News & Opinion About Huletts Landing, N.Y.
July 23 Auction on Sheep Meadow Lane
Concierge Auctions reports on the live auction to be held on July 23rd.
Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning
gCaptain.com tells us what to watch for if a person is actually drowning.
Bigfoot Spotted? You’ll Know What to Look For
Denton Publications gives some insights into Bigfoot.
Before She Was a Star
Pilot Girl links to a CNBC Video and has a post about Rachel Ray before she became famous.
Andrew Cuomo’s Private Life Not Private After All
The Washington Times does an expose on Andrew Cuomo’s private life.
What is Rock Snot?
WNBZ does a story about a new form of invasive species.
Birding in the Adirondacks
Learn all you want about boreal birds, bugs, and bears at laurakammermeier.com.
I was out for a walk this afternoon when I spotted this butterfly.
Police, Feds Raid Whitehall Business
The Post Star has an interesting story about a local store.
Bald Eagle Now Healthy, Takes Flight
The Adirondack Journal has a heartwarming story here.
Time Travel Possible Says Famed Astrophysicist
Keep you eyes out for time travelers but to understand the theory read here.
NY Giants to Return to Albany? Maybe
The NY Giants issued a press release regarding their summer camp in Albany and then quickly amended it. Train-a-Thought Blog explores it.
May 1st is the start of Spring turkey season.
For the Spring Turkey Season, May 1 through 31, hunting is permitted in most areas of the state, except for New York City and Long Island; hunters must have a turkey hunting permit in addition to their small game hunting or sportsman license; shooting hours are from one-half hour before sunrise to noon each day; hunters may take two bearded turkeys during the spring season, but only one bird per day; hunters may not use rifles, or handguns firing a bullet. Hunters may hunt with a shotgun or handgun loaded with shot sizes no larger than No. 2 or smaller than No. 8, or with a bow and arrow; successful hunters must fill out the tag which comes with their turkey permit and immediately attach it to any turkey harvested; successful hunters must report their harvest within 48 hours of taking a bird. Call 1-866-426-3778 (1-866 GAMERPT) or report harvest online at: www.dec.ny.gov
Eastern Woods Return / Face New Threats
The Washington Post had a good article documenting the historical changes to eastern forests over the last 400 years and some modern threats that they face. One might not think that deer pose a threat to the forest, but as this video points out, they eat most of the young saplings.
Blight in Whitehall, New Ideas in Lake Luzerne
I missed this Post Star article from a few weeks ago. Here’s what another local town is doing.
Christopher Llyod Coming to Vermont in Late August
This might be worth seeing. The Rutland Herald reports on the Back to Future actor playing Willy Loman.
A school of smelt can be seen in Foster brook.
Just this week, I noticed one of the more interesting occurrences of the spring. The smelt have begun their trip upstream to spawn in many area streams.
Smelt are a food source for salmon, lake trout and bigger fish. They traditionally swim in schools and are easy to see in the bright sunlight against the bottom of a shallow stream.
You know spring is here when you see the smelt start “running”.
This shot was difficult to take because they were swimming so fast in the cold water.
It was a pleasant surprise to see such large numbers of smelt in Foster brook this year.
I think these ducks were even trying to get a mouthful.
See Pictures of the iPad
Engadget has some great pictures of the new iPad.
Scaring the Birds Away
The Post Star reports on a novel way to scare birds away from the lake.
Report: School Hiring Increasing, Enrollment Decreasing All Over State
The Post Star reports on a new study which documents the problems caused when NY public schools hired nearly 15,000 teachers and almost 9,000 administrators over the last 10 years as enrollment dropped by more than 121,000 students. This is what we need more of. (Watch the videos.)
Canadian geese have been causing significant problems around the lake.
The Lake George Association will offer a Nuisance Waterfowl Workshop on Wednesday, April 7 at 6:30pm at the Hague Community Center, and again on Thursday, April 8 at 6:30 at the LGA office in Lake George. A growing population of Canada geese on the lake is causing significant problems for property owners, with negative impacts for both people and the lake’s sensitive eco-system.
Staff from the USDA’s Wildlife Services department will make a presentation and demonstrate techniques, such as egg oiling, that can be used during nesting season to manage the area’s over-population of geese. The workshop is free, and will last approximately one-hour with questions and answers afterward. Reservations are not required.
Damage on Lake George from both Canada geese and double-crested cormorants has already been seen. The droppings from these birds add nutrients to the lake that can lead to increased algal growth and can contain harmful bacteria such as E. coli, making swimmers sick and contaminating the drinking water provided by the lake. The presence of geese is also related to swimmer’s itch.
“We would like to prevent the populations from growing out of control before they have irreversible effects on the lake’s water quality, plant life, and landscape,” said Emily DeBolt, the LGA’s Education Director. “The LGA receives calls and complaints about geese and cormorants all summer from members, so we decided to host these workshops to help address these concerns. We also continue to encourage property owners with large lakeshore lawns to create landscaping buffers, as these can be an effective deterrent.”
The Lake George Association sought grant funding earlier this month from the Champlain Basin Program to create a Waterfowl Nuisance Management and Monitoring Program for Lake George. Public input and education, along with monitoring, surveying, data analysis and the implementation of nest management, population reduction and harassment techniques would be included in the plan. The USDA Wildlife Services already conducts population management for both geese and cormorants on numerous other bodies of water statewide, and recognizes the need for this type of work on Lake George. Through the grant, the LGA will partner with experts from the New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation and the USDA Wildlife Services.
Famous Jefferson Lake George Quote Put in Context
The Adirondack Almanack gives us great background information on Thomas Jefferson’s visit to Lake George which produced his memorable quote.
Effort to Save Bats Begins in Whitehall
I definitely noticed that the bat population in Huletts was down last summer, so this is some potentially good news that the Post Star reports.
The Immune System in Action
This is a bit dated but behold, a human polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN, or neutrophil) on a blood film, “chasing” Staphylococcus aureus. This is how your body fights back when you get sick. For real. (Requires Quicktime.)
APA Loses Big, Must Pay Legal Fees, Who is Responsible?
This is a big story when even the NY Times reports on it. The APA is taking such indefensible and outrageous positions (remember Foster Brook and the “waste” on the bottom of the lake?) that now taxpayers are having to bail them out. It will be interesting to see who is held responsible at the APA for this huge mess.
Bald Eagle Being Nursed Back to Health
A great story appeared recently in the Adirondack Journal about a group of local citizens who are trying to save an injured bald eagle.
I took this picture of a cardinal within the last 10 days and I didn’t think it came out. However, when I was going through my camera, I got an OK shot after all. What caught my eye was how red it was.
The more significant point to consider? Why has it not flown south?
To read more about the northern cardinal, look here.