Henretta Splain sent this with the following message this morning:
    "Just to let you know I woke up to blue water, sorta, this morning!" 
     We're all as happy as Henretta and Kermit. It was a gray sort of day - even the picture Karen Morris sent of the loons in front of her house looked like it was taken in black and white. Blah day.

    Mostly I can report the same-old, same-old -- it's snowing. No surprise there. It's going to be one of those years, I guess. In spite of the nasty weather, the pond is almost entirely free of ice. I mentioned that in an email to Henretta Splain yesterday - how nice it was to see blue water, and her reply was, "What blue water?" She lives on the cove near the pavilion and the ice has packed in there, driven by strong northwest winds yesterday. There was an ice jam near the narrows in the big pond yesterday and ice in the cove near Barre Avenue. Still a little along the lower shore near Point Comfort in the second (middle) pond, and in the cove where Point Comfort's dock is in the first pond. Otherwise, the ponds are open. I don't anticipate they will re-freeze, even with the temperature remaining in the 30s.
     It is a bit discouraging to have continuous snow today. It seems to be mostly melting, although a few minutes ago it was beginning to stick to the branches of evergreens and was coating the pussy willows making them look like marshmallows, but now the temperature has risen a little to 39 degrees and although there is still snow in the air, it's not sticking to anything. I was afraid I'd put my snow shovel away too soon.
     This is the sort of stuff we used to call "farmers' fertilizer," and indeed, the grass is getting green as if being nourished by all the wetness. Grass doesn't mind this cold, wet weather like we humans do. Son, Bob, stopped by yesterday, thinking he'd get out on his trail bike, but that  might not have happened. I think he forgot how different the weather is here at Joe's Pond than it is even in nearby St. Johnsbury.
     The weather doesn't discourage the migrating birds. Karen Morris sent this picture taken in front of her house on the big pond (I mistakenly put her on the middle pond earlier - sorry, I knew better!) this morning. Thanks, Karen - a sure sign of spring. I'll bet they were glad to find open water! Only a few days ago, they might have had a bit of a hard landing.
     I  hope this snowy weather isn't too discouraging for the new year 'rounders for whom this is their first winter here - the Dodges on Channel Drive, and Alice and Albert Towle on Point Comfort Road. There are a lot of people on their way back to the pond, too - Jack and Sue LaGue and Jamie and Joanne Stewart are the one's I know about, and there may be others. 
     There are some who have their cottages on the market - the Andersons on Route 2 is for sale and also Francis and Gracia Berwick, their neighbors, are selling.  Francis told me keeping two places going is just too much work, much as they loved coming to camp. Our lives change over time and therefore so do our needs, desires and interests. 
    One thing I know for sure about Joe's Pond is that the population here is always in flux. I don't know how many times over the years I have published a directory and before the ink has dried, there were changes. Some of us just don't know any better and hang out, hang in there - whatever you want to call it. Year around here isn't for everyone, but some of us wouldn't have it any other way.

Project Update 4/29/19, Cabot-Danville US 2 Reconstruction [Cabot-Danville FEGC F 028-3(36) C/2] 

Project Location:  The 1.4 mile project extends along US 2 from Last Road to Danville Hill Road in Cabot. This is a multi-year project with most of the work occurring in 2017/2018. Completion is scheduled for 2019.


TRAVEL ALERT:  The speed reduction zone of 40 mph has been placed back in effect. Motorists should be advised that fines are doubled for exceeding the posted speed limit within the construction zone. 

TRAFFIC INFORMATION:  The contractor is uncovering construction signs and temporary speed reduction signs today in preparation for construction activities which will resume tomorrow.

GRADING: Fine grading of the road will begin tomorrow, 4/30 from Last Rd. to Goodrich’s Maple Farm. Motorists will encounter flaggers and a one-lane alternating traffic pattern. Please add a few extra minutes to your travel time as minor delays may occur.

Please focus on safety when driving through the construction work zone and remember, it is against the law to use a hand held cell phone while driving in Vermont.

Contact Natalie Boyle, Public Information Consultant, EIV Technical Services, with any questions or concerns in regard to this project at 802-855-3893 or nboyle@eivtech.com  

