If your not talking about the weather these days your missing the main topic of conservation no matter where you live in the world. The storms just keep coming across the country or out of the gulf here in the US and the major cities seem to be getting the big hits. I know what my driveway looks like with two feet of snow on it so downtown Chicago must be a nightmare. Ohara Airport one of the busiest closed down for two days ties up much of the east west travel in the US. There are probably still some folks waiting for a plane ride somewhere. The insurance companies must be scrambling with all the power outages (causing freeze ups for sure), vehicle accidents and trees on homes from snow and ice where they normally don’t get it, building damages from heavy snow.
Talking about snow loads on roofs, if you haven’t checked your camps and summer homes in this area I would suggest that you do. I have been scooping roofs for a week now, taking some three to five feet in places from them. The snow isn’t that heavy but gets some rain and it will be, just a warning. Two hundred dollars for shoveling I a lot cheaper than the cost of repair when they fall in. A few years back I was shoveling camps on the backside of Limekiln and one that I didn’t shovel had over four feet of snow on it. I contacted the owners and she said it had been there for years and not fallen in and not to worry. I went back a week later and the whole roof was in the living room. Many of these camps have been here for years and wood does weaken over time so give it some thought and save yourself some grief and big bucks.
My Wood Duck house down on the pond has been there for ten years now and never had a family other than Flying Squirrels. I noticed the snow on the roof had it on a little bit of a lean the other day but the solid ice won’t let it go any further. Maybe it looks more natural like a bent tree now and they will use it. The Common Mergansers looked at it a couple years ago but didn’t use it. Many people don’t know that Hooded and Common Mergansers are both cavity nesters.
The deer use the snow as an insulator just like the birds that I spoke about last week. When they lie down in the snow they create their own little pocket and their hollow hair gives them added insulation from the cold. They are using up body fat now since they are not getting food to supply their energy supply. Nature has provided that they can do this for quite a while but if the winter lasts longer than normal they will perish. Their bone marrow becomes a clear gelatin like substance. If winter breaks they will survive but if not some will die. This is also the time of the year when predators like Coyotes can catch Deer by chasing them out on an open lake where they can run them down. Any disturbance by domestic dogs can cause them to use energy that they don’t have. These dogs also may kill a Deer and then come home and enjoy the comforts of home.
Don’t miss the first Gallery opening at the new Art Center it’s pretty neat. I think you’ll see some things from the past that were used in this area during the winter that you never knew about. Some were before my time that’s for sure but it’s nice to see how people invented things that were useful to them. Necessity is the mother of invention.
I didn’t get to go Perch fishing on Lake Champlain but Brother Bob has been killing them by the bucket fulls. Most of the places he fishes are frozen over but now slush on top from the weight of the snow on the ice. I talked to some ice fishermen coming off slush covered Limekiln yesterday. They said the water in places on top of the ice was over a foot deep. One fella had only leather boots and his feet were frozen. I asked if they had caught any fish and they said yes, seven Splake, one was 23 inches, about four pounds. This slush is going to be with use until a thaw and it all becomes ice. Use caution if traveling on the lakes as this slush could bring you to a halt.
Dog Sled Races are going to happen but that’s another story. See ya.
