3/31/10 AMAZING BIRDS!

SWANS AND SLUSH
BLACKS BEAKS AND A "GULP"

Wednesday, 7:00 AM. 53 degrees, wind W, calm. The sky is mostly overcast but the barometer is up, and predicts partly cloudy skies. Late yesterday afternoon I spotted a flock of two dozen tundra swans off the Bayfield Coast Guard Station. They were several hundred yards off shore on the edge of a huge floating mass of slush, and a few were actually sitting in it. They were quite vocal, their call a mid-pitched “yulp” or “gulp.” Note their black beaks, the European mute swans have yellow beaks. Earlier, driving on Hwy. 2 west of Ashland along the bay, two swans flew parallel to the truck, easily keeping up at 50 MPH. They are powerful, swift and graceful fliers. What amazing birds!

3/30/10 IT WAS FUN WHILE IT WAS FUN

RAIN PREDICTED
THE GARDEN IS "POPPING UP"
Tuesday, 7:30 AM. 40 degrees, wind SW, calm. The cannel is calm, the sky overcast and the barometer predicts rain.
I said goodbye to the Boston Whaler yesterday, which was purchased by the Apostle Islands Cruise Service. I learned much about wind and weather, but it got to be like a snow blower, every time I really needed it something broke or it wouldn’t start and I am not a “fix it” guy. Also, the slip rental became prohibitive and the boat too much for me to handle launching and retrieving alone. If I want to fish on the big lake I’ll go out with one of the very good charter captains, and otherwise I’ll stick to stream fishing. But, it was fun while it was fun.
The garden poppies and tulips are growing fast and soon everything will be popping up.

3/29/10 HAS SPRING SPRUNG?

FERRY RUNNING...A SURE SIGN OF SPRING IN BAYFIELD
BUT THERE'S STILL PACK ICE

Monday, 8:00 AM. 29 degrees, wind SSW, light. The channel has areas of skim ice this morning, and yesterday had some floating pack ice, broken loose from the west shore of Madeline Island. The skies are blue and the barometer predicts partly cloudy weather.
We have our first Bayfield in Bloom committee meeting this morning, getting ready for the radio show and exposition kickoff on Ma y 15. Our Arbor Day tree planting will also be held that day.

3/28/10 DECISIONS, DECISIONS!

AN UNDECIDED DAY

Sunday, 8:15 AM. 33 degrees, wind NE, light to moderate. There are heavy dark clouds across the eastern horizon, but the rest of the sky is clear. The barometer predicts precipitation. It is an undecided day.
The news reports that the Vermont maple sap run is over and the syrup producers are afraid they have missed the main run. Andy thinks our sap flow was much earlier also and that we might not collect much sap either. But, it is all a great mystery and almost impossible to predict with any accuracy. Like the weather, the maple trees I think haven’t decided what to do.

3/27/10 WHAT'S LIFE WITHOUT A CHALLENGE?

WILL IT RAIN?
TUNDRA SWANS ON CHEQUAMEGON BAY
A TOUGH LANDSCAPE SITE

Saturday, 8:00 AM. 37 degrees, wind SW, calm. The channel is dimpled, the sky is overcast and the barometer predicts rain, which we need badly. It is amazing how quickly our soils dry out.
I have an interesting design project to work on, which must be done within the week. A gentleman bought a beautiful property on a steep bluff overlooking the big lake just south of Bayfield, upon which he intends to build only an observation gazebo. He mistakenly cut down some tag alders within fifty feet of the shoreline, which is in violation of strict county zoning laws, and must remediate the vegetation. I will draw and imlement a plan which will both enhance the site esthetically and satisfy the zoning administrator. The plan itself will not be too difficult to draw, but the site is at the bottom of a veritable cliff so access is challenging (he intends to eventually install an electric lift). I will post my progress from time to time. There was a large flock of migrating tundra swans resting on the bay at Ashland yesterday.

