Almanack Contributor Frank Morehouse

Left the farm at 11:15 am; reached Kibby Pond at 12:30.  There were some reroutes since the last time I was here, but I can’t blame my hiking time on those.  I blame winter and junk food.

Ice is not out.  And it’s a good thing because I am not prepared to fish.  I didn’t expect the ice to be out.  I came here for reconnaissance.  Of course I got myself worked up on the hike in.  What if the ice is out?  I’m not ready.  Then, as I crested the hill and saw the outline of the pond below, my heart stopped.  It is out.  I stood there in disbelief for half a second.  Through the trees, ice looks the same as the reflection of an overcast sky on open water.  But the sky isn’t overcast enough.  Ice.  I started down the hill and could make out a darker outline along the shoreline.  That’s what open water looks like today.  My heart slowed with my relief and my decent.

I came here on a whim.  I was hemmin’ and hawin’ this morning over whether and where to hike.  I’m farm-sitting for my cousin in Sodom.  Do I leave the animals for a little while?  There’s a lot going on at work right now, too.  I should stay and get some stuff done.  But I heard and saw my first loons of the season this morning, a pair of them, and that made my decision easy. » Continue Reading.