Spring is definitely here! It may be temporary, but temperatures are soaring, the sun is bright and warm, snow is melting, birds are singing - I assume sap is running, but if this weather keeps up, the buds on the trees will start and that will be the end of syrup making.


Our biggest concern here at Joe's Pond is how long can the ice last?? We're having a big run on Ice-Out tickets this week. Locals are watching the signs - the ice fishermen got off the ice a week early, there is open water in the narrows between the main pond and the middle pond, and by the bridge in West Danville. We're going to have warm weather for most of this week, with few nights at freezing temperatures, plus some rain showers like we've had this morning.

We took this picture and the one above a little before noon today from the fishing access. It was raining lightly, and quite warm. Behind the flag is debris left by the ice fishermen - every year junk gets frozen in and when they take the shanties off the ice, some of the trash stays, unfortunately. There isn't much they can do; sometimes they are lucky just being able to get their shanties free of the ice. As long as what they leave isn't hazardous, there is no penalty. It sure isn't pretty, though.

The ice is looking "gray" but hasn't pulled away from the shore yet, and that makes me believe it will be one of those years when the ice doesn't actually "break up," but will instead simply turn to mush and suddenly be gone. However, that said, here's a first-hand report from Evelyn Richer:

Ray just returned from placing the pallet on the ice... he said it was the best weather and conditions yet! Never been so perfect... no slush to plow through, no water on the ice and he didn't even poke through with his feet at any place on his way out... no wind, nice smooth ice, and warm...

Evelyn wrote that at around 8 a.m. today. Ray has been out there in all kinds of conditions - braving howling winds, blowing snow, slush, mush or free-floating ice floes. There have been years when the snow was too deep on April 1st to even think about putting the pallet out; and other years when we have worried for his safety. We usually don't even think about getting things hooked up until a few days before April 1st, but this year is Different!!

Just to clarify: the ice has never gone out in March. The earliest was 2010 when it broke the record of April 16 and went out on April 5; the latest it has gone out was May 6, 1992, and we don't expect to break that record any time soon, the way things are going with global warming and stuff.

I snapped this picture of a mourning dove in our apple tree earlier today. This is the first one I've seen this spring. I believe they sometimes over-winter in Vermont, but we don't usually see them during the winter in this area.

While we were in St. Johnsbury we noticed some geese hanging out in a corn field next to the Passumpsic River. As you can see, there's almost no snow in St. Johnsbury.