 |
Skating "rink" melt, Puffer's Pond, Amherst MA - January 6, 2014
(Photo by S. Vardatira) |
Monday 1/6/2014, 2:15 pm: Yesterday, Puffer's Pond was like a holiday card scene, skaters everywhere, skating solo and in pairs, children, adults, a mix of people of all sizes, some wearing figure skates, some in hockey skates, and others just sliding in whatever footwear they had on. Today Puffer's was a windswept icy mess, not a person in sight (on the ice anyway), skating paths puddled with water in the morning, broken chunks of ice strewn across the water by afternoon. And it will all change once again by tomorrow as the "polar vortex" descends on the region. Air temperature: 46°F; water temperature: unable to measure - most of the surface still frozen, but in the process of melting.
 |
Path to Puffer's Pond South Beach - January 11, 2014
(Photo by S. Vardatira) |
Saturday, 1/11/2014, 3:30 pm: A dense fog has settled over everything, coupled with intermittent rain. Adding to the forbidding scene is the layer of melting ice (more ice than melt at the moment) covering the road, paths to the shore, and remaining snow cover. After a night of freezing rain, the temperatures have soared into the mid-50s all across the Pioneer Valley, everywhere but here apparently. I am calling this phenomenon the “Pond Effect” (as in Pond Effect Snow, Pond Effect Ice, Pond Effect Fog, etc.). It may be absurd to credit this tiny body of water with weather-distorting powers, but how else can one explain the significantly lower temperature (it’s just 38°F right now, compared to the high 40s and low 50s in the surrounding area)? Moreover, the fog is noticeably more dense right here. I live just up the street from Puffer’s and have been reporting dense fog all day – and while it was indeed foggy across the entire region earlier, it is only here, near Puffer’s, that the fog remains in full force. Visibility is less than 80 feet, and it’s hard to see anything except for the occasional passing car. The only sound is the continuous dripping of melting snow/ice from the trees and the crunch of my boots on the pavement. Air temperature: 38°F; water temperature: unable to measure (pathways to the shore too icy to traverse).
Saturday, 1/25/2014, 12:17 pm: With the temperature rising out of “polar vortex” range for the first time in almost a week, skaters returned in respectable numbers to Puffer’s this morning. Nevertheless, the outside temperature is utterly deceptive. It may say 29°F on the thermostat, but the wind is gusting and strong. As each shock of air blows across the ice and gathers speed in the open space, it feels much, much colder. Other than brief pauses to turn their backs to the strongest wind gusts, the skaters are undaunted. They have appropriated two parts of the pond – an area by North Beach for informal hockey play, and another near the east side of South Beach for everything else. And that tells you something about how cold it's been and how solid the ice, as the east side of South Beach is often the first area to melt in a thaw. The sky is white-grey and snow showers and snow squalls will soon be moving into the area. A slap of icy wind pushes me along the path, and I quickly head for home. Air temperature: 29°F (19°F with wind chill); water temperature: frozen solid along the shore.
 |
Snowstorm at Puffer's Pond - 2-5-2014
(Photo by S. Vardatira) |
Wednesday, 2/5/2014, 9:30 am: This morning's snowstorm beckoned me outside into a winter wonderland. It's absolutely breathtaking out there, with only the faint rustle of falling snow to break the silence. Here are the only people I encountered in my 90 minute outing to Puffer's Pond and Cushman Brook:
1. Neighbor out doing his hourly clearing of the street and walks in front of his house (and he kindly offered to shovel us out - and I kindly declined).
2. One jeep - passed me twice, once going up and 20 minutes later coming back down State Street (the street that borders Puffer’s Pond).
3. One four wheel drive SUV
4. Woman and dog hiking on Robert Frost Trail. Dog was jubilant.
Happily, not one plow passed, and the snow was not yet deep enough to make paths impassable. I stood for a while on South Beach and became aware of the softest bird twittering in the branches above. One set of animal tracks (not a dog, though otherwise I had no clue as to the animal's identity) progressed from tree to tree, exactly to the point where wire mesh has been placed around the tree trunks to protect against beavers. I wondered whether beavers ever interrupt their hibernation with snowstorm wanderings. By the time I returned home, it was still snowing steadily, with well over 6 inches already on the ground. Air temperature: 27.5°F; water temperature: frozen under a blanket of snow.
 |
| Puffer's Pond in Autumn - 10/11/2014 |
Sunday, October 11, 2014, 2:30 pm: Perfect fall day. Cool enough for a light jacket but not too cold, a mix of cirrus and cumulus clouds against a blue sky, and fall foliage making it's presence known everywhere. The still surface of Puffer's Pond is a perfect mirror of the trees hanging over the edge of shore, and the sky above. A few people are lingering on the beach, talking, and walking the perimeter. Air temperature: 49°F; water temperature: did not record.
 |
| Puffer's between trees, 12/11/2014 |
Monday, December 11, 2014, 1:30 pm: Cloudy, gray day over Puffer's, quiet except for the rustle of a small bird in the trees and an occasional jogger. A thin skin of ice has formed over the shallower areas, leaving about two-thirds of Puffer's ice free. Dozens of Canada Geese are bobbing silently in the open waters on the west side of the pond, near the waterfall. Most have tucked their bills under their wings, and I watch a few stretch out and fan the air with their wings before resuming a resting stance. They must be en route somewhere (geese are frequent visitors, but not permanent residents of the pond). Without the sun, it feels colder than it is. Air temperature: 31°F; water temperature: shore line frozen (unable to read temperature).
