Deep Breaths

There's a whole lot going on up here in Mohegan Lake and it sure can get stressful. We have to remember to take a few deep breaths occasionally and keep things in perspective.  Think about how this late blast of winter is going to make spring seem that much sweeter.

A quick recap of all things Mohegan Lake:

• Friends of the Holland Club was assertive in rejecting the town supervisor's proposal to level the steep slopes with an undetermined percentage of 86,000 cubic yards of "clean" fill.  The contractor performing the work graciously offered the fill and some labor up, now the town is now seeing if there is a suitable site that can accept such an incredible amount of fill.  We've determined the Holland club needs very little, if any of the fill.  Really appreciate the offer though. 
• The Faith Bible Church application to create a facility capable of accommodating 730 people is currently under review by the planning board.  The town's traffic engineer is currently reviewing the church's traffic consultant's response to their initial comments.  Should see some action during the April 9th planning board meeting.
• Spring is upon us.  Is anyone going to claim this boat? 
• The blue-green algae problem.  Interested in how you can help?  Get involved with the Mohegan Lake Improvement District.  
• We've decided to seek a seat on the town board via the democratic primary.

Hectic indeed, but  I'm now thinking back to simpler times, just a few short weeks ago when I was simply a father, clearing an ice skating rink for my girls. That's my happy place.  Should get me through til next winter!

Hard work, but totally worth it. 

Yes, that is the Holland Club property in the background.

Going places.

We've got moves.

Last Weekend

I've just begun my ice fishing career and, to date, have not caught a fish.  Skating a lap around the lake at a 6 minute a mile clip while drinking my coffee (seriously), I ran into Tom and Frank.  They are seasoned anglers and were having great success.

From top left to bottom right: yellow perch, white perch, sunny

 There's a real chance the skating may be great again this weekend, but we may have trouble accessing the ice on the edges.  Let's wait and see.  In the meantime, here's some video of last weekend.  It's kind of nauseating, but you can appreciate Jones Hill/Mohegan Highlands to the right of the screen--especially at the end.

Even?

My cursive skills are extremely limited as I stopped writing in that style when I learned to letter (architecturally speaking) in 1993.  I tried to employ GPS to spell my name on Mohegan Lake tonight, but failed (tilt your head 90 degrees counter clockwise).  For the record, I think I burned a calorie or two.

Inspiring Ice Conditions

 The last couple days after that rain and deep freeze have created a veritable sheet of glass on Mohegan Lake.  I've been sneaking out of work early (though working remotely), just to catch a quick skate in the evening.  Even got to do some moonlight skating tonight.  Expecting the precipitation event set to occur this weekend mild enough to get a few miles in this weekend. 

Hope to see you out on the 105 acre ice rink that helps define our community.

2/21/12: the huge trees you see here are on the undevelopable land the developer "traded" to Yorktown to develop the parcel that extends to Route 6.  I was surprised to learn how recently much of this area was still woodland.  In summary, we have some really big trees around here. 

 

Left to right: the Ansonia Lodge, condos, daycare center. Foreground: the most amazing ice Mohegan Lake has seen since December 2010.

Video below of a little moonlight skating this evening; it's too dark to appreciate how fast the ice is. Trust me though.

Doin' It Right

Wow!  What a weekend.  I think I skated for 20 miles.  No lie.  And it looks like we will get one really warm day to hopefully Zamboni the entire lake and a deep freeze sets in on Friday.  It's really hard to predict, but I'm hopeful we'll have another weekend of pure, unadulterated, awesomeness.

Courtesy of the National Weather Service

Keep thinking cold thoughts, Mohegan Lake. Me and my cousin made this sweet ice rink in front of our house to practice on.  Just look at my 6 and 4 year olds getting the hang of it.  Not too bad.    I'm going to go ahead and call the +50K on our home value.

Hope to see you next weekend.

That's a tough lie.

Which brings me to my next point: who's hitting golf balls on to the lake in below freezing weather?

Conditions Are Perfect: 1/25/13

Are you ready for the First Annual Mohegan Lake Ice Fishing Derby and Skating Extravaganza that begins tomorrow?

Here's some video from Thursday evening.  There is some interesting ice on the lake; my sphincter tightens as I go over the starfish-octopus-blood vessel shaped black ice.  The previous ice never melted and the old fishing wholes opened up in that warm spell, creating those interesting shapes.  I reached my hand in an ice fisherman's hole (created late this afternoon) and it's 6+ inches in the middle of the lake.  The edges are thinner; the SOLE beach is just frozen so stay away. 

Hope to see you out there tomorrow.  I'm aiming to do a lap around the entire lake tomorrow morning with my cousin.  Under the bridge?  Maybe.