--

Natalie Boyle

Public Information Consultant

Well, this is embarrassing. I certainly intended to post the big news of the day early this morning, but it's been a very busy day and I'm just now getting a chance to do this. I wanted to tell everyone how depressing it was to wake up this morning and find the ground all covered with snow again. We just got rid of it! And then it came back. I wasn't surprised because it snowed off and on all day yesterday. Fortunately it was all gone by 9 o'clock - or most of it was - but the sun didn't really shine all day and the temperature remained in the 30's and low 40s. I had to melt the snow in my collection tube before I could measure the precipitation - about .20 inches. 
     It was such a gloomy day yesterday, we decided we needed to get out of the house, so we jumped in the car and went down to Cabot to pick up a pizza at the Cabot General Store. They do a mean pizza there. We weren't sure how the road would be, and I have to admit, there were a few spots on Cabot Plains Road that were not great, but certainly were nothing compared to some years. The thing is, there is still a whole lot of frost in the roads so there are humps and bumps, soft shoulders and slimy slippery spots that can be a problem if you want to get anywhere fast. Best to take your time. West Shore Road is still pretty good, but I wouldn't recommend Cabot Plains Road except for those used to driving in that kind of muddy mess. You definitely have to ride the ridges.
    Joanne Stewart is getting the newsletter ready to publish. It will come out just a tad later than usual because she's still in Florida. She's done a great job and there are a bunch of new advertisers in it this year I think Joe's Ponders will enjoy finding out about. Once it has been published, anyone can go to the website and read it, too.
     I'm getting ready to publish a new JPA directory and there have been so many changes my head is spinning. I found out that we Cathy and Tom Dodge are now year 'rounders at their home on Channel Drive. Now there's a challenge. That road is difficult. Like Tom said - sometimes it's under water - I expect that was the case at least for a few days last week. But they have great neighbors and everyone pitches in to keep the road passable. Then I also found out that Lee Hackett's winter residence is now St. Johnsbury - he's come home after living in Wisconsin, I think it was. There are other changes, but I need to get to bed so I'll be able to function tomorrow. Another busy day ahead. I just hope there isn't snow on the ground again tomorrow morning. 
     Before I turn in, here's an interesting website you might like to explore. Our neighbor and good friend, Luke Persons (the one with the big beard) is really onto a great invention, we think. He explains in a short video. 
     I also want to let you know that the loons have arrived - Geri Pelok reported there are three in their cove, and Tom Dodge told me he saw two young bald eagles sitting on the ice today. Sure signs of spring, I guess. Another is the geese returning. We can hear them plainly - I just hope they keep moving and don't nest and hang out here! The eagles could be a threat to the loon chicks, but that's part of the process wildlife goes through. We'll hope for the best.
We saw a lot of turkeys on our way to Cabot Village yesterday. They are eating well in Burtt's pasture and they were getting along just fine with the cattle.

     Ah, spring in the Kingdom! As I look out my office window, there are big, wet snowflakes falling. We've had steady rain since last night and I measured a whopping 1.2 inches this morning. It is still raining/snowing, and the temperature is hovering in the 30s. Nasty weather, but nothing unusual for this time of year.
     We  know things are moving ahead - even with snow flurries teasing us that there's more winter lurking in our future. The block went through the slushy ice and stopped the clock on Thursday, April 25, at 5:39 a.m. - we were able to locate a winner of the Ice-Out Contest, although out of over 13,000 guesses, nobody had the exact time this year. There were several close to that time, and the closest was Robynn Albert of Essex Junction. Lucky lady - she will receive a nice fat check later on!
     We learned this week that Jenny Larrabee Rafuse not only now owns Hastings Store, she is also a postal clerk. She works in the Peacham office mornings and told us yesterday she's enjoying her new duties. Some of you may not know that serving as postmaster in West Danville dates back to her great grandmother, Jennie Hastings who had the job in 1914, followed by her grandfather, Ralph Hastings, then her father, Garey Larrabee, who retired in 2015. That's a long tradition of postal service in that family! We wish Jenny well - and can't wait for the sandwich bar and creemee stand she promised to open at the store later this spring!

Flag is Down, Contest Over!

The block went through the ice and stopped the clock at 5:39 a.m. this morning, April 25, 2019! Committee members Larry Rossi and Diane Rossi viewed the clock and verified the time.We won't have a winner to announce for a while - once we find who won, there has to be ticket verification, the person(s) have to be contacted, and then we have to calculate the winnings. So check your ticket stubs, folks! You may be a winner!
     Typically, the mushy ice will be gone from all of the big pond within about three days - we should have sparkling blue water by the weekend! Hooray!!

I'd say we're finally beginning to see some changes around the pond as far as the ice is concerned. The first two ponds are free of ice except for some of the secluded small bays, and the big pond is getting darker every day. Shelly Walker just wrote that Molly's Pond is ice free, and that usually happens five or six days before Joe's goes out. She also said the cove near Barre Avenue is showing more water. The picture here was taken this morning by Diane, and you can see that there isn't much change at the block. When we stopped at Hastings Store yesterday, Garey was saying that all we need is a good wind to move things along. He's right - if the ice begins to move, that will usually mean the block is going down soon, or if the ice floe moves away from shore far enough, it will stop the clock and end the contest. There are still hundreds of people who had tickets with dates stretching all the way into June, so there will be a winner, for sure. Soon.
    We have temperatures in the 40s today and it didn't freeze last night, so melting is slowed but not stopped. We're expecting rain off and on for the next several days, but no very hot weather.
     We are feeling fortunate that we haven't had a severe mud season so far. I think the frost is mostly out, but there are still the places where there are springs underground that raise havoc with the road when the water table is high - like now. There's the usual spot by Dudley's - right at the top of that little hill. There is a ledge there and it's always bad. Another spot is at the foot of Chatot Road in front of Decker's - another ledge with lots of underground water. The flat by Hamilton's and Michelle Walker's is great - for now. Also, the flat by Mason's isn't  all that bad - for now. Danville's end could use some attention, but none of the spots are terrible like some years. We hardly dare believe we're going to luck out and not have knee-deep mud this spring, but so far so good! 
     We have one or two small spots of snow on our lawn, but it's all mostly gone, and that's so good to see. We noticed yesterday that in St. Johnsbury lawns are turning green and trees are noticeably budding. Not so much here, but we're only a week or so behind, I think. So far our spring signs have been pussy willows and one lone crocus in bloom. There are a few green tips of daffodils and some day lilies beginning to poke through the winter dirt and grime, so it won't be long now! We'll be swatting black flies before we know it. 

