Fall Pales

November 5th through 11th
Last week continued the cold trend that has chilled the area since October. Most docks and piers are out and the last of the boats were seen heading to the landing to be trailered and stored until next Spring. No one skied. It also rained. The snow that had covered the ground melted. The lake level went up. The lake is an inch or two from the July high. The ground around the lake is saturated and small (and some not so small) ponds are claiming lawns. Januaryesque nights gave those ponds a frozen surface. The ice on the rain water in the fire pit was this thick. At the eleventh hour on the eleventh day on the eleventh month the scolding halted and the BB guns grew silent. The northwoods was at peace again when the squirrels and humans agreed to an historic agreement. The humans agreed to keep the bird feeder full of seed and the squirrels agreed to eat that seed. Other redheads are in talks with the humans about the quality and quantity of suet feeders. The Squirrel Armistice of 2018 was celebrated with a trip south to the big city. The holiday cold and lights seemed a tad premature given that Thanksgiving is two solid weeks away, but the lights were nice anyway (the cold, not so much). When we arrived back to Lake Lucerne we were greeted with a 4.5 inch covering of snow that put the kibosh on late season golf and made the driving interesting. On Sunday, the cold that came as a bonus gift with the snow froze Lake Wabikon. During most years, this unseasonable icing would go out with the first sunny or windy day, but the cold forecast points to sleds and ice fishermen dotting this lake well before the turkey reaches 165℉. No ice on Lake Lucerne yet. Lucerne's blemish free boast will be short lived if this cold continues. It's time to get those last ski runs and swims in before an ice auger or spud is involved.<br><br>-Nemo's hoping for an early ice-out, continued squirrel peace.