tamarack

In 22 Julys here, 1998-2019, monthly lowest minima has ranged from 37 to 46. Lowest this month is 51 and I see little to no chance of getting any cooler before August. My average at peak summer (e.g. now) is 77/55; we were about at that low this AM but should soar past the max. Despite the lack of cool mornings, the month is running a bit under 2° AN. Maxima are actually a bit BN while minima are running +4.1.

Seems a bit odd to me - chest looks deeper than normal for last year's calf and late-July antlers too small for a 2018 birth, but they're all different in antler size and growth phenology. I'm guessing it's class of 2019 and headed for being a really big bull. In late May 30 years ago when we were canoeing/fishing on Spencer stream (about 5 miles north of Flagstaff Lake), we were trying to get back down to our campsite at dusk but two large bulls blocked the stream. They each already had antlers about 3 feet wide. One departed from the stream (probably with tummy full of eelgrass) and when the other wandered to within 10' of the left shore of the 80'-wide stream we had our chance - we thought. As we approached, the bull decided he needed to exit right, passing about 10' from our bow as we frantically backwatered. No raised neck hair (on the moose - plenty on us) so he wasn't attacking but likely would've plowed right thru us had we been in his path. (I was paddling stern. In the bow was a guest missionary who had never seen a moose before this trip. Nearly got to give one a hug.)

Longest in my adult life was 4 days in 1998, plus 4-5 hours next day - probably intentional shutoffs to protect lineworkers nearby. Had anything broken in the 400' between Brunswick Avenue and our place, it would've been more like 14 days than 4. The 1953 ice storm in NNJ took out our power for 6 days, but we didn't worry about losing internet or charging our cellphones back then. At my age (almost 7) it was a great adventure. Have yet to lose power due to a TC, only ice storms, wet snow and traffic accidents.

My rough estimate is that at 70% rh the TD is 10° below temp, at 50% it's 20° and at 30% the span is around 35° though much below 50% with the increasing rate of Temp minus TD makes that estimate fuzzy . At 30% rh the dews are dropping nearly a degree with each 1% reduction of rh and the TD difference between 10% and 9% might be 3-4° (or more). I do a proportional interpolation between 70% and 100 (3% change in rh = 1° in TD) and between 50 and 70 (2% = 1°), somewhat inaccurate at the edges but easy. Edit: Except at high temps the TD drops a bit faster relative to rh decrease and in cold wx a lot less.

I think FB shows mainly things in which particular users seem to take interest - more clicks, better ad revenue. I rarely indulge in political wars on FB and my "home" there is only somewhat polluted by such junk. NNE population: When we lived in Aroostook, 1976-85, its pop was in the 110-120k range. Last I looked (a week or 2 back while estimating COVID cases per 100k) it was about 86k. I think nearly every Maine county but the "southern small 8" has lower numbers in recent decades. Hancock (BHB and vicinity) is likely an exception and maybe Oxford, as that county extends far enough south to be a not-awful commute for some folks working in/near PWM.

Unfortunately, that "zero new cases" is actually "no increase in total cases." 21 "probable" cases (by apparent symptoms I guess) from a couple days ago have tested negative and were backed out of the total.

Change the setting and the season and that's every Hallmark movie.

Unfortunately, the "lock the gate behind me" philosophy is common.

Our 54-55 double play - 5 TCs for New England.

It was about 10:15 by the time my eyes got accustomed to the dark, about the same sun-time here as 10:30 there. Some afterglow, augmented by Farmington 6 miles away, on the western horizon even at that time. Nice that the comet's tail points at the lowest star in the Big Dipper's current orientation.

Yes that stinks, but occasionally things happen that cause locals to despise folks from away. The town of Buxton (S. Maine) closed the town park last week due to mega-trash, vandalism and behavior like throwing rocks at kayakers on the Saco River. Despite the closure, over 100 people, nearly all from out of state, state(s) not mentioned, walked past the "closed" signs this past weekend, left enough trash to fill a pickup, and garnered 40+ summons plus 2 for resisting arrest. It's unfair to tar everyone with that same brush but it's also almost inevitable that many people will do so.

Not all that much blew down from those storms. I'd guess than 98% of damage was from the epic flooding. BDL had 21.3" RA that August, 4" from Connie and over 14" from Diane less than a week later. Farther NW, Norfolk had 9" from Connie and nearly 13" from Diane.