Another spring-ish day - not as warm or sunny as yesterday, but almost all the snow is gone (!) and the ice in the pond is showing signs of deterioration, so it won't be long now before we have blue water and green grass back again. We are expecting a little more rain later today, but that all helps get the frost out of the ground and wash away some of the winter grime. Here's this morning's shot of the Ice-Out setup. Beginning to look pretty mushy out there!
     The sun is almost breaking through as I write this, so perhaps at least this  morning we will have a very pleasant day. I don't mind if it's cloudy, just so it's reasonably warm. I did some raking yesterday, but hardly made a dent in what needs to be done. Each year  I've cut back on the amount of flower beds I'm trying to keep weed-free, but still, there is sooooo much to do! The old grape arbor needs some attention after the huge load of snow it held up under this winter, and there are the inevitable mole messes here and there on the property that need to be filled and smoothed before the grass needs to be mowed. I have yet to find a solution to those little guys, and now, without Woody to help keep the population down, we will no doubt have  more of the little pests everywhere.
     No signs of bears around our place, but I have heard of a few being out and about in the Cabot area. Now is not the time for bird feeders to be out - and the birds will be fine without your help now. And please don't  leave any kind of garbage outside, and be sure to clean your outdoor grills well, otherwise you will almost certainly have a visit from a hungry bear. Their sense of smell is very sharp, and they'll know when you are cooking outside - or sometimes even indoors if the windows are open, and will investigate, I'm told. You don't want that kind of unexpected dinner guest!

Just a quick update on water and ice here at Joe's Pond this Easter Sunday. Most of the snow out in the open is gone, but there are patches still where there were drifts and still quite a lot in the woods. It's good to see bare ground, but we had a lot of rain over the past two or three days and the pond is very high. Here are some comments: 
From Diane Rossi - I just know there is water above the walkway in our boathouse.  I think that’s the first time since Irene.

And from Shelly Walker - The water is up to my garden around the house on the lake side.  My stone wall at the lake is completely under water.  The ice is pushed up, but doesn't seem to be any further out.  It is still bright white.  Not any darker yet. 

It wouldn't be surprising if the pond rises a little more before it begins to recede. There is still a lot of water coming in from the hillsides where there's still snow in the woods. The pond was at "normal" level when the thawing began, so there's really not much room for all this additional water. Gone are the days when the water level could be lowered in anticipation of spring runoff or unusual amounts of rain forecast. There probably will be some damage to property around the pond and possibly chunks of wetlands dislodged. We can only hope it won't do too much damage. Yesterday Route 5 in St. Johnsbury was closed due to water coming over the road in the St. Johnsbury Center area. Thurston-Dimick Auto closed early so they wouldn't be marooned with no way to get out. Fortunately, their business is high enough so they shouldn't have any damage, but others along Memorial Drive may not be as fortunate. 
    Part of Rt. 5 in Lyndonville at the intersection of VT-122 is closed due to flooding; also Bethel Mt. Road in Rochester due to flood damage. These are the only notices right now - so the water may be down in the St. J. Center area. 
     The water is still high along the Connecticut, and will likely remain so for another day or so. 
      We hope you are having a nice Easter Sunday wherever you are and are able to stay safe and dry.

 

My friend, Mary Whitcomb, sent these pictures of a Common Grackle perched in a tree outside of her home. She said he suddenly puffed up and apparently protested the rain loudly (second picture) and then regained his composure after venting. Poor thing is probably as fed up with all this rain as we humans are. We both got a chuckle out of the sequence of events. He's a handsome fellow when he isn't wet and angry!

Here is a picture of the Ice-Out  clock and block as of this  morning. The ice looks pretty solid, but you can see it is beginning to pull away from the shore.  We didn't get as much rain last night as was forecast, and that is a good thing. It may help slow down the runoff a little and prevent more serious flooding. The day isn't over, though, and there will  no doubt be more showers. I had just over half an inch in my measuring tube this morning. Way better than the "over two inches" predicted. I noticed that there is a real heat wave out in the west right now with temperatures in the 80s. That is probably heading our way, but will likely get cooled off a bit before it gets here. Definitely spring is here and summer is just around a corner - somewhere. Thanks, Diane Rossi, for sending the picture of the setup. Now I'm heading for the kitchen to do some prep work for  our family Easter Eve dinner tonight.

