tamarack

As a very rough guess, OT/OT is about 80% deep progressive, 10% moderate and 10% arch-Trumpanista. What's not to (fight) like?

We're a bit north of 1.5" and the last big charge of RA is just arriving, so still a chance to reach 2". Oddity in the Sandy River flow. The gauge in Mercer, near the confluence with the Kennebec, had 168 cfs (median is 259) while the gauge in Madrid, 6 miles from the river's source on the east slope of Saddleback, had 1,710 cfs at the same time, leaping up from 7 cfs before this event began. I see the downstream flow topping out at 6-8k cfs, but it is odd when the flow at ~40 sq. mi. is 10x the flow at the full 570 sq. mi. watershed. Lights have blinked 4-5 times during the past hour, too short to kick in the genny but enough to mess with computer and TV. Gusts probably 35 or so, good for one good house creak. Rain is hitting windows on 3 sides of the house - only the NW-facing glass is (mostly) dry, just a few wind-swirled droplets.

0.87" thru 7 this morning. Some sites in York County reporting 3"+. Haven't had a 3"+ event since October of 2016 - we've had about 20 here since May 1998. Currently light RA with gusty SE wind and 60°.

Those are the forecast zones, with N. Maine the biggest east of the Mississippi - no surprise given population weighting, though climo at Jackman is quite different from MLT is different from CAR. I don't think any zones cross state boundaries; the east boundaries of western CT/MA meet but are separate zones.

Would take a lot, as current flow is 95 cfs, only 37% of median for the date. However, the morning map has most of the watershed (including my area) at 3-4" with 4-6" in the headwaters. Only 0.07" so far this month. Say goodbye to foliage and welcome to stick season! Already here, 80-100% leaf drop, depending on species, with oak at the lower end and white ash bare except for the huge seed load on the female trees. Made it to 40+ diurnal range with 69/27. That 42° span is tied for 2nd biggest here thru 25 Octobers. Oct 10, 2006 had 75/30 for the lead.

Living in a fake cold "hotspot", I still haven't been able to convince the pickup's battery that -20 isn't real. Close to 40° diurnal range today, but we'll not reach the needed 68° max.

Still some nice spots between here and Farmington, but for around the house, it's ovah!

Thanks The idea of my comparing New Sharon, Maine to the Jersey shore is literally lol.

Slightly OT, but this caught my attentions. Towns also hire seasonal part time police with no benefits, instead of full time officers, the second biggest impact on the municipal budget. Schools are the biggest part of our property tax bill, but roads - maintenance, plowing, etc, - are by far the 2nd biggest. Law enforcement is way down the list, as our town is too small to warrant its own police, and our bill for our share of the county sheriff budget is relatively small. Probably the town fire department would be #3. Of course, our town is definitely not a tourist destination, though this fall's colors have been quite nice.

Learned how to handle leaners during chainsaw training. Make a normal front notch, then plunge cut an inch or so behind it and cut backwards. Maybe make small cuts on both sides at notch level before the plunge cut. The usual back cut was called "chasing the hinge" by the instructor, while the plunge cut allows the cutter to know exactly when the tree will fall, rather than cutting until one begins to hear crackles. My first try of that method was a 16" diameter white ash, an "easy split" species, hanging over the driveway at a 45° angle (and gradually tipping farther). Worked just like the instructor's example. Black locust is not native to New England but has been widely planted here, sometimes on very infertile sites as reclamation as it fixes atmospheric nitrogen. It naturalizes readily, usually thru root sprouts, but is intolerant of shade so can't compete with native beech/birch/maple over the long term. Perhaps the most rot resistant of hardwood species, and heat value up with white oak, hickory and hophornbeam.

Down to 23 this morning, about 3 mm ice on the washtub water and it's raining leaves this morning. Yesterday's 45/26 was 12° BN, greatest negative departure since Fathers' Day and 2nd greatest since March 4.

Should be the final frost/freeze warning for this zone, as the "official" growing season ends today. Southern/coastal Maine will likely see more such advisories/warnings thru 10/20.

Sun began breaking thru the clouds about 3:30 and nearly an hour later the clouds are almost gone. The weak sun pushed the temp all the way to the mid 40s.

And vice versa. A recent NNE winter that stunk in NJ was 2007-08, about 160% of normal snowfall at the nearby co-op in the Maine foothills and the snowiest winter on record at CAR but <50% in NJ. The best converse might be 1960-61, which dumped a few inches past 100 at my place. The 3 biggies, 12/11-12, 1/19-20 and 2/3-4 brought a total of 42.5" at NYC, 56.7" at EWR and 60-65" at Jersey Highland sites including mine. The same co-op that had 160% snowfall in 2007-08 totaled 5.5" from those 3 blizzards and finished well BN for the season.

Wonderful catch! Looks like a big male - they weigh 2-3 times more than females. (Just a guess, as I don't have any visual scale though the later coyote pic would confirm the guess if the distances from camera were anywhere near similar.)

Another thick frost this morning, and the PC/50s forecast is down the tubes - solid gray with a few drips and low 40s here. Probably 70% leaf drop right around the house, but the general area is only a bit past peak, with some gorgeous views.

Above the tank would probably be the place, as its top is usually within 12-18" of the surface. The leach field might actually enhance growth.

That looks like a lot of boat for anything smaller than Sebago.

Agreed, but seeing <1/2" at my place and 10"+ less than 20 miles NW is right in character. Too early for the 2nd-act SNE to PWM dump, however.

Sugarloaf was blowing out the mice earlier this week.

I had no vertigo issues at the time I did the back-and-forth on Knife Edge. Just months before, my carpenter job included walking on 2x4 upper plates, where a fall toward the house was 8 feet to plywood, and a lot farther to dirt/rocks if I fell the other way. (50 years later I shiver a bit just writing this.) On my eastward leg I had to go around a party of 5 climbing Chimney Peak, the steepest part of the trail, and one member of that party was terrified. From Pamola I could see weather coming in so needed to move quickly back to dad on Baxter Peak. That party was coming down the east face of Chimney, and the poor lady was in the worst spot, plastered to the rock like a starfish and not moving. I stupidly went off trail to the right/north, a route that should not have been done without ropes and pitons, but God (often) protects fools.

The moment I saw a picture of the Knife Edge my reaction was "gotta get there!" My first (of only2) climbs of Katahdin came in early August 1973, our first year in Maine. My in-laws were visiting, and since dad had walked his scout troop over most of the NJ/SNY AT, the only logical trail was the Hunt, so he could hike the northerly 5 miles. He was content to wait on the sunny top while I skipped across the Knife Edge (no skipping at Chimney Peak) since I had to go both ways. From the summit there was a near total undercast - one hole revealed Chimney Pond and the other just some forest on the opposite side. By the time I got back there, visibility was under 500 feet and we hit rain just before dropping off the Tableland.

I tried . . .

One of the worst for fall color, but the wood is one of the best for both heat value and rot resistance, also adds nitrogen to the soil.

Thanks again. Since you listed the 22-23 table alphabetically with numbers first, Ray is at the top. Does that mean his string of BN winters is coming to an end?