Twenty degrees. Wind-driven snow. White-out conditions. Can’t see the opposite shore of the river.
Read more →Today, a most unusual visitor arrived at the lighthouse, and he arrived by mail. In my mailbox was a large brown envelope. I opened it and found Stanley Lambchop inside. The envelope also contained a letter of introduction. The letter was from the second grade class at
Read more →Captain I. R. Dangerous called me on the phone this morning. “Is Ballast there?” When Captain Dangerous needs dead-weight in his boat, he calls me. Yesterday, he phoned me asking for a fool and found one. Either way, I’m happy to oblige, because it means I get
Read more →This morning, after breakfast, I looked out the parlor window. Common mergansers dived for fish in the open water at the mouth of Esopus Creek. In a nearby treetop, a bald eagle watched the waterfowl with interest. Barely visible in a tree in the south cove, a
Read more →When I left for vacation, ice was just beginning to form in protected coves during cold nights. By the time I returned a week later, after several days and nights of temperatures in the single digits, the river had filled with ice. With the exception of the
Read more →In the pre-dawn light, a group of 16 or more common mergansers swam and dove in the creek. Thin sheets of ice drifted slowly with the outgoing current.
Read more →The Christmas cactus in the kitchen window started blooming in mid-November. Today, it dropped the last of its pink blossoms. I suppose that makes it a “Thanksgiving-Christmas-New Years” cactus.
Read more →With temperatures in the low 20s during the day and teen overnight, ice formed in the river coves.
Read more →Early this morning, I emerged groggy-eyed from the lighthouse. I noticed the icicles hanging from the bird-feeder, the result of freezing rain overnight. However, I did not notice the thin coating of ice on the ramp to the dock. I took one step onto the ramp and
Read more →An overcast and misty morning on the river. North of the lighthouse, a dozen or more common goldeneye waterfowl congregated–black and white feathered bodies against a uniform gray background. Aside from padddling around and occasionally diving underwater, the males stretched their necks and performed back bends, touching
Read more →