Clear and chilly. Gusty winds at some locations (more than yesterday), and highs in the high 20s to low 30s (depending on location).
It was definitely windier in Silver Bay today. I stopped briefly to take pictures of snow on (and blowing off) the mountains.
The road was drier overall than yesterday, and I didn’t notice any thin/black ice (like there had been yesterday). Some sections that remain shaded much of the day are still covered in a layer of packed snow (now ice).
As I was arriving at Starrigavan, I saw a snow devil in the estuary. Illuminated by the sun with the darker trees behind, it was quite striking. I would have liked to get a video, but it did not last long enough for me to park.
I briefly saw another smaller one as I started walking a bit of the estuary life trail, but it was very short-lived and I didn’t get pictures.
Overall, it was not especially windy in the estuary. I guess maybe gusts coming down from above from time to time caused the snow devils.
I spent much of the afternoon cleaning up slides and coverslips. It’s been most of a year since I last used my microscopes. I had initially intended to get back to them sooner, but then life went on, as it does. It’s nice to have the area cleaned up.
With easier access, I tried to make a section of one of the small dark balls that I think might be Rivularia atra (or something related). I probably could have used a thinner section, and perhaps I will try again tomorrow.
Possibly Rivularia atra, or something similar - a section I cut and looked at from a collection made recently
With all the food Connor has out, pigeons have been more frequent visitors. We try to discourage them, since they they can eat a lot of food in a hurry. I periodically went to check and shoo the off. As a result, I saw several robins when they happened by. They’re the first I’ve seen in the yard this year. I also noticed a junco that might have been taking a snow bath as it worked its way down the neighbor’s roof. I later saw there were several trails down the snow, so perhaps that’s something they do often.
A bit of slow is blowing off the rim of Mt. Edgecumbe
I caught the sunset at Sea Mart before going to Moller for ultimate.
Vitskari Rock is several miles away and subject to a bit of mirage, while the closer rock is not. It made me curious how far out the mirage starts, and what factors might influence that
Only three of us were there. We played catch as the light faded. The snow was bit like sand. It was dry and powdery enough that my shoes didn’t get wet despite being out in it for the better part of an hour.
Jupiter is now lower than Venus in the sky. They’re still both showing nicely, but I missed their closest approach. I think the night they were closest was cloudy, and last night (when they were closer than tonight), I forgot to go out after the sky had darkened.
My iNaturalist Observations for Today
