Folks are coming back to the pond in spite of our cool weather. While we haven't had any of the really warm weather we had a couple of weeks ago, things are coming along as usual. Fred and I walked on W. Shore Road today and I spotted red trillium budded but not blossomed, and lots of adder's tongues leaves - no blooms. I looked for mayflowers, but didn't spot any. I have favorite spots to find them in the woods, but it's been so wet we haven't walked in the woods at all.

Bill and Diane Rossi got back yesterday from their trip to New Zealand. They had a wonderful experience, they said. They were busy doing lawn work when we saw them. Next door to them Ray and Cyndi Rouleau are back, and down the road a bit, Phil and Joyce Rogers are here, too. I had a message tonight from Walter Ruf:

Hi, I just want you to know that the ice out contest was news in the Sarasota-Herald this week!We are only about 1600 miles from Joe's pond!We shall hopefully be up before Memorial Day weekend,see you then,Best regards to you and Fred, Mimi & Walter.

Anyone getting back in the next few days should beware that the dirt roads are still not in great shape. I heard last week that North Shore Rd is better now, but we haven't been over there recently. I can tell you that W. Shore Road is much better - in spots! Trouble is, there are still places where you need to go very slowly or you could take the undercarriage of your car out. The worst is the hill at Gardner's. There was a bad mud hole there and the town dumped several loads of gravel in it, but it was too muddy to try to level much, so now the spot is not muddy, but has huge moguls and anyone coming from Rt. 2 at a fast clip could really do some harm to their vehicle. Apparently the frost is still coming out there, or there is a spring surfacing that makes that spot still wet and I'm guessing the road crews don't want to disturb anything for fear it'll just turn to mud again. Maybe I'm giving them too much leeway. We were happy to see they'd graded the other spots, one below our house and a couple more by Masons and in front of Decker's, but were surprised that the Gardner's hill wasn't touched . . .

We're glad to know folks are drifting back to the pond, for that means summer cannot be far behind.