Here are a couple of pictures for you ice watchers wondering how the pond is melting. Shelly Walker sent these from today, taken from her house on the south end of West Shore Road.

No, that isn't open water with a foamy wave coming ashore - that's wind-swept slush on top of ice - thick ice, that won't be gone overnight. It has taken a beating from warm air and brief sunshine working on it today and water from surrounding brooks raising the level of the pond and changing the temperature underneath. It's all working towards ending the contest - but not quite yet.

By the way, the ticket count was over 13,000 this year. That means there will be a pretty darned nice check for some lucky winner - or winners. With that many people in the contest, it could be there will be more than one winner. We'll see. But now all the tickets have been logged in so when the clock stops, we're ready! Thanks to Henretta Splain for all her hard work typing in thousands of numbers.

The rain began earlier this evening, but it has been more like showers - nothing very hard yet. I guess that may happen around midnight here as the storm descends on us from the west. Everything needs a good washing - there is always lots of mud and dirt left on the grass and roadsides after the snow melts, so most of that will get washed away. When we were out turning water today I noticed that our big bed of lilies is free of snow and has green sprouts coming up already. They will like the rain, no doubt. I brought in some pussywillow twigs and a couple clippings from the apple tree I hope will sprout some green leaves to go with them. I also brought in my tall snow-measuring stick from the back yard. Shortly after I got it out there I didn't bother to look at it much. With the amount of snow we had, it got to a point I just didn't want to know anymore.  Now there are some pretty big patches of bare ground here and there!

So we're making progress. Stay tuned!

We are waiting for the rains to come. It is unusually warm today - my thermometer is reading 64.4F, and a little while ago it was 69F. We had a little sunshine this morning and a couple of breaks this afternoon, but mostly now it's clouded over.
     Fred and I have been out back turning water. It isn't a serious problem, but with the rain coming, we wanted it to run around our house, not into it, so we cleaned out a small ditch along the back side of our lawn that every spring catches most of the water that comes off the hill and runs it down into the culvert below the house - and ultimately into the pond, of course. The snow was melting rapidly and there were sheets of water coming from underneath onto the growing bare spots around trees and hummocks. The rain that's forecast may be two or more inches, and that is a lot combined with the snow still on the ground.
     Tom Dente sent this picture yesterday of a restaurant in near

where he and Camilla are. Here's what he wrote:

Starting to see some Connecticut River flood here in Middletown. The river is up about two and a half feet above the flood stage. The picture is the Harbor Park Restaurant flooded by the Connecticut river. Easter dinner will not be available this year at the restaurant. This weekend with all the rain will bring more challenges. In June, 1984, the flood waters from the Connecticut reached the top of the restaurant so only the roof was showing. The flooding at that time was caused by severe rain for several days in New England.

 

    That must be awful for the owners of that place and other businesses and homes in the area. There may not be as much water heading down the Connecticut this weekend as in 1984, but there is certainly going to be a lot. There is still a lot of snow in the hills and mountains and the ground is saturated already - or frozen.

     So much going on everywhere - bad weather, fires, avalanches, shootings - I hope most people can enjoy a calm Easter Sunday doing things they enjoy, whether it's going to church, having dinner with family and/or friends, or just quietly doing their own thing. We wish you all well. Be happy, be safe, and as Mr. Spock would say, "Live long and prosper."

We're enjoying (?) a raw, not-very-nice spring day here, with rain expected later this afternoon and off and on for the next week or so. That should make a huge difference in the snow on our hillsides AND the ice on the pond. I think we're getting into the zone of actually seeing some open water in the big pond soon. There are strips of open water in the first two ponds near both narrows, and the big pond is showing signs around the shoreline of things loosening up. With rain and high winds in the next few days, there are certain to be some rapid changes.

In the meantime, nothing much is sprouting, but there are pussy-willows out in full bloom and some buds on our lilac bushes are showing signs of waking up. I haven't been out to look at the apple trees - too much snow in the back yard, still. It's all moving inthe right direction, though. Except this morning there was a brief shower of "snrain" - that's snow and rain mixed. It didn't amount to anything at all, so no harm done. The temperature has remained in the 40s so far today, and that's ok, too. Better to have gradual melting going on than have it turn too warm and then conditions on our back roads could go south quickly.

After writing yesterday about the uselessness of honing the potholes this time of year, when we went out around noon, we found that Cabot had dumped some gravel and honed West Shore Road - and it made a huge difference. I stand by my theory that the potholes will be back within a few days, though. It's just the way things go. We were very happy that the road was so much improved, though. Good work, Cabot road crew! (They really do a great job under really difficult circumstances.)


Nancy Buttura sent these pictures from Arizona. Ithink I have identified Brittlebush and Prickly  Pear, but I don't know what the



 

purple ones are. It's nice to see what is blooming in other parts of the country - and thank, Nancy for sending those really nice shots.

