From the Bolt Hole to the Aerie and back.

Well, the trip from the Bolt Hole to the Aerie and back went without a problem. (I almost said "hitch" but that would have made hauling the trailer difficult!) It's amazing how much of a hit my gas mileage takes when dragging that 27-foot trailer around.

When we got to the Aerie on Wednesday afternoon I had no difficulty backing the trailer into the slightly winding 200-foot long driveway to park it in the front of our home. But to get out on Thursday morning to take it for inspection required I head up the hill (instead of down where I really wanted to go) until I got to the T at the top. Then I backed the trailer up and made one very long K-turn to go down the hill to head for Mansfield.

As expected, the inspection itself took about 15 minutes and then I was on my way back to the Bolt Hole in the Adirondacks. This time I was traveling solo as I intend to stay here for a week or so.

Backing the trailer into the Bolt Hole yard and the barn by myself went awfully easy compared to previous attempts. The barn is offset from the gate and the yard in front is just open enough that I can get the truck and tailer almost lined up once I snake my way through the gate--backwards. It must be the practice I've been getting. My Dad used to drive semis and then busses. We also trailered a 16-foot boat and I cut my teeth on backing that thing up to the launch ramp and into the driveway. Dad taught me a few tricks but the most important one was to keep your hand on the bottom of the steering wheel and not the top. With you hand on the bottom, the back of the trailer goes where your hand goes. If you want the trailer to go to the left, your hand goes to the left. If your hand is on the top of the wheel, all your movements are the opposite of what you think they should be. And that is when you get into trouble because you have to think too much.

Early bear season starts tomorrow and it will afford a chance to 1) bag a bear on last year's license and 2) scout the woods for deer season. With all the storm damage from the mesocyclone that hit on August 24th, the scouting might be the most important part. Trails we had followed last year and the year before are blocked and landmark trees are either obscured or knocked over. When I think of all the lumberjack work Mark and I put in this summer to down trees for firewood.... Ma nature did it in minutes.

I know there are several bear wandering the Bolt Hole land and the state land adjacent to it. I've seen them. But Terry called last night to say that 15 minutes after she pulled the bird feeders a young black bear showed up in the yard to check the water in the bird bath and scrounge any fallen seed. Unfortunately, PA bear season doesn't happen until mid-November.

More Storm Damage Photos from the Bolt Hole

Terry and I had intended to walk further up the road at the Bolt Hole to a couple of camps so we could take a peek at the storm damage from August 27 but when we woke up this morning it was raining and the forecast was for even more. We wanted to get back to the Aerie with the trailer in tow before dark so when a break in the rain occurred, we got everything hooked up and hit the road.

We drove in rain as far as Syracuse and then the weather improved as we drove south until you would hardly know there was any precipitation at all for the previous week. (In fact the Southern Tier of NY had some torrential rainfall just three days ago.) We made it safely back to the Aerie where I discovered we had gotten 1/10th of an inch of rain since we left Wednesday morning.

In looking over my picture files I came across some of the photos that Mark took on August 27 just after the mesocyclone struck the area.

Here is the large cherry that crashed into the gate at the Bolt Hole.

And here are the two smaller cherries that came down in front of the garage.

Mark’s property and right of way didn’t escape either. There were numerous trees that snapped off or were blown down. His power and phone lines were taken to the ground.

Looking down the driveway, you can see a few downed trees and several leaners that had to be cut down.

Several large trees were uprooted but, luckily, didn’t fall toward either Mark’s cabin or his driveway and power lines.

Looking along the power line from Mark’s cabin it is clear that the line is down.

You can see a fir tree that blew down across the power line.

I’ll be going back up tomorrow and will post some more pictures of the storm damage when I get to walk around a bit more.

Monarch Butterflies Fueling Up

We walked the road in front of the Bolt Hole to see what damage may have occurred just east of us. We could see quite a few large poplars/aspens partially or completely blown over but what we saw in the field of goldenrod across from our cabin made us stop in awe.

Amongst the bright yellow flower spikes of the goldenrod were dozens and dozens of monarch butterflies. They were obviously feeding and waiting for a favorable tailwind to fly further south on their annual migration. Each butterfly looked like it was just out of its chrysalis as it sported bright colors and unblemished wings.

Click to enlarge and see the orange and black dots that are monarch butterflies.

Just two of the many, many butterflies in the field.

