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	April 17th through 23rd, 2023

Temperatures fell 20°F below normal last week. The week before, we were 20°F above the normals. At least there was balance, but it's far more fun to be on the 20°F over than the under.

The highs during many of the days were above freezing. Melting snow combined with a little rain to keep the yard puddles in a more pond like state.

After the previous week's upper 70s°F, many thought that the sapping season was over. They were wrong.

To our amazment the trees started to run again, filling buckets to overflowing.

Collecting all those drops was made more interesting during a late week sleet/snow event.

It's been done before, but getting all those jugs of drops back to the cookers during a sleet/snow event was more cold and painful than we remembered.

Congradulations to Rhinelander for its breaking of a 100+ year old record for snow totals for the season. Now let's never do that again.

During those holes in the week where it was too cold for the sap to run, the field house at the Forest County Potawatomi Community Center was warm and well lit.

By the weekend, the snow was mostly gone and the footing in the woods was as good as it gets.

The boiling down of all that sap will end soon. This is not because of lack of supply, but because the trees are getting closer to budding and that gives the syrup an off taste.

Cold nights froze the melt puddles on Knott Lane. Other than that, the lane condition is fine.

After cold nights, some of the previously open water on Lucerne wasn't.

By noon, the north end would be ready for boats and skiers. The other 99% of the lake, not so much.

Looking over the hill, Metonga appears to remain iced also.

Wabikon is ice free!

Lake Riley has also had its ice-out event.

During much of the week, water fowl of many types packed the open water on Lucerne's north end.

Some birds were more aesthetically challenged than others. Especially the muskratty ones.

To celebrate the gone ice events on the lakes to the east of Lucerne, there was pizza.

Some passed on pizza and stuck to seeds.

On Metonga, they celebrated with sushi.

The new little ones didn't seem to have any complaints.

Late on Sunday, we had one of the best aurora borealis displays in decades.

Sheets and folds of light covered and pulsed across the entire sky.

As you can see here, Lucerne still has a little ice. Typically after Wabikon goes out, Lucerne follows a week or two later. For the second year in a row, this could push ice-out into May. Boo! In other anoying events, the hosting company that supports this site pulled some surprise boobery by attempting to "upgrade" some servers and software. I've almost fixed all the damage. Also boo! According to the keeper of the <a href='/alf/WI/WI.html' class ='defaultlink2' target='_blank'>knottlane ice&water page</a> (thanks aLf!), we have passed the average ice-out date (April 21st) so if you like your lake cold and hard, it's been a good Spring. If not, also, also boo!<br><br><br>-Nemo's currently plotting revenge.

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