Regardless of the lingering winter weather - no new snow today, but not much melting going on, either! - the Ice-Out Committee still has work to do. Henretta is busily inputting ticket information and her last report was that all the blue tickets are in and there are just a pile of paper tickets, the ones people print from their

computer and send in the mail, to finish. The ones that are paid for by credit card are already organized on a giant spreadsheet, so no need to worry about them. Henretta sent this picture this morning. There are about 2000 tickets in each of those trays.
     Once everything has been recorded and the spreadsheets merged, they will have a total ticket count. There may be some additional expenses to consider because Larry Rossi has to make sure the rope is new and strong and all the components of the set-up are working, so each year some items are replaced. Last thing they want is a malfunction because something was worn or broken. So when Larry's expenses, if any, are in and all other expenses accounted for, they will have the numbers to work out what the split will be. It should be very good this year - at least $5,000, I'm thinking.
     In the meantime, last week we had someone ask an obvious question we hadn't thought to explain before. Where is the pallet and flag set up now? Everyone knew it used to be near the fishing access, but then we had to move it because Homer was no longer there during the time we needed someone to oversee things. So we moved it to a spot about half way up the west shore about in front of the Rossi and Rouleau homes. Diane Rossi is co-chair of the Ice-Out and lives there year around, so it made perfect sense to have it where she can monitor it. So to be perfectly clear, it is in the third pond, half way up the west shore, about 200 feet off shore.
     Some people had it on the east shore, some thought it was in the middle pond, but now you know. The flag can be seen from West Shore Road, but I warn you - the road is not great. There isn't mud like some years - yet! - but there are serious potholes. Those big winter moles have been at work and left their mark all along the road so it fairly shakes your vehicle to bits if you try to go too fast, and dodging them is just plain silly most of the time because when you dodge one, you just slip into another, sometimes deeper one. Honing it doesn't accomplish much this time of year because the road is still frozen underneath and while those holes may get filled with mud temporarily, it only takes a day or two for them to reappear. So it's really a waste of time until the road has sufficiently thawed out. In the meantime, take it slow, dodge what you think you can, and hold onto your temper for a few more weeks. It will be a warm, smooth, dusty road soon!
     

Chris Hebert at Boston Marathon!

Pam and Joe Hebert sent this great picture of their son, Chris, in the Boston Marathon yesterday. Chris came in 5th among the Vermont men who were running. That's a pretty darned good showing, I'd say. There's a news story about Vermont runners HERE.
Chris is #7325 - great picture, and many thanks for sharing this fun news, Pam. Congratulate Chris for us! Well done!

We have "ice watchers" around the pond these days - unlike when the Ice-Out Contest was first started and there were only a handful - or actually, probably fewer - of year-around home owners on the pond. These days, we get reports from folks on the far north shore, the far west shore and the far south shore, literally - and a few in between!

For instance, Shelly Walker who lives on the south shore reported yesterday:  An ice fisherman had put up his red tent [Sunday] on the ice across the bay and spent the better part of the day out there.  It must have been lovely, but the ice this time of year makes me nervous.  The brook between Hamilton's and your camp [Dimick's] is now open out into the lake a bit.  The ice has pulled away from the shore in front of my house about 6 inches or so.

I saw a couple of Great Blue Herons flying overhead this weekend.  And of course the Canadian Geese are back.  I almost felt sorry for them.  There were two out on the ice just walking around probably looking for food.

 

 There is very little open water - a little stretch at both narrows, but no significant sign of spring yet. Those geese were probably thinking there should be open water and they could get a head start finding a nesting spot! Bad luck for them, good luck for us. We don't need nesting geese again - best if they just move on to a larger, less populated pond.

I can hear the geese honking on these nice days, but on a day like today, with a fresh coating of snow and the wind blowing a gale, I expect any self-respecting goose or duck wouldn't chance trying to land on Joe's Pond. The small areas of open water would get very crowded pretty quickly - if they could manage to find them at all.

In other news, Joe's Ponders - you can pay your dues on line now. Fred has activated the page - he waits until the Ice-Out activity has subsided just to make the clerical stuff easier on all of us. You can go to Pay Dues On Line and get that chore taken care of right now so you won't have to think about it and risk being in arrears. The official date to have dues paid is July 7th., but I always mention the first of July - that gives a little wiggle room. However, when paying on line, you are instantly paid - no delays, and it saves postage. No extra cost to you, and you can also make donations as you wish. It's easy and efficient.

Weather yesterday was rain and in the 40s and low 50s, with flood watches in lots of areas; last night the rain turned to snow and we got another inch or so of new snow on top of the foot or so still on the ground, the temperature is 31 degrees and the wind blew viciously all night. I think the wind has calmed now, and hopefully the temperature will go up again - but the good news is that having this brief cold snap may have slowed the runoff a bit; that said, now we have another inch or so of snow to melt. Long winter, slow spring.

