Early Fall

It's September. And while we have been frost free, there's a feeling in the air. We imagine it's similar to the feeling a condemned man gets during the dessert course of his last meal. It's not Summer. That being said, there is still time to get in a few skiing runs, un-jacketed golf links, and short swims (hypothermia, not your friend).

End of Summer rituals include the removal of docks and piers before the ice takes 'em. Last Monday, the ski dock at Water's Edge was pulled from the 72°F lake.

The crowd that gathered for the event was noticeably smaller than even the early ski shows.

It took only about an hour to haul the water logged chunks of dock to the shore.

With the Water's Edge ski dock out, water shows are fewer, more spontaneous, and less localized.

It's been a dry Summer since the start of July. That ended early last week. By Wednesday the lake gained back 4.5 inches of depth and mowing was delayed to allow the lawn ponds to subside.

After the rain, amazing sunsets were the highlight of the early evening.

Plants and other growing things around the lake seemed to enjoy the wet.

Ugh! There are some signs of things to come.

The hills are still green for the most part. We'd say that the color is at only 1 or 2 percent.

On Saturday evening, after some beer and really good meatballs, we were distracted from a Rhinelander Menard's run by some festive light coming from Northeastern Crandon.

The Forest County Fair was in full carney.

There were ample opportunities to lighten the wallet and win some ~~crap~~ stuff.

There was also many food choices to meet the dietary needs and gourmet predilections of most.

Rides included the Rock-o-Planes and others to entice the young and soon to be nauseous.

Inside the large buildings at the fair were impressive displays of 4H induced "vegetability".

There were also some non-vegetable items on display. Our favorite was the giant carved chain that hung impressively from the rafters.

The lake is steaming most every morning. Last we checked, Lake Lucerne's water temperature was still above 70°F, but not for long.

It's getting cooler, but there is still time to get those somewhat comfortable swims and dives in. The forecast is for some warmer weather before the final run to ice-in. Most docks and boats appear to still be in the water. That should change in the next few weeks as the lake temp falls closer to 60°F and the cries of the towed rise up several decibels.

-Nemo: Two corn dogs, cheese curds, a funnel cake, and a small diet Coke, please.

Early Fall

September 3rd through 9th, 2018