Very clear last evening, best summertime view of the Milky Way in a long time. Walked well up into the nearby field and was able to see the comet, fairly dim (no magnification) but quite obvious and moreso than Halley's comet 34 years ago. (I've read that '86 was Halley's poorest display in centuries.)

Probably started tanning in February. Actually, I don't know the details, but they do have the same parentage.

14 years ago my wife, a 2nd generation Norwegian American with typical Nordic complexion, visited her sister on Oahu in early June, when the noonday sun is nearly straight up. Only 30 midday minutes and she had sun poisoning enough to be nauseated and had to stay inside for 2 days. At the ER that afternoon, the DR, a typical Hawaiian, said that she had drastically increased her chances for future skin cancer, saying that his brown skin was meant for sun but her paleness definitely was not. So far so good, and since we had our 49th anniversary last month, she/we aren't exactly young.

Temp has slipped back 2-3F from what it was 2 hours ago - full sun since late morn.

And whether the leaflets are on short stalks or are right on the petiole. Also need to rule out boxelder (aka ash-leaved maple) which has compound leaves like ash though some leaflets are notched. Sounds like you've got quite the puckerbrush thicket there. Brown ash (NNE term for what's black ash elsewhere) also has markedly different bark, brownish (duh) compared to the grays of white/green ash and boxelder, and also a bit crumbly when rubbed.

The obs site is about 100 yards from tidewater. Would need an all-night W wind to avoid that <70F water from influencing minima.

The various willow species are quite confusing to ID at the species level. The dendrology (tree ID) class I had at U. Maine only required Salix, the genus name, while mandating species for everything else. Of course, pussywillow is an easy ID in April but by now it looks about the same as several other willow species. Also, any willow in Maine over 12" diameter (almost could say 6") is black willow, but when it's young an ID is problematic. White and green ash will tolerate some wetness while brown ash is often found in wetlands, in part because it's slower growing than white/green on good sites but competes well in the swamp. There's not a lot of native green ash in Maine but it's probably the mot widely planted ash and it will naturalize. If your tree is white ash, there is evidently some chance it will tolerate EAB. An article in "Maine Woodlands" (monthly publication from Maine Woodlot Owners, formerly Small Woodland Owners Association of Maine) stated that green and brown ash suffered near extirpation from EAB but up to a third of white ash survived. With all the ash (mostly white, some brown) on our woodlot, I hope the tolerance comment is valid. My oak trees are starting to drop acorns.......is that normal for mid-July? Product of the drought? Most acorns drop in September. Are yours full size?

VT may have been close to that but Maine never got below about 65% forest and NH was somewhere in between. North of a Rangeley-Greenville-Danforth line Maine retained almost all forest except for the Aroostook potato lands. I don't know how little forest there was in Bridgton/Fryeburg in 1911, but westerly winds passed over the Whites to get to those towns (downsloping!) and though the operable lands in the mountains had been whacked and hacked by 1911 it was still basically forest, albeit young forest.

It's all 3 NNE states. Bridgton set the Maine record at 105 (twice) and the VT peak is also 105. Also surprising is that except for always-high-minima ASH (and one morning in Franklin, NH) temps would fall into the 60s after all those 100+ afternoons. I'd guess WNW or NW winds with modest dews and downsloping - for a week and a half! Edit: If that 76F low at PWM holds, I think it ties for their warmest morning on record.

And 100 at BHB, perhaps even more impressive as SSTs were probably 10° lower. When I saw the map a week or more ago they were both 1 This past Tues-Fri were my only BN days of the month. Those 4 days might be the cause of the drop in ranking. We'll see if today and tomorrow can push them back up.

With those conditions pawpaw stands alone. Osage orange smells citrusy but is inedible.

Looks a bit larger than Osage orange, though it's close. And of course if one counts cones as "fruit" (they're the seed-bearers, just like fruit) several western pines produce far larger. Sugar, Jeffrey, digger pines have cones that dwarf pawpaw and Osage orange.

Black gum does fine in both wetlands and better drainage. Very nice fall color and unique right-angle twigs/branches. Farthest north I've seen it is Gardiner but supposedly it can be found in the Kennebec Valley up to WVL. That Jefferson tree is proof that in the right place one can get away with planting something far north of its natural range. There's a 30"+ by 75' tulip poplar in Farmington at Perham and High Streets. It's on a gentle slope and right in town.