 

 

We had about an inch of rain during yesterday afternoon and through the night. We also had a brief roll of thunder in the early morning hours. I only heard one, but there may have been more before I awoke. I didn't see any lightning, but then, I didn't stay awake long, either. The snow pack has gone down unbelievably. We still don't have a lot of bare ground showing, but the snow has pulled away from trees and bushes and the sides of the roads are showing some bare ground - and of course there's some mud, but so far it hasn't been terrible, at least on West Shore Road.
     We've had a request for more pictures of the flag and clock for the Ice-Out Contest. With so much snow on top of the ice, the thing is really just sitting out there. With nothing changing on the ice, we forget that the folks with tickets are anxiously waiting and want to see what's happening. Diane sent a picture just a few minutes ago, and you can see the pond is well covered with ice - in fact, last time I was down in the village, there's no open water anywhere except a little in the narrows. After all this rain, that will change quickly, I think. There are tons of water pouring into the pond from all the brooks, and that will raise the water level and get the ice broken away from the shore. In addition, it will raise the temperature of the pond so no matter what the weather, the ice will begin to melt from underneath a bit. It's a long process.
     I'll try to remember to give more frequent reports. Things should begin to change within the next week or so.
     I had this nice picture form Andy Rudin a day or so ago. He is very kind to share pictures of his spring flowers with us - knowing that there's nothing of the sort growing here at Joe's Pond! Thank you, Andy, perhaps by the time you get here, we'll have some flowers in bloom, too! In the meantime, thanks for sharing yours!

    We may be getting a little break from winter weather, finally. We have rain and warmer temperatures in the forecast, and I just noticed there is a little rain falling already -- the temperature here at our house in 41 degrees. That should move things along.
     We unexpectedly took a break from everything today. We both had a bit of cabin fever and decided to "get out of Dodge" for a bit. One of the newspapers this week had a page of advertising (and coupons!) from "99" Restaurant announcing their "colossal lobster roll" was back on the menu, and that was like a "sign" for both of us. It must be spring if the colossal lobster roll is back! To make the trip less frivolous, there were a couple of items I'd been looking for that I was pretty sure I could get at Walmart, and that was enough to make the jaunt seem a little more practical. I normally don't go anywhere for just one reason - it is the same mentality that has me grocery shopping every two weeks, and scheduling more than one appointment on the same day to save extra trips. 
     And then there comes a time when you just know you have to get out of the house, do something fun and interesting, see people and forget about being frugal or sensible. Maybe, just maybe, when you get back home you'll feel a little more relaxed and can overlook the snow and the wind, and this endless winter and the inevitable mud season - but I'm not going there.
     So we got our "spring break" - brought home more lobster than we could eat at one sitting, found the stuff I was needing at Walmart's and it proved to be a really good break in our routine and tonight I'm back at my computer, Fred's got the website pages under control and we are  happy to have played hooky for an afternoon.
   

Terry Mureta

We have sad news today. Theresa "Terry" Mureta, passed away on April 6, 2019. She was Michelle Parker's mother and loved spending time at Joe's Pond. Our sincere condolences go to Michelle and her family. Those wishing to reach out to the family can send messages to them at 65 Granite Shed Lane, Montpelier VT 05602.
 

I want to let you know we got a couple inches of new snow today. It's about 33 degrees, and that's where it's been most of the day. The snow didn't stick much on the driveway, but it stayed on the deck and of course on the ground since we have almost no bare ground yet. In the meantime, the light rain we had earlier in the day and yesterday took the snow pack down a bit more, so we are definitely getting closer to spring-like conditions.
     Those of you who had late April or early May picks for the ice to go out are probably rejoicing. It's hard to believe looking out at the pond now that in a matter of a few weeks we could see open water there. On the other hand, this may be the year that we beat our latest date for the clock to stop, May 6th. Anything can happen.
In the meantime, the contest organizers have delivered all the tickets to the input specialist, Henretta Splain, and she is at her computer every day. She sent this photo of the tickets that have been recorded (on the right) and the ones remaining to be input (on the left). Besides what you see here, she has many more paper tickets to inpute. We won't have a total count for some time, but I'll post it here as soon as Henretta is finished.
     I had another photo from my friend, Mary Whitcomb - she had some pretty large birds in her yard today. Doesn't this look like an ad for some kind of chicken feed or maybe "free range" eggs? They are handsome birds. They are competing with robins and other wild birds for insects. I have always liked hens - there's something calming about them. They just go about their business scratching, pecking and clucking, and then settle on their nests to lay an egg; then repeat the whole process the next day. Just doing their thing, not bothering anyone.
Then there's the rooster. We had an ugly rooster once. He was mean! He made a great Sunday dinner, though!

I wasn't going to blog tonight - the weather today has been awful and I didn't trust myself not to cuss about it. But when I came in tonight to check my email, I had some lovely pictures from my friend, Mary, in Roxbury, and I want to share them with you. Her spring is much further advanced than ours here at Joe's Pond!