And to think, on the way up, I had commented to Terry about not seeing many monarchs in flight. Guess they’re just fueling up.

Storm Damage at the Bolt Hole

Terry and I drove from the Aerie to the Bolt Hole today to pick up the trailer for PA inspection. As we drove the last two miles to the cabin, we noticed many trees blown over by the storm of two weeks ago. When we got to our gate, we noticed things were pretty bad. Mark had cleaned up most of the huge cherry that once stood at the gate but there was still some clean up to do.

This very old cherry stood at the gate of my driveway at the Bolt Hole. The winds two weeks ago snapped it at about 10 feet above the ground. The trunk had a rotten core. This 50-60 foot tall tree had many dead branches in its crown that served as resting sites for hawks and other birds. It measured close to 24 inches in diameter where it broke off but had many, many cankers in its upper branches. A similar tree a short distance away also fell before the winds.

Besides cutting a couple of blocks off one end of the trunk so we could handle it more easily, we did very little with this particular tree. That’s because there were a couple of others that we needed to remove so we could get the trailer out of the yard and, eventually, back into the barn.

A pair of smaller trees lay across the lawn.

A much younger pair of cherry trees in front of the garage were split by the winds. Each forked trunk of the pair split in half sending these 25-foot long trunks across the lawn. Each measures about 9 inches in diameter where they split. The two that are still standing will have to come down next spring.

While Terry hauled smaller branches to the side of the yard, I fired up the chainsaw to make sure she had plenty to do. After two hours we felt we had succeeded in making a clear path for the trailer. So we attached the charger to the trailer’s battery and took a walk in the woods to see if there had been any other damage. There were a few blow downs visible but we didn’t explore very thoroughly as there was a threat of showers. (They arrived just as we got back to the safety of the cabin.)

Shuttling up and back

It's that time of year when my travel trailer needs to get inspected here in PA. That's going to require Terry and me traveling up to the Bolt Hole where the trailer is stored in the barn and hauling it down to the Aerie. I've already made an appointment to get it inspected for Thursday morning. So, it will be up tomorrow, down on Wednesday and then back up on Thursday. That's 750 miles (250 each way) just to have a technician walk around to check the tires and lights. And I haven't used it since last September. *sigh*

Once I've returned the trailer to the barn on Thursday evening, I'll be staying at the Bolt Hole for a week or so. Early black bear season starts on Saturday and I've got my hopes up.

New Jersey didn't have this requirement. They probably thought if you were dumb enough to take a trailer out when it wasn't safe, you deserved whatever happened to you. And they were right.

We do have a Big Trip planned for early next summer that will take us out to the left coast and back with stops in between. Family and friends and all that.

College Football: Week 3 Prognostications

I spent some time during the NFL games yesterday perusing the latest College polls and was pleased to see my alma mater, Rutgers, move up to # 13 in both the AP Writers’ Poll and the Coaches’ Poll. Unfortunately, I don’t see them moving up this week unless there are some heavy duty upsets in the games of those teams ahead of them. Playing Norfolk State will do that. They shouldn’t move down any either, however, as the three teams below them have got some tough competition this week.

Anyway, here’s my take on what is in store for the Top 25 this week.

AP Writers’/Coaches’
#1/#1 USC Idle in week 2 they travel to Nebraska to face off against the #14 Cornhuskers in week 3 action.

#2/#2 LSU plays against Middle Tennessee State Saturday. I wonder if anyone will bother to suit up on defense for either squad.

#3/#5 Oklahoma (up from 5/6 last week) host 0-2 Utah State. I wonder how many points the Sooners will put up on the board this week.

#4/#4 West Virginia (was 3/4 last week) travels to College Park, MD on Thursday to face the 2-0 Terps. It will be the Mountaineers strongest test this year.

#5/#3 Florida (was 4/3 last week) host the #22/#24 Tennessee Volunteers in s SEC game that is a must for Tennessee.

#6/#6 Texas (was #7 in both polls last week) has what should be an easy game against the University of Central Florida (UCF) Knights. But the Longhorns better not get caught snoozing or looking ahead.

#7/#7 Wisconsin (fell from #5 in both polls last week) host 1-AA The Citadel. Nothing short of a big win will keep the Badgers from further sliding.

#8/#8 California (up from #10 in both polls last week) host the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs who came within a dropped pass on a 2-point conversion from upsetting Hawaii.