 |
Erin ice fishing on Puffer's Pond, 3/8/2015
Photo by Aldo |
 |
Ice breaking up at the mouth of Cushman Brook, 3/12/2015
Amherst, MA - Photo by Sharon Vardatira |
Thursday, March 12, 2014, 2:40 pm: Although the temperature is hovering around freezing, it was warmer the last two days, so it seems colder than it really is. An icy wind gusts periodically over the expanse of snow on the frozen surface, forcing me to turn and pull up my hood. I expected to see someone on the pond - ice fishing or walking their dog - but only a few joggers pass on the road. I keep forgetting that the crusty deep snow cover requires skis or snowshoes for extended travel. No animals in sight, but the ice has started to break up at the mouth of Cushman Brook. Spring is coming, I think to myself, but really slowly. Air temperature: 30°F; water temperature: shore line frozen (unable to read temperature).
 |
South Beach, Puffer's Pond, 7/12/2015
Amherst, MA - Photo by Sharon Vardatira |
Sunday, July 12, 2015, 11:56 am: Although the air temperature is expected to top out at 89 F this afternoon at Puffer's Pond, the crowds aren't as intense as I expected. It's possible the crowd on the beach just seems a little thinner because so many people are out on the water courtesy of air mattresses and inflatable boats. Whole groups have also congregated above and below the waterfall, along with a handful of young men who are rock jumping (a prohibited and dangerous activity, just FYI). I took a narrow path along the shore from Fisherman's Point towards the waterfall, on the way discovering a lovely secluded spot where a couple had set out a picnic, complete with h'ordeuvres and a small carafe of wine. They were bobbing in an inflatable boat a few feet off shore, and when I apologized for intruding on their site, they laughed and waved their hands across the water, as if to encompass the whole summer scene. "Come on through," they urged, "this is for everyone." (I didn't have my thermometer on hand, so was unable to read the water temperature, but one swimmer emphatically told me "It is COLD!".
 |
Geese on Puffer's Pond, 12/5/2015
Amherst, MA - Photo by Sharon Vardatira |
Saturday, December 4, 2015, 12:15 pm: Now months removed from the summer's onslaught of swimmers, Puffer's Pond has returned to the waterfowl, as it does every fall and early winter. Although today's sun is pouring down out of a cloudless, blue sky, it is a brisk 40 degrees near the water, not as warm as all that light would suggest. And still, the birds seem unperturbed by the chill in the air. I have noticed that the ducks and geese never co-mingle even though they are only a few hundred feet apart. Right now, the geese are bobbing, almost motionless, where the ducks usually reside, near where Mill River flows into the pond. From a distance, they look like grey/white puff balls balanced on the surface of an impossibly still, glassy mirror. The ducks, I assume to avoid the geese, have moved to the southeast corner of the pond near the bridge. They are particularly noisy this morning, complaining about this and that (I imagine the geese, mostly). A woman with two dogs passes by on the upper walking trail. "Stay... heel... slow down." Her training commands, calm and steady, interrupt the ducks' quacking and flapping. A squirrel scampers, vertically, up a nearby tree trunk, and I head towards home.
(Apologies for the gap in time - I assumed a new job in November 2015, and didn't realize until now, May 2017, that it had taken me away from my Puffer's Journal for over 18 months!)
 |
Puffer's Pond under a grey spring sky, 5/5/2017
Amherst, MA - Photo by Sharon Vardatira |
Friday, May 5, 2018, 4:35 pm: There is always a lull in human visitors to the pond during whatever passes for mud season each spring in Amherst. It's the gap between ice skating and swimming, ice fishing and colorful bobbing inflatables dotting the water's surface. The snow and ice completely melted in April (even if the water was still frigid), and on the warmest days a few intrepid swimmers could be seen paddling away from shore where, only a month earlier, skaters had placed makeshift goals and carved out hockey rinks. I tend to avoid the crowds, and almost never hazard State Street in the height of summer. But today had brought steady rain and wind, and I expected to see almost no one. Along with me, about a dozen people were lingering around the pond when I arrived. One family was slowly moving towards their car, talking animatedly in a language I could not identify. And out on the beach, which was bathed in muted hues of grey and green and brown, two women, one holding an enormous and colorful umbrella, had planted themselves on the steps by the shore. Except for the umbrella bobbing occasionally in the wind, they would have blended, unnoticed, with their surroundings. I walked down the boat path to the shore, careful to make sure I stayed on solid ground. Somewhere in the distance, well out of sight, I could hear the ducks chattering.
Saturday, February 4, 2023, 3:35 pm: The past two days have seen record-breaking cold in the area, with the temperature dipping to -14F overnight, Friday into Saturday. To make matters worse, the wind was unyielding, whipping through the trees and driving wind chill readings down to -40F. In a season that had been unusually mild up until that point, it was something of a shock. Local residents were suddenly forced to think about warming up their cars, preventing pipes from freezing, and dressing in multiple layers to walk their dogs. By Saturday, while many were happy to hunker down and wait for temperatures to stop breaking low records, this was the moment that ice fishers and skaters had been waiting for all winter. With temps hovering around 12F (albeit above zero) by Saturday afternoon, Puffer's Pond was the place to be for about 30 people, many of whom were spread out over the ice, either ice fishing or playing hockey. While this is a fairly typical sight at Puffer's in the coldest winter months, our current lack of snow made it unique. No one had to contend with snowpack - the skaters didn't even have to clear a "field" for their game. And with all the hiking paths snow and ice-free, photographers had no trouble capturing water flowing through, under, and around layers of ice on the water. And, still, at 12F, without hand and foot warmers, I did not linger long. The temps will be rising quickly in the coming week, climbing well above freezing, even to 50F in the days to come. So, I'm guessing the skaters and ice fishers also won't be here much longer.
No comments:
Post a Comment