Mary takes such great pictures - I love that she is able to get such nice closeups. Thank you, Mary.
     The weather. What can I say? It didn't get above 35 degrees all day, and by late afternoon, when I was coming home from a book meeting in Danville, it was in the 32 degree range, raining lightly,

and freezing on the trees. Really disagreeable weather. The roads are still pretty good - the main highways were wet, but not icy - at least around 5 o'clock when I was getting home. I got this picture of the ice drops on the little maples along our driveway, but what little ice there is doesn't seem to be a problem, so far, at least. 
     Some back roads are probably showing signs of spring, but West Shore Road isn't at all bad. Some potholes, but those are no trouble. I just try to go slow and dodge 'em. Danville dumped some gravel at the ramp onto Route 2, last week sometime, but the potholes are already coming back. As you can see, we still have plenty of snow cover, in spite of a drizzly rain today. Tonight we are expecting the rain to turn to snow and give us another couple inches to brighten things up. I noticed when I went by the pond today, there's still plenty of snow on the ice, still. I'm sure the ice is melting from underneath - there's quite a lot of water running into the pond that will warm the water up a bit and also lift the ice, so that will help keep the melting process going. But we don't expect to see open water any time soon, and the forecast is more of the same. Not very warm weather for the next week or so, at least.
     The good news is - I have the scanner turned on, but there is no chatter, so I'm guessing the roads are still ok. At 11:30 p.m., I'm seeing 33 degrees and there's no wind. The snow pack is going down very slowly, but there will be lots of water from what is left, so there will be some high water, if not flooding if/when the weather finally turns really warm. In the meantime, we are thinking this very light rail is good for the road - helping the frost come out slowly and perhaps we won't have knee-deep mud.
     

By golly - Fred just saw our first robin!! There is one small patch of bare ground near our driveway and the poor think hung out there for a long time listening for a worm. The weather today is pretty warm - it just hit 50 degrees! Last night was in the 20s, so there should be a good sap run today. And there's a glimmer of sunshine, finally!
      I don't know if the new technology used in sugar making depends as much on temperature as the old methods, but I expect if the water in the tree isn't moving because it's too cold, no amount of vacuum pressure will get it going. Once it's moving, I can see that modern methods can probably extract more of the sap. I was interested in the experiments UVM has done tapping very young saplings - and apparently finding that it did not harm the trees. It seems strange to me - the sap is the tree's life blood and it's amazing that it can survive being tapped. I guess it just pulls in more water, as needed. If the water is available. So much to think about. I guess I'll leave it to the professionals.
     

    I'm sad to report that Marie "Beth"  Perreault, long-time owner of the former Injun Joe Cabins across from Point Comfort in West Danville, passed away on Tuesday, April 2. "Beth" enjoyed operating the tourist cabins and had a loyal clientele every summer until she sold in 2016. Before buying Injun Joe's in 1971, Beth and her husband, Delphis, lived on what is now Brickett's Crossing Road in Walden, so she was no stranger to Joe's Pond and the surrounding neighborhood. Beth would have been 92 on April 3. 
     Condolences to her family can be sent in care of her son, Marcel Perreault, P. O. Box 27, West Danville, VT 05873.

    Another coolish day. This afternoon the temperature has finally reached 32.2F, but there's a gusty NNE wind that keeps the "feel-like" temperature in the mid 20s.
    Yesterday, late in the afternoon, I had been working steadily all day at my computer and decided I'd walk up Jamie and Marie's driveway to get some exercise and fresh air before supper. As I was heading out, I could see there was a light gray bank of precipitation moving down the valley from Walden, and there were a few snowflakes in the air, so I thought it would be snow, without a doubt. That wasn't a concern, but as I progressed up Jamie and Marie's hill, the wind did begin to concern me. There are big spruce trees along their driveway and this winter a couple of dead ones came down across the road in one of the wind storms we had. I could hear the wind roaring overhead and realized the trees ahead of me were bending and swaying crazily. I stopped to listen. The noise was impressive. As I stood there, thinking maybe it wasn't such a good idea to go any further, just in case another tree came down, and would I be quick enough to get out of the way, it began to snow very hard - but not snowflakes. It was little round beads of icy snow that bounced off my jacket and stung my face. The wind wasn't letting up and it didn't take long for me to decide this was no place I wanted to be. Exercise be darned - this was too much fresh air coming at me and I just knew I needed to get back down the hill into calmer weather. Strangely, at our house, the wind was nowhere near as violent, and by then the snow squall had passed. When I got back inside, I went to the window in the back bedroom and watched the big trees on the hill above us still swaying wildly in the wind. We thought there would likely be a power outage, but that didn't happen.
     From the kitchen window I could see the snow had moved down the pond and behind it, the sun was out. I looked for a snowbow (why not?) but there wasn't one. Only ugly dark clouds and stray rays of sunshine breaking through. Today I heard on the WCAX weather that there had been thunder storms in  some places yesterday. I doubt I would have heard the thunder above the wind.
     Also today on the news we heard that in some places in New York state, conditions are ripe for forest fires and there's a ban on all burning. Hard to imagine when we still have two feet of snow on the ground. 
     There are craters around all the trees and bushes now, and that is a good indication that things are beginning to thaw out - from the ground up. I'm confident it won't be long before we see patches of bare ground. In the meantime, Fred brought home some lovely tulips for me, and they brighten our space considerably. They may not last until I have daffies in the garden, but I sure appreciate them as a promise of spring to come, for as long as they last.

