The One After Peak Color

October 4th through 10th, 2021

Lake Lucerne
Last week was full of mild temperatures and falling leaves. There was also a bit of rain, but not enough to arrest the falling lake level. The lake has dropped almost half a foot since July. It's still high, but less uncomfortably so.
Lake Lucerne
Last week started with many leaves still attached to branches.
Lake Lucerne
A strong wind would have caused a leaf storm. All we got were gentle breezes, so we got leaf drizzle. That colorful sprinkle added up over the days and lawns became some sort of a Pollock painting.
Lake Lucerne
At the start of the week, lawn puddles and other turf fjords pushed any planned yard maintenance back
Lake Lucerne
Heavy dew most mornings didn't help with drying the grass out.
Lake Lucerne
You would think with all the moisture that this year's ink cap harvest would be a strong one. You'd be wrong. The bar's entire patch (seen here) was the least mushroomy ever.
Lake Lucerne
There was no maple tapping last week, but the wood is all ready to fire when the first tree juice hits the pan, about 5 months from now.
Lake Lucerne
The calm wind made last week an ideal time to remove boats and some litter from the cooling water.
Lake Lucerne
Hundreds of pounds of detritus were collected and dumped on the shore.
Lake Lucerne
Note to self: Use teflon thread sealant tape on the plugs next year to avoid the Autumnal shame and humiliation of "piddling pontoons" at the boat landing.
Lake Lucerne
The damp mornings and above average temperatures combined to put the NCC golf course into the best shape of the year.
Lake Lucerne
We also had one of the best sunsets of the year at the end of last week.
Lake Lucerne
So far, Fall 2021 has been frost free. This is great news for late season gardening, not so good for those that loath bug bites and wasp stings. For whatever reason though, there are not many mosquitoes. What the area lacks in the small two-winged blood suckers, it has more than made up for with the number of Asian Lady Beetles. And they bite hard! The mild weather we are currently enjoying doesn't bite at all, however it brings with it a sense of uneasiness. These things tend to average out and a cold November makes for a long (but bug free!) Winter.


-Nemo thinking early ice-in.