#9/#9 Louisville (down from #8 in both polls) got all they could handle from Middle Tennessee State last week. Now they go and play at in-state rival Kentucky’s stadium this week. If the Cardinals forget to play defense, they could drop this one to the Wildcats. Points could be racked up faster than on a pinball machine.

#10/#10 Ohio State moved up (from #12/#11) despite struggling with Akron. Go figure. The Buckeyes better bring their A-game as they travel to Seattle, Washington this week. The Huskies ended Boise State’s 14-game win streak and knocked them out of the polls. Another game that could be closer than it should be.

#11/#11 UCLA (up from #13/#14 from last week) The Bruins will be traveling to Utah to face the 0-2 Utes.

#12/#12 Penn State (deservedly up from #14/#15 last week after they dismantled Notre Dame) host Buffalo.

#13/#13 Rutgers (up from #15/#16) host Norfolk State. Hey, it’s Homecoming!

#14/#14 Nebraska (up from #16/#17 last week) host #1 USC. Good luck with that.

#15/#15 Georgia Tech (way up from #21 in both polls) hosts 2-0 Boston College which is now #21/#19 in the polls.

#16/#16 Arkansas (#18 in both polls last week) The Razorbacks moved up despite not playing last weekend. This week they are on the road playing 2-0 Alabama, a team that’s knocking on the door of the Top 25.

#17/#23 South Carolina was not ranked last week but knocking off Georgia opened lots of eyes. This week the Gamecocks host South Carolina State.

#18/#17 Virginia Tech (down from #9 in both polls after losing to LSU in a blowout) Look for the Hokies to play better as they host 2-0 Ohio. They better.

#19/#21 Oregon The Ducks were unranked last week but jumped all over Michigan. This week they host the Fresno State Bulldogs who lost a high scoring, triple overtime game to Texas A&M.;
#20/#20 Clemson The Tigers were #25 in the AP Poll last week but overlooked by the Coaches. A 49-26 laugher over Louisiana-Monroe got a lot of attention. This week Clemson hosts 1-1 Furman.

#21/#19 Boston College (UR/#25 last week) The Eagles travel to #15 Georgia Tech this week.

#22/#24 Tennessee (#24/#24 last week) The Volunteers travel to #5/#3 Florida this week.

#23/#25 Georgia (down from #11/#12 last week) The Bulldogs lost a close one to South Carolina but can rebound against 1-AA Western Carolina. (Wait a minute. Let me get my map.)

#24/#22 Hawaii (down from #20/#22) The Warriors just managed to squeek past Louisiana Tech in overtime. This week they are at UNLV.

#25/#18 Texas A&M; (down from #23 in both polls) The Aggies needed three overtimes and a dropped pass on a 2-point conversion to beat Fresno State. This week they host Louisiana-Monroe.


South Florida is knocking on the door. But the Bulls are idle this week so they're not likely to find it opened very much.

More Rain...finally!

We had several hours of showers during Sunday afternoon and into the night. It was a much needed gentle sort of rain that was allowed to soak into the ground. This morning the gauge read 0.5 inches bringing the total for the month all the way up to 0.7 inches! We still need lots more. Currently it is misty and cloudy here at the Aerie although no rain is actually falling from the sky. At 2100 feet we are literally sitting in the clouds.

Mets Sweep the Astros

The Mets completed a sweep of a three game set against the Houston Astros this afternoon with a 4-1 victory behind five innings by Pedro Martinez, who picked up his 2nd win in as many starts, and one inning each from Mota, Feliciano, Heilman and Wagner, who picked up his 32nd save. This end of the game progression has become SOP for the Mets lately and has been, for the most part, quite effective.

New York has opened a 6 game lead over the second place Phillies and 8.5 games over the Braves. Both teams are in Shea for three game series this week starting with the Braves Monday night and then the Phillies on Friday. The Mets have just 20 games remaining in the regular season.

The Mets have been winning (8 of their last 10) despite hard times at the plate by Jose Reyes who’s average has dropped to .288, and the absence of Carlos Delgado who has been suffering from a hip injury.

Funny line

During the Denver vs Buffalo game on CBS:

"We've seen two quarterbacks today who can do special things. And we have seen two quarterbacks who could pass for Evangelists 'cause they can make 70,000 people stand up and shout out, 'Oh, Jesus!'"

