END OF THE BOATING SEASON

MOST RECREATIONAL BOATS ARE OUT OF THE WATER NOW

Monday, 9:30 AM.  53 degrees F at the ferry dock, 49 on the back porch.  Wind SW,  calm with light gusts.  The sky is mostly cloudy and overcast, the sun struggling to make itself seen.  The humidity is 62% and the barometer mostly steady, at 29.7".  The high today will be around 60, then dropping into the 40's with nighttime temperatures near freezing.  The balance of the week will be a mix of weather and much cooler.  Bringing in the plants today.
   The weather is changing seriously now, and it is virtually the end of the recreational boating season.  There will be some sport fishermen still venturing out and some kayakers, but most sail and powerboats are already out of the water except for a few diehards.
   Of course the ferry will keep on running until the ice gets too thick to break, and the Coast Guard bouy tenders have yet to arrive, and commercial fishing tugs will keep working until they can no longer set their nets.
   It has been several years at least since I have seen a large cargo ship in the channel, and it is seldom now that a big laker runs to find safety in the lee of the Apostle Islands.  If we have a stormy November that may yet happen, as Lake Superior remains a dangerous place, regardless of the size of the ship.
   But for now most of the big boy toys are put away for the winter, many of them already in the boat barns that are springing up like mushrooms around Bayfield.  It beats me where all the money comes from,  as I sure don't have any to spare.