These photos were taken about two weeks ago in Area 7 along the roadside. Do you know the names of these wildflowers? Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Pink Lady Slipper,Canada Mayflower
On the Water!
Sure felt good to be out on the water! Enough with the rain! The lake is full and we are ready for summer. Bring on the sunshine!
Photo from Area 2
A great photo of a sunset taken from Area 2 by our Vice President. I won’t say when – let’s just say it is from the archives!
MPA Emergency Mtg June 22!
Our dam is scheduled to be sold. As of Friday it was not yet on the market, but it will go as well as the Guilford mill and the other to dams: Guilboa and Whitin. MPA President Dave Schmidt and the Board of Directors have been monitoring the situation; speaking directly with Guilford, their law firm, and leading residents of Whtin Reservoir; as well as exploring the options which would best benefit us- the people who live on and near the lake. Thursday, June 22nd at 7pm at St Anne’s Church hall, the MPA is calling a meeting of all members and interested parties to decide what action we need to take. A guest speaker, the District Clerk of the Cedar Meadows Watershed District, will tell you how the dam on his lake was sold to a private party who proceeded to let the water level down and tried to get $$ from the residents before he would raise the level. This went on for 7 years until they united to form an association and take control of the water rights and the dam through the subsequent formation of a watershed district. We have an association- the MPA. We have …
Water Level Remains Over Full as Raining Continues
Here’s a photo of the main gate and spillway of our dam – the water is raging out at full force! When we are over full, Fuddy will check more than once a day to make sure he has it open enough to have an effect. The past few weeks he has had to take out boards as the lake continues to rise.
Thunderstorm Hits Lake and Puts Us Over Full!
Thursday evening a thunderstorm rolled in and brought rain, hail and the destructive lightning we all dread. The Sutton Girls Softball teams playing at Camp Blanchard canceled the 6 p.m. game with the rain starting about 5:50. A large white pine tree was hit by lightning on Manchaug Road and another strike on Irma Jones Rd started a home on fire with the Manchaug/Sutton Fire Dept. responding within minutes. Our power went out at 6 p.m. and was restored Friday afternoon around 1:00. My cable was just restored this evening … Thurs.-Sunday. Is that good service? When I called Saturday I was on hold for 1 hour before I got to talk to someone. When I called today I found out I was scheduled for appointment on the 7th ?! Four neighbors called me to compare notes…. we learned that the Cable Company won’t send the truck out until 3 homes have called reporting an outage- SIX called but not all were registered as an outage. Ugh! And the lake… Fuddy reported Saturday morning that the lake was 4 inches OVER full and he is measuring twice a day and watching homes for flooding after having opened the dam a …
Memorial Day and Water Level is at FULL!
Our friend Fuddy, the caretaker of Manchaug, Whitins and the Gilboa Dams for the dam owner called yesterday morning to report the water level is at FULL as promised. Saturday the lake was down one inch but came up to the full mark by Sunday morning.Some laugh and call Fuddy “lucky”, but he wants you to know that he is doing what he always has done for the past 22 years. He does credit “Mother Nature” for the rain! Fuddy further reports that he and 4 others remain at the Douglas mill: an environmental, fireman, electrician, and a mechanic. The mill is quiet with few coming in to check it out.
Our Lake’s Dam/Water Rights to be Sold!
Our dam at Manchaug along with the dams at Whitin Res., and Guilboa are to go up for sale with the Guilford Mill. The MPA President has called two emergency Board of Directors meetings to discuss this, the ramifications to us on the shore and watershed of Manchaug, and the best course of action for us to take. If the new company buying the mill does not need water for their manufacturing process than our dam and water rights will be up for sale. A meeting of the entire membership is being scheduled for June. So watch this site and your mailbox for details.
Area 4’s Morning Visitor
This morning at 7:00 a.m. my husband noticed a little visitor on our porch: a red tail fox kit! Our visitor is very small, with our cat being taller and longer. We have seen the kit, it’s sibling and a parent often crossing the roads in area 4. We heard they were born in a den the parents made under a deck at a home on Torrey Road. A third kit was found hit by a car on the side of the road. I apologize for the poorer quality of the photo as it is taken through two glass doors and facing the rising sun! Tell us about your visitors!
Water Level is 5 inches until full!
Here’s a photo taken mid-April of the channel. Should we call it “before the rain” and you could look out your window for “after the rain“! Fuddy (the keeper of the dam!) called this morning pleased to report that Manchaug Pond (or Lake Manchaug as some wish) is only down 5 inches! The boards are all in and the spillway gate is open one inch – and the gates haven’t been touched in over a month. He states that “Mother Nature took care of the dry spell and we will be full by Memorial day!” We came into the spring season with no snow and had an extremely dry season until the recent rains. While the east coast was flooding, Manchaug was smiling! Keep dