onset of meltdown in Bishops Mills

[Fred Schueler]

Here's the snow on the ground in Bishops Mills -

23 February 2026 - Canada: Ontario: Grenville County: Oxford-on-Rideau:
110 m SSE Bishops Mills intersection. (5m web map), 31B/13, 44.87150° N
75.70061° W TIME: 1140. AIR TEMP: -0.5°C, sunny, Beaufort gentle breeze.
HABITAT: rural village backyard lawn between barn foundation, Apple
Tree/old ash heaps. OBSERVER: Frederick W. Schueler. 2026/015a/d, snow
profile (inorganic). survey, measured. 97.5 mm melted from rain gauge
core. Snow 43 cm deep, with crust of old snow at 8 cm depth, 2 cm
icy-layer on ground, ground unfrozen.

28 February 2026 (same location) TIME: 0924. AIR TEMP: +3.5°C, overcast,
Beaufort light air. snow profile - 105 mm melted from rain gauge core.
Snow 47 cm deep, with crust of old snow at 13 cm depth, 2 cm icy-layer
on ground, ground unfrozen. Melt water beginning to run into woodsheds.

....looking forward to a freshet (after the forecast cold weekend) that
will produce useful deposits of drifted snail shells, maybe even
bringing back the vortex where the Bishops' mills' millrace goes under
Mill Street.

fred.
------------------------------------------------------------
Frederick W. Schueler & Aleta Karstad
Fragile Inheritance Natural History - https://fragileinheritance.ca/
2024 annual letter: https://clt1233162.bmeurl.co/11E63979
6 St-Lawrence Street Bishops Mills, RR#2 Oxford Station, Ontario K0G 1T0
on the Smiths Falls Limestone Plain 44.87156° N 75.70095° W
------------------------------------------------------------

[rmb...@istar.ca]

The snow is rapidly melting here and I am cheering its departure.
Can't get rid of it fast enough. Weather prediction is for 10C today
and tomorrow, although a freezing rain storm may be coming in tomorrow
night. I shall be making preparations for another possible power
outage, I just hope it will not be as bad as last year, we were out
for 3 days.

On a more cheery note, I just cleaned the ashes out of the woodstove
to get it fired up again, and as I took the ash pail outside I heard 2
geese honking overhead. They're the first I've heard this year. The
deer that hang around close to my house were munching away on the
exposed dry grass on my lawn yesterday. There's about 3 feet of open
water along the edge of my little beach, if I have time later today I
shall poke around and see what nymphs and other insects are active.

Rose-Marie, north of Perth Road Village

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[Frederick W. Schueler]

On 3/9/2026 7:58 AM, rmb...@istar.ca wrote:

> as I took the ash pail outside I heard 2 geese honking overhead. They're the first I've heard this year.

* ...and as I did the streets just now (one lipstick-stained cigarette
butt dead-on-road), there were a few Geese overhead, and I heard one
Dove mourning, & some flying wing-whistles.

Yesterday there was one Robin singing from the tall antenna on the
General Store, and we saw 4 Redwings crowded together on a telephone
wire along North Augusta Road north of Brockville.

fred
------------------------------------------------------------
---------Frederick W. Schueler & Aleta Karstad ------------

Fragile Inheritance Natural History - https://fragileinheritance.ca/

[e.g. g]

Today first turkey vulture gliding low Cranworth-Scotch Point

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[Candice Vetter]

Today, March 9, sunny and warm. Two skeins of geese about 30 in each. One red-tailed hawk. Chickadees singing their summer song. Pileated woodpeckers and Downy woodpeckers very active.

---

Candice

 

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[Frederick W. Schueler]

...more Birds -

I heard a Woodcock twittering briefly as I did the auditory monitoring
this evening, lots of Canada Geese & Robins around, the village is full
of Redwings and Grackles, I heard one Chickadee give the feebee call,
and heard a twee call which had to be a Towhee, though I didn't manage
to see it.

fred.

[rmb...@istar.ca]

Other than those geese from a few mornings ago all I've seen so far of
the migrants is one red-wing blackbird. I'm feeling deprived.

Rose-Marie

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[rmb...@istar.ca]

...and soon after I posted that I spotted a dark "something" on the
ice at the far end of the lake, pointed the binoculars at it, it was a
goose down near the island.

Then a half hour later a grackle was picking around under the feeders.

Get this slop snow/rain/freeze/melt March yoyo weather out the way and
we may just be getting spring.

Rose-Marie

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