THE CLOCK STOPPED! 10:18 on 4-17!

 The rope to the block released from the ice and the clock stopped last night at 10:18, so the official time the ice went out this year is 10:18 p.m. on 4-17-23! It's all over except the shouting now -- that happens when all the tickets are logged in and a winner is verified, which could take a couple of weeks. In the meantime, check your tickets - someone could be right on the mark with a guess of 10:18 p.m., or it could be someone who has a time close to that. We won't know until all tickets are logged in. The announcement will come as soon as the committee can verify that the ticket is valid and they are able to locate the winner or winners. There could be more than one - we've had multiple winners several times in the past. I'll let you know as soon as the committee releases the name of a winner(s). Stand by!

There is still black ice on a large portion of the big pond, as you can see in the photo, above  right; but that will be gone in a few days and there will be open water at the pond again.

Gretchen Farnsworth said the loons are back, but they have also spotted eagles in the area, so it may be a troublesome year again for the loon families. We cannot protect them from natural predators, unfortunately. There are plenty of migrating geese and ducks moving through the region now, and some will rest at Joe's Pond. We always hope the geese "rest but don't nest" here! They are nasty critters when they overtake lawns and beaches.

Have a great day, and I hope you have a winning ticket!