From the Lake to the Mountains

Yesterday was a perfect day.  The winds were calm, it was sunny, the temperatures where in the low 70s degF. Spring is in full bloom.  The grass is green and growing like crazy.  The trees are leafing out, and the wildflowers are starting to bloom.

I started the day with a bike ride down by the lake.  I was planning on riding to Rt 125 and crossing the little causeway by the lake.  However, the recent flooding had the road closed.

As I headed home I looked at the construction of the Crown Point Bridge.  It is one of the few bridges that cross Lake Champlain.  This bridge was demolished recently and is to open later this year (we hope).

When I got home, the wife an I went for a short hike into the Green Mountains.  We drove south and turned east onto Rt 125.  Rt 125 comes up from the lake, through dairy farms, and into the Green Mountains.  We stopped at the Robert Frost Trail (which I visited a few times in the winter).

We made sure to look down and take in the wildflowers.  We saw Nodding Trilliums (which I have never seen before), . . .

. . . tons of Trout Lillies, . . .

. . . wild Phlox, . . .

. . . and Fiddleheads.

We then drove over the Green Mountains, and descended the mountains for a few miles.  We came to one of our favorite areas, Texas Falls Recreation Area of the Green Mountain National Forest.  There are trails by the falls, as well as a beautiful picnic area.

 Rt 125 is one of the great drives through Vermont.  Enjoy.

Swiss Cheese Barn

We went to visit my sister yesterday (yea!).  I decided to ride to her house (~ 54 miles).  It was a beautiful day, but I did have a few headwinds (luckily not too strong).  My wife went by car, and passed me by mile 34.  The bike rack was on the car, so I did not have to ride home (whew!)

Summer is peaking.  The corn is in strong, our garden is yielding tons of tomatoes, and the final wildflowers of summer are in bloom.  As I was riding, I could see the creeks were low (the river by our house is very low, and our creek is nearly dry!).

As I would ride past the farms and fields, I could see the corn.  More interesting were the fallow fields.  I particularly like the fields of purple vetch.  This little member of the pea family does grow wild.  Its little purple flowers are a pleasant surprise in late summer.

It is surprising to see some color on the maples.  It has been a hot summer, and some of the trees are probably distressed and getting ready for the fall.

My ride was through farmland and very small villages.  I especially like all the barns.  One of my favorites is somewhat neglected.  I think the building is still used, but it is full of openings.  I cannot imagine what all the openings were for.  I call it the Swiss Cheese Barn!

Enjoy!

Poor Man's Roses

We put a few white peonies in the 'white garden' when we first moved in 4 years ago.  We had a lot of trouble getting them to do much, until I installed wire cages around them.  The rabbits have not been able to chew them down, and now they are finally blooming.  We also put peonies in by the arbor 2 years ago (with wire cages) and they are also blooming!

I always called peonies poor man's roses.  When the are blooming, they have such beautiful, abundant flower.  Their scent is fantastic.  They don't last long, and the summer rains tend to knock the heavy flowers down.  We really appreciate them when they bloom.

Summer is really coming on strong.  The bleeding hearts have recovered from the late frost back in May.  The irises are blooming (also another of my favorite plants) (do you see a theme here - I like low maintenance plants)!

July will be here soon.  Then the stella d'oro lillies, tiger lillies, daisies, and black eyed susans will be blooming.  Such a beautiful time of year.  It doesn't last long.  Enjoy.

Blooming Time

As I was out and about the yard, I came across a number of signs of spring . . .

The common dandelion.

Daffodils.

Dainty Violets.

Ground Ivy.

Most of these plants are common, and the violets, ivy and dandelion are pretty invasive and sometimes considered to be weeds. I am not obsessed by perfect lawns. Grass is boring compared to any of these plants.

However, the warm weather has brought out the Japanese Knotweed. Though the knotweed is only2 inches tall now, it can grow to 6 feet or more. I've already sharpened up the scythe. Bring it on . . .

Emergent Japanese Knotweed.

Nice Weather

The last 3 days have been beautiful. I had Friday off from work. The wife andI decided to visit my sister,who also had the day off. I rode my bike out towards her place. My wife followed in the car. It was cold when I started, though I made good time. At about 22 miles, I headed into the wind and my speed dropped off. My wife had started out a few hours later and caught up with me at mile 44. I was glad to throw the bike on the rack and jump into the car to get out of the winds. After a quick shower at my sister's place, we all went for lunch. Italian - yum!

We headed home later in the afternoon and stopped by one of the local auction houses. We put a couple of absentee bids out for a bell (it had a tractor on it) and an old-fashion milk jug cooler for the porch. As we didn't hear anything, guess we didn't get them.

We came home and I did a little cleanup in the yard. The roofers had left 2 large pieces of roofing which I dragged into the barn. The new roof is done and it looks great.

New Metal Barn Roof

New Roof Over Gym

Saturday found me working in the yard. We spread some topsoil around the new well and where the crew dug out the old village water line. I hooked the roller to the tractor and smoothed out the soil and pushed down the tread marks from the heavy equipment. I did some raking, collected all the sticks from the yard, did some work on the barn gutters, and used some roll sheet metal to cover a hole the birds had made in the garage (pesky varmints)! I went for a 26 mile ride in the early afternoon. As it was nearly 60 degF, I did not wear any of my cold weather kit. It felt nice riding. I saw my first bluebird. What a nice ride. We fired up the grill and enjoyed the warmer weather.

Today I was lazy. I got a 32 mile ride in, but did not get out to the workshop to finish the gate leg table. It was just too nice to work inside. After my ride I grabbed a nap, and then went out to the creek to listen to the water and watch the birds. I noticed the daffodils were coming up. This warm weather (about 20 degF above normal) has really jump-started spring. We are headed back to normal temps and rain over the next few days. Next weekend will only be in the 40's. Oh well. . .

Enjoy the warmth while you can.

Daffodils