Fall in the Wings.

8-27-12 VERMONT: It rained today after about ten dry days, around the area, shrubs and lawns were turning brown. I checked the gauge during a lull and there was 0.4 inches with more since, just what we needed now. Earlier today I finished the mowing I wanted to do, pulled the syphon hose out of the pond and put it all away, did a bit of weeding and watering before the rain.

Yesterday we canoed on Miller Pond, found on Miller Pond Rd., in Strafford, VT. It’s a small, round pond, big enough for a camp, a few houses and a fair amount of natural shoreline. There seems to be good fishing. It has been known as a loon nesting spot, and some years ago, when we were last there, there were several. Yesterday we saw one, busy diving over and over and baring posing on the surface long enough for a picture. There were several human fisherfolk as well.

We are edging into fall. Trees are beginning to turn, the ashes are dropping leaves from the treetops. The birds are starting to form flocks before migrating. Berries are ripe. The days are noticeably shorter. We have almost no apples this year because of the early thaw and later freeze.

Our pond clarity, so far, has not improved much. After four weeks of draining 90 gallons per hour, which is 12 cubic ft/hr or 8000 cu. ft. for the month, which should be the bottom two feet of the pond water, the yuckiest stuff. The pond is down about four inches, less after today’s rain. It is, perhaps, less brown than it was. When the weather cools, algae growth stops and the clarity will be assessable.


Early aster, these volunteers are in all the beds after a little encouragement.

Miller Pond, Strafford, VT.

Loon, the only one we saw, was doing a lot of diving.