The only real wild weather to report is the storm hitting the Philippine Islands. This is a very slow moving storm with hurricane force winds and lots of rain.
The last big storm that went through this area about a year ago killed over 6,000 people. Maybe this time they will get to higher ground as there are going to be storm surges over twenty feet.
The west coast of California is getting some much needed rain but maybe a little too much in some places as it’s causing mudslides.
We had more on and off winter again this week with snow then rain then snow and then rain again.
For a few days the deer trackers had great conditions for their sport, except for the last day of the season when the crusted snow was crunchy underfoot.
My spike horn made it through the season but I think he was the only one locally that did. He stuck close to homes during the day and went out in the woods at night.
I was over at the bridge between Sixth and Seventh Lakes this morning (12/7) for the full moon setting and sunrise which were about five minutes apart.
The sun coming up actually faded out the falling moon.
But it was great while it lasted as it refracted in the channel, west of the bridge.
The sunrise wasn’t all that great but after I waited about half an hour for it to come up I had to wait it out in the truck. At ten degrees the wind was quite cold.
There was a neat jet stream that went right across the sunrise. An adult bald eagle came up from the shore of Seventh to make it more interesting.
This bird was headed right for a flight across the full moon but disappeared just before getting there, so that’s a shot you won’t get to see.
An adult and juvenile have been feeding here for the last couple weeks. Only I know because my trail camera tells me so. I don’t see any bands on either of them.
These cold calm nights have put a coating of ice on most of the lakes except Seventh. If there isn’t any wind it should happen tonight.
A loon got frozen in Raquette Lake last week but then a thaw came and the bird got out.
Then a loon got stuck out by Cedar Island in this current freeze-up.
It only had a small puddle last night at dark and it wasn’t found this morning so maybe it ran on the ice and got airborne during the night.
Young loons can do this but I don’t think older birds can. By this time of the year the older birds have left for the warmer climate.
The juveniles have to learn this lesson at least once before they follow the geese gong south.
Saturday was snow goose flying day as they were going over in V- after V-formation. I had several calls on these birds headed south.
I only have two juncos left at the feeder this morning and everything else has left.
Another one of my banded birds, an American goldfinch, was trapped and let go in Maryland more than a year after I banded it in the backyard.
Some folks in Old Forge have cardinals, blackbirds and titmice at their feeders so I hope they stay around through the weekend and the Christmas Count on Sunday.
Our cat Inky has gotten some of her hair back so she at least looks like a cat, not a four-eyed monster.
She plays with her pipe cleaners all night, makes few runs and jumps up on the banister and then sleeps during the daytime.
She still begs for food while we are in bed whether it’s four in the morning or six. She takes a few bites and then begs for dried food.
She has become a tease for what we call fake milk when we are having supper. She will whine until she gets a bowl of cold water which she has by her food but the fresh stuff makes her shut up.
She has us trained but she has been here in this house almost as long as we have. She has to check me out when I come up from the cellar to see what kind of critter lost its hide that night.
Trapping season for pine marten and fisher has ended…but that’s another story… See ya.