Big East is doing well (mostly)

And the Big East teams remain undefeated for 2007:

2007 STANDINGS

	BIG EAST	Overall
Cincinnati	0-0	2-0	(Southeast Missouri State, Oregon State)
Connecticut	0-0	2-0	(Duke, Maine)
Louisville	0-0	2-0	(Murray State, Middle Tennessee State)
Pittsburgh	0-0	2-0	(Eastern Michigan, Grambling State)
Rutgers	0-0	2-0	(Buffalo, Navy)
USF	0-0	2-0	(Elon, Auburn)
West Virginia	0-0	2-0	(Western Michigan, Marshall)
Syracuse	0-0	0-2	(Washington, Iowa)

Except, of course, Syracuse. It's beginning to look like they may not win a game all year. And that includes the ones against Illinois, Buffalo and Miami of Ohio. Oh, and who scheduled Rutgers to be Syracuse's Homecoming? There will be more Scarlet in the Carrier Dome than Orange for sure.

Coming up this week:

Thursday, September 13
Maryland @ West Virginia
Saturday, September 15
Miami OH @ Cincinnati
Michigan State @ Pittsburgh
Syracuse @ Illinois
Connecticut @ Temple
Rutgers @ Norfolk St
Kentucky @ Louisville

Rain, glorious rain!

While watching announcements of flash floods in the Carbon County area to the east and the Southern Tier of NY just to the north of here, we had absolutely nothing here at the Aerie. Oh, we could see the flash of lightening to the north (the NY border is only 15 miles or so away) and we could occasionally hear the rumble of thunder, but as has happened far too often this summer, the rain just didn't fall here.

Until around 1 AM. That's when it poured for a very brief time loudly enough that it woke me up. When I checked the rain gauge this morning it said that 3/10ths of an inch of rain had fallen. This is the first measurable amount of rain we have had this month. We are forecast to get some more today but right now, the jet stream is steering the showers in a line across the northwest corner of PA into the Finger Lakes of NY. They are curving right around us here in the north-central part of the state.

Unlike the children's little ditty, I don't want it to go away. I want it here. Today. In copious amounts.

A Year Without Football

In local College Football news, this is the first year in 120 years that Mansfield University will not field a football team. In a decision based purely on $$$ they folded the program which is a damn shame. Most of the players have transferred elsewhere and the coaches have moved on as well.

While the Mansfield team didn’t have much success recently competing in Division II against the likes of Shippensburg and West Chester, they had a storied past. It was at Mansfield that the first night football game was played. The annual celebration of the first night game against Wyoming Seminary in 1892, The Fabulous 1890’s Weekend, will now be held during a soccer game. *sigh*

Businesses in the town saw increased activity on home weekends with people coming in for meals and rooms so this decision by the MU will impact the town’s bottom line.

Already there are discussions of bringing the program back within a year or two at a slightly lower level.

College Football: Week 2

Well, week two of college football’s fall frenzy has ended. While most games ere played outside the conference, there were a few exceptions. In any case, the shake-up of the top 25 rankings has begun as pollsters get a better idea of what a team is actually capable of this year instead of guessing based on last year’s play. (Did Michigan really, really deserve to be a preseason #5 pick? Based upon the first two games, I guess not!)
(Rankings are based upon the AP/Coaches Polls.)
#1 USC was idle this week and will stay in top position.
#2 LSU took #9 Virginia Tech http://www.sportsline.com/collegefootball/teams/page/LSU to the woodshed in a 48-7 drubbing. LSU stays put but VT probably falls, but just a notch or two.
#3/#4 West Virginia Had a difficult time getting started against a tough Marshall squad and trailed at the half 13-6. But they play 60 minutes, not 30 and when it was over, WVA, with Slayton and White running over, around and through, had collected a 48-23 victory.
#4/#3 Florida let little Timmy Tebow play with his toys—I mean Troy and the result was a 59-31 win for the Gators that wasn’t really that close as Florida took a siesta in the third quarter.
#5/#6 Oklahoma went out and beat up on the little guys again on Saturday, defeating Miami 51-13. What? It was Miami of Florida, not Ohio? Might not be such a strong Hurricane season after all. Too bad, the teams above did so well, cause the Sooners can’t move up against them.
#6/#5 Wisconsin nearly succumbed to the odds as they needed a late score to edge UNLV 20-13. The Rebels nearly had this one but Donovan’s 29-yard bootleg for a TD with just 1:53 to play saved the Badger’s bacon. This could cost the Badgers a couple of notches in the polls.
#7 Texas was being shut out and trailed #19 Texas Christian 10-0 at the half, but, as I said earlier, they play 60 not 30 minutes. The Long Horns came out of their slumber in the second half and defeated the Horned Frogs 34-13. The slow start might cost the ‘Horns a chance to move up.
#8 Louisville’s offence was impressive in their 58-42 victory in the track meet against Middle Tennessee State, but their defense went AWOL—again. Brohm had a career high 401 yards passing and Anthony Allen a school record 275 yards on the ground for the Cardinals. And they needed every inch of it to beat the Blue Raiders. Sure the Cardinals have scored 131 points in two games (73-10 vs Murray State and 58-42 against Mid Tenn St.), but if they can’t stop anyone, they’re going to have to average those 65 points per game and pray it’s enough. (Slayton, White, Rice, and Teel are probably licking their chops thinking about the Cardinal defense.)
#9 Virginia Tech lost 48-7 to #2 LSU. The Tigers stripped the Hokies to their underwear in this one. While losing to a higher ranked opponent usually isn’t going to hurt you, this one could. Expect the Hokies to fall hard.

