Too Early

The weather started off normally last week. The high temperatures were near the average, as were the lows. There was also a thick slice of rain to kick things off. All that changed around mid-week.

There was about three quarters of an inch early in the week. If added to the precipitation that floated down on the weekend, that comes to about an inch for the last 7 days.

The ground was saturated before the rain. So yes, the yard puddles are back and mowing kicks up more spray than a slalom skier cutting hard on a flat lake

At the start of the week many local trees were still dressed in their autumnal finery.

This time of year, the section of Potawatomi Trail that runs along the North end of the lake is usually garnished liberally with milkweed pods. In Fall 2020 this is the only pod that we could find. Our guess is that a short, hot, wet Summer combined with a cold Fall does not a great crop o' pods make.

The normal, mild Fall ended around mid-week with a hard frosty morning and a little over an inch of snow. The snow melted as the lake steamed away its heat.

More snow would curse the area later in the week. It stuck enough to require decks to be shoveled and tee times to be canceled.

By the end of the week, Knott Lane was a little juicy, but otherwise still in good shape.

The cold, wind, and snow has stripped the color from all but a few of the trees around the lake.

The lake is an inch deeper and seems more clear than its usual crystal standard. A few leaves are adding just enough color to warn anyone thinking of swimming to reconsider. The lake temperature has dropped below 50°F. It could be an early ice-in.

The fishing on the North end of Lucerne seems good judging from the hooting of this trio.

By the weekend, those that have finished getting their piers and rafts out of the lake could relax knowing that they had made a good call. Those that still have to pull stuff from the lake, well...good luck with that. As the former group shiver and tug things to the shore, they would be well advised to apply their new, hypothermic knowledge of the lake's temperature to the Annual Lake Lucerne Ice-In Contest. It might make all that shivering worthwhile. Fall seems to be surrendering to Winter almost a month and a half early. Boo. We were hoping for a few more days in the 60s°F, or even the 50s°F, but with each frosty morning, it's seeming less likely. If you are planning a visit to the northwoods, bring a hat.

-Nemo, unfortunately, is one of "those people".

Too Early

October 12th through 18th, 2020