3/26/10 SHIVERING CROCUSES, BATMAN!

STILL LOOKS LIKE WINTER
COLD CROCUSES

Friday, 9:15 AM. 19 degrees, wind SSW, light. The channel is wrinkled, the sky lightly overcast and the barometer predicts partly cloudy skies.
The crocuses are blooming but if they could shiver they would, and I feel cheated that we missed the warm weather while we were gone. Reports are that the maple sap is not flowing. I haven't yet caught up with all the messages and Joan and I are still road weary, but another day and all should be back to normal.

3/26/10 IT'S GOOD TO BE BACK HOME AGAIN

A BAYFIELD EAGLE
ALMOST EASTER DINNER
DENVER SNOWSTORMS
ROCKIES SOUTH OF DENVER
A TEXAS SUNSET
EACH TEXAS COUNTY SEAT HAS A UNIQUE COURTHOUSE
THE Y START 'EM YOUNG IN TEXAS
Thursday, 8:30 AM. 15 degrees, wind NW, light. The sky is mostly clear, the barometer predicts sunny skies and the ice is gone from the channel. The ferry is running again.
We got back late last night and crashed into bed. This morning our eyes are like road maps and my neck is stiff from tension after traversing 4,000 (+ or -) miles of every kind of road. Thankfully we had good driving weather.
A brief synopsis of the trip is as follows. Our first stop was Madison for an Urban Forestry Council meeting, then on to Columbus, OH, to visit daughter Greta, then to Weatherford, TX, to visit Dutch, Leslie and toddler Allison Eleanor, then to Denver and Eva, Doug, Nickolas and Katie. All are well, busy and the children of course growing. We played with all the dogs, petted all the cats as well as the hedgehog, but wouldn’t get on the horse. We saw no signs of spring until Arkansas, but by the time we left Texas pears, cherries and peaches were all in full flower. We arrived in Denver in a blizzard and left just before another hit. We saw lots of wildlife along the way including large herds of antelope in northeastern Arizona and in southwestern South Dakota. Also lots of turkeys, including this big Tom hit by a vehicle on the Rosebud Reservation. It was still warm when the photo was taken, and if I had had any room at all in the trunk I would have taken it home for Easter dinner. The eagle was on the side of the road outside of Ashland, and we were greeted by a flock of tundra swans on Chequamegon Bay.
Listening to local radio stations and eavesdropping on conversations in restaurants and bars throughout our trip I get the impression that the economy is limping along to an eventual recovery, but the political mood is sour, to say the least. In Texas, particularly, it borders on insurrection, with songs of open rebellion played on the radio (Texas was admitted to the union on the express condition that it had the right to secede whenever it wished, and although it is probably not likely it gets talked about). I think incumbent politicians of any stripe are in trouble in November, as people feel they have been ignored, conned, and screwed over in general.
But now its back to work with landscape plans and jobs, and all sorts of catching up to do, including cleaning the chimney now that the ice is gone from the roof. I am not fooled by the weather, however, and I am certain we will get at least one last major winter storm to discourage the budding daffodils.

3/01/10 ALL DRESSED UP WITH LOTS OF PLACES TO GO

THE SKIES ARE GONNA CLEAR UP
WHAT A HANDSOME GUY!
ANOTHER

Monday, 8:30 AM. 25 degrees, wind NW, calm. The sky is overcast, but the barometer predicts sunny skies.
A pair of pileated woodpeckers flew over as we walked, this one, I assume the male, stopping to do some drumming on a hollow maple branch.
Lucky is freshly groomed, all dressed up with a lot of places to go. Tomorrow we start our annual hegira to visit children and grandchildren. We stop first for a meeting of the Urban Forestry Council in Madison on Wednesday, then on to Columbus and daughter Greta, then Weatherford, Texas and Dutch, Leslie and toddler Allison, then on to Denver and Eva, Doug, Nicholas and Katie. We will be back before the end of March. I don’t know if there will be any posts before then