Lakes Region Conservation Trust for teaming up to forever conserve this valuable farm.  They held an open house yesterday to commemorate it's protection, but they are open daily for shopping their home grown products - milk, cheese, yogurt, and more.  You can also find their products at many local shops including Moulton Farm and Picnic Rock Farm.  I learned a lot about cows and dairy products, and the difference in the quality of milk different cows produce.  Huckins Farm is just off Route 104 at 27 Magoon Road in New Hampton.  It's worth checking them out!

The cows have a nice view from the grazing pasture at Huckins Farm.

Christopher, just four-days old!

Her big sister is 6 months old.

A nice place to be cow.