We thought you'd like to see the setup for the Ice-Out Contest that's on the ice. Larry Rossi puts the contraption together - with posts to keep the rope from getting frozen into the ice (hopefully). 
     I'll let you in on a little secret - sometimes the ice thaws enough to let the posts fall over and then the rope gets frozen in anyway, but never mind - we try.
     So when they were out there, they had an auger and were able to measure the ice in the vicinity of the block and the report is that it is two feet thick. I don't think there was an actual measuring tape involved, but these guys are carpenters, so perhaps! At any rate, they would have a good eye to judge, so I'm thinking that's a pretty accurate report.
     So now all we do is wait.
     There is no camera transmission like there was a few years ago, and people do miss that, but really, there isn't much to see. Watching ice melt is akin to watching paint dry. The excitement comes later, when the block and flag begin to tilt and there's open water in the usual places. That time will come - but not for a few weeks.

     We aren't getting into spring mode very quickly here. The snow is still pretty deep and there wasn't much sign of melting going on today even though the sun was out. I had an appointment at my dentist's - regular checkup. Thanks to modern dental practices, and very clever dentists who do nice work, I still have all my own teeth with the exception of one wisdom tooth I had to have pulled years ago. Granted, I have a fillings and crowns, but still --
     Anyway, Fred went with me and we picked up Ice-Out tickets at the St. Johnsbury outlets. It's a little like saying "Good-bye" to a friend when the contest is over, even though I'm not involved any longer, except for errands like today. However, Fred is very involved with the on-line tickets, and it's a little hard for him getting out of the habit of checking to be sure nobody is having a problem and for me to not be asking, "How many sales today?" 

      The weather in St. Johnsbury was much springier than here - as expected, but I thought people were rushing the season a little - I saw a number of folks out and about with no jackets on. I wore my winter coat and took my big winter scarf with me - the dentist's office is always cooler than I like, so I always plan take that into account. Today the young technicians were excited about how nice it was to have "fresh air" and "spring weather." I kept thinking how windy and cold West Danville would be when we stopped there for the mail, and whether we'd get our freshly washed car all muddy on the way home. We've wanted to get the car washed for weeks now but every time we were in town it was so cold we were afraid the doors would freeze shut and we'd either be trapped inside for days or the next time we wanted to use the car we wouldn't be able to open the doors to get in. We worry about stuff like that.

     On the way home, we got some pond pictures. I don't think this boat on West Shore Road is going to go anywhere for a while. The owners probably have no idea how much snow has been packed on it this winter. 
     And the snow is down a bit so we can actually see most of the flag and block for the Ice-Out. The light blue is where there was some water a couple days ago and it froze over again so it's ice.
     Mud season hasn't started here, really. Just a few spots that kind of toss the car around a bit when we drive through, but no deep ruts yet. We were discussing what makes for a really bad mud season. I say it's a combination of prolonged severe cold that sends the frost really deep and lots of water, either from rain or from layers of ice that have formed over the winter. This year I think it could be a perfect formula for a doozie, especially if we get a lot of rain. However, if the weather continues like it is now, with only very gentle warming during the day and freezing up at night, we just might make it through with only a few of those perilous pits to ride the ridges through. We'll see. We've had it pretty good for several years, and this year could be pay-back time. 
     However, today we made it home without messing up the wash job too much. Hallelujah! 

    There's no need to try concocting some clever April Fool's Day story here. Mother Nature has done that for me. We awoke to a little over an inch of new snow, temperature in the low 20s and wind howling. The message is clear: So you thought spring was here? April Fool!!
     Ice-Out ticket sales on line are moving right along and you can still get in on the contest until 11:59 p.m. tonight, or you can print some tickets and get them in the mail as long as they are postmarked today. 
     As for the latest information on ice conditions, we can tell you that all the water showing yesterday - puddles in the road, some on top of the ice in spots and open water showing in places along the channel running into the pond - all that has changed today. I had to go to a meeting in Danville mid-morning and the road was still well frozen with almost no mud showing, and no water pools on the ice - it's all just ICE. On my way back a few minutes ago there were a few signs of melting where the sun is hitting the road, but still the temperature is only 26.3 degrees. Not much improvement expected until perhaps this weekend. Sorry, that's not much help for picking the date the block will go through the ice, but it's all I've got.
     Enjoy the day - play a few April Fool's Day jokes if you must, but do it with kindness, and keep it light. It's a fun day and hopefully starts off a month of much nicer weather than today leads us to expect.