#10 California. The Bears offense managed to score enough points to hold off the Colorado State Rams 34-28 but it was a near thing. Leading 34-14, the bears managed to allow Colorado State to score two TDs in a 53 second span in the fourth quarter.

#11/#12 Georgia lost to the south Carolina Gamecocks 16-12 in a game that saw one TD and seven filed goals. This one is going to cost Georgia as it will fall several slots in the polls.

#12/#11 Ohio State. The Buckeyes spotted Akron 2 points via a safety in the first quarter, led just 3-1 at the half, and then ground out a 20-2 victory over the –well, Zips. Should it have been this close? Or were the Buckeyes being neighborly? Up in the polls—no. Down—maybe.

#13/#14 UCLA scored a TD late in the game to seal a close 27-17 victory over the BYU Cougars. The win ended a BYU 11 game winning streak. Whether it will cost them in the polls remains to be seen.
#14/#15 Penn State dismantled Notre Dame 31-10. PSU could move up, but this was not the Notre Dame of the past.

#15/#16 Rutgers handily defeated Navy 41-24. Whether they get to move up or not? [shrugs shoulders]

#16/#17 Nebraska eked out a 20-17 victory over Wake Forest on the road. It probably won;’t help or hurt their ranking in the polls.

#17/#13 Auburn lost to South Florida in overtime 26-23. Expect Auburn’s stock to fall while the South Florida Bulls may crack the top 25 this week.

#18 Arkansas was idle this week. (BTW: Who made up the schedule for Troy (now 0-2)? Week one against Arkansas (46-26) and week two against Florida (59-31)?

#19 TCU. The Horned Frogs gave #7 Texas all they could handle in the first half (they led 10-0 at intermission) before succumbing to the inevitable 34-13. Up? No way. Down? Possibly/probably.

#20/#22 Hawaii won a squeaker of a game at Louisiana Tech 45-44 in overtime. Colt Brennan through for 548 yards and 4 TDs and needed every one of them plus a stopped 2-point conversion in OT to win this Western Athletic Conference contest. This will not inspire voters to move them up in the polls. Down is another matter.

#21 Georgia Tech, after taking apart Notre Dame last week, gave lessons in football to 1-AA opponent Samford. The Yellow Jackets scored 45 points in the first half as they rambled over a wrecked Bulldog squad to a 69-14 victory. Tashard Choice ran for 110 yards and two TD in the first quarter and sat out the rest of the game as the second and third string rolled up time and points to a 62-0 lead at the end of three. Up? Maybe. Down No way, Jose.

#22/#20 Boise State saw their 14-game win streak come to an end at the hands of Washington Huskies 24-10. The Broncos are falling this week.

#23 Texas A & M squeaked past Fresno State in triple overtime 47-45 when a 2-point conversion by the Bulldogs failed. Could cost the Aggies a slot or two.

#24 Tennessee drubbed Southern Miss 39-19.

#25/NR Clemson rolled over Louisiana-Monroe 49-26 in a game that wasn’t as close as the score indicates. Looking up for the Tigers.

If any team cracks the top 25 this week it will be Boston College (victors over North Carolina State, 37-17 and now 2-0). Boise State may find itself on the outside looking in.