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Pumpkin Carving Week[end]

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October 12th through 18th, 2026

Last week started off in July and then crashed to October. Late October. High temperatures went from 81°F on Monday to the 40s°F on Friday. Winds went from calm to blustery. Lucerne from glass to rippled. It got more wet along the way, too. The end of the summer weather did not go without warning. On Monday evening, clouds began to build from the south. Shortly before sunset, rumbles of thunder started to echo off the hills. The light show, one of the best of the year, started after sunset. By Tuesday morning, Lucerne got a much needed half an inch. The north end's blue-spotted salamanders got more active after the rain. While cleaning up the shoreline, the men came across this bugger. We were told that belostomatidae (toe-biters) can give an extremely painful bite that causes a burning sensation, but it's not dangerous or medically significant. It was further learned that you can eat 'em. Reportedly, the flight muscles and body meat are often described as tasting like sweet scallops, shrimp, or mushy crab with a strong, pungent black licorice-like aroma. We left it alone. There's still some color in a few trees, but not much. More cool and clouds rolled in mid-week that culminated in an all day rain event on Thurday. By Friday morning, the lake was an inch deeper. On and off showers on Friday pushed the rain total over an inch. The rain and the cold nights did not push the lake's temperture up. On Saturday morning, the first hard freeze of the season cleared the area of wasps and covered puddles with thin coats of ice. The big event of the weekend was the annual pumpkin carving at the bar. I continue to be amazed at the creativity and execution of all the carvers, especially the littles. The lake's north end got rough on Sunday. No squirrels or chipmunks were seen riding the big rollers as they crashed on the beaches. The leafless trees, strong winds, and cool temperatures the lake was gifted at the end of the week are what we have come to expect in October. The pontoon crane guy pulled the last of the lifts from Lucerne just before it lumped up. We didn't see any, but if there are boat lifts still in the lake, their manual removal will be made more painful by the 51°F water. The icy water will keep the swelling down from the inevitable boat lift extraction injuries, but that's a pretty thin silver lining.<br><br><br>-Nemo didn't swim, sail, or eat ghastly bugs.

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