NEWS FLASH!

FROM THE DESK OF PRESIDENT JOE HEBERT:

  It is now official that the new wake boat rules have been approved by the State of Vermont and are effective June 11th, 2026.  As previously indicated this does not ban wake boats from Joes Pond but does prohibit wake sports. Please refer to the attached link for more specific information regarding which lakes are approved and the inspection requirements. As discussed at our spring meeting, this ruling was anticipated but I wanted to notify the membership that it is now official.

Joe Hebert 

President JPA   

***************

 

 Summer seems to be here with glory and some discomforts. It is very hot, very humid, and today hardly a breath stirring. So far we haven't had mini rain showers like we did yesterday, but that's a good thing. In some nearby towns (Hardwick, Morrisville, Wolcott) there was a lot more rain and they have had flash flooding that took out roads and has caused considerable damage. This seems to be "normal" weather, and will probably only get worse. It is costing towns (and government) dearly.

 

So much going on here at Joe's Pond! Gretchen Farnsworth let me know earlier in the week that one loon chick had hatched; then yesterday she announced the arrival of a second chick! (See her photo of the family on the left. This is great news - and as Jack LaGue put it in a message to me later in the day, "New residents at Joe's Pond!" Jack said he got the photo while on a "cocktail cruise" around the pond. That reminded me of years ago when so many people did those evening rides around the pond. It is very pleasant to proceed slowly off shore, sipping a drink and waving to friends on their decks or in their boats. It doesn't get much better than that! Thanks for the photo of the loons, (above right) Jack. It's good to know we have at least two chicks; now we hope they can survive. Only a day or so old and they are already stars!

 

As we have said before, please give the loon family(s) plenty of space - and warn others who may not be as familiar with Joe's Pond wildlife - to not interfere with the birds by going too close, and to always keep an eye out for them when cruising on the water. 

 

My friend, Mary Whitcomb, sent this photo of a Canadian tiger swallow-tail butterfly that she saw in her yard. Mary hosts all kinds of birds, bee, and butterflies, and is adept at photographing them. Thank you, Mary! I'm seeing lots of bees and butterflies around my place this year. The lilacs were especially abundant, and my apple trees bloomed beautifully - but briefly. Along with the good bugs, there are the black flies and ticks. Fortunately, I haven't seen ticks yet, but I keep watch - I'm sure they are out there and will hitch a ride on my shoes or pant legs sooner or later.

 

Middle son, Bob came on Wednesday and trimmed my cedar hedge that we didn't dare trim last year because it was so dry. I lost one large cedar tree at one corner of my house because it wasn't getting enough water, but I was able to save another one that was suffering by transplanting it to a spot close to my pond and it is thriving this year, but we decided not to trim it - it's doing fine and giving it another year to acclimate seems like a good idea. It seems that there is plenty of moisture for everything so far this year!

 

We have lots going on to celebrate the 250th anniversary of our nation - mostly on the 4th of July. Cabot has their usual parade scheduled on the 4th and the Cabot Historical Society will be open that day (and we are hoping to be open every Saturday this summer, hours to be announced later!) There will be fireworks on the Route 15 side of the middle pond on July 3rd - I'm sure they are still accepting donations, so contact Steve Larrabee (802-684-2247) if you can donate. 

 

Be aware that there is a bear in our vicinity. It has been spotted near my house towards the west end of West Shore Road, and got into some mischief at my neighbor's, but hasn't found anything interesting at either Jamie and Marie's or my house yet. I have seen tracks, but that's all. I take my hummingbird feeder in every evening, just in case. I did find some suspicious smears of mud on my front deck back in May, and a plant was tipped over and some of the plants were gone. Probably they were salad for whatever visitor it was, but there wasn't a trace. They were small cactus plants and perhaps a spring of hoya that I was hoping to preserve. All gone. I also had a small spider plant rooting in that pot, but that is intact. I have enough house plants, so I don't mind losing some to a hungry bear or whatever.

  

Also, we have a colony of beavers in residence on the brook by Ned and Carolyn Hamilton's. They are foraging for food and building materials along the west shore, damaging or taking down precious trees. Kim Bertrand got in touch with the Fish and Wildlife people who are sending someone to help, although Kim didn't know what they will do. We will keep you informed. In the meantime, if you have a nice maple, apple tree, poplar, willow, or other tree you think they might like, you can wrap the base with wire mesh - chicken fence wire works, or even some kind of other wrap might work - just something high enough so they can't chew through or above it. They aren't interested in evergreens or cedar trees. Sometimes they just snack on a tree, but damage it enough so it dies; other times they take the whole thing to use for building their dams and houses. This was their lake long before it was ours, and they do have a place in the scheme of things, so it's sad when they have to be killed. Much better to discourage them around your property or have them moved to a better spot. We will let you know what F&W does (or doesn't do).

As often happens, when I finish a blog and log out, I go back to my email and find something new has come in that needs to be included. That happened this morning, so here is "the rest of the news" for today - a dedication in honor of the late Garey Larrabee by the West Danville Community Club (WDCC): Click on the image to enlarge.