68 degrees F Sunny Wind Calm
Sunrise 7:58 am CDT Sunset 5:55 pm CDT
It is hard to believe that it is November.
First of all when I look to see how long it has been since I have posted.
But more importantly, we are having an unusually mild fall.
Here it is November 5th and today it was 72 degrees and sunny! And a new record temperature of 73 degrees in the Twin Cities.
A beautiful blue sky, a blue lake like a mirror with thousands of seagulls and hundreds of coots. An occasional eagle flies over and sends the coots into a scurry across the surface of the lake. What I call a 'waterfall of coots' because it sounds like you are standing next to a waterfall.
Most of the leaves are already off the trees with just the few last stubborn ones hanging on.
We have had only a few light frosts so far only down to 30 degrees. No killing frost here yet. Further south in the Twin Cities they have not had a frost at all yet and do not expect one until next Saturday morning. If that happens it will be the longest growing season in the Twin Cities of recorded history. Breaking the old record of 207 days.
But quickly this will become a season of changes.
Tomorrow night it will already be dark at this time with turning back our clocks to standard time.
There is nothing that speaks more of Minnesota and the Great North Woods than the call of a loon on a quiet Minnesota lake at sunset.
But now we enter the "silent time" of the year as our beloved loons go South to the Gulf of Mexico.
The adults are already on the move. Some of them already on the Gulf.
Others have made a rest stop on Lake Michigan before continuing the journey south.
But in one of the great miracles of nature, the young from this year's young loons will not begin their journey until a MONTH AFTER their parent's have left!
Having never been down to the Gulf of Mexico. Having never seen it. Having never known about it. They will find their way down there all buy themselves.
YOU explain it to me! I can't explain it. Other than once again saying, "God, I don't know how you done it. But you done good!"
Two weeks ago today a neighbor across the lake saw one of the juvenile loons. He said it was doing well and was flying.
There had been some concern because a week or so before that they said it looked like the young loon may have gotten tangled in a fisherman's line. But there was no way to catch it to see if that was the case.
So it was good when he saw it flying and that it seemed to be doing well.
It had been a couple months since I had seen them. For several days one of the adults and both juveniles spent most of the day out in front of my place. Both of the juveniles seemed to be doing very well at that point.
I still do not have word on the cause of death of our male loon from the LoonCam nest last summer. I hope that we get an update soon
I have done several loon presentations in the last couple months. All the way from a school group of kindergartners to 4th graders and week after next to a group of seniors.
Being with those kids gives one hope for the future. What a great bunch of kids. So inquisitive. So informed. So well behaved.
And so in love with loons.
As we enter the "silent season" of having no loons for a few months, we already look forward with anticipation to their return next spring.
In the meantime, as we enter this busy holiday season of Thanksgiving and Hanukkah and Christmas I wish you , your family, your loved ones and friends the best of everything.
God Bless!
Copyright 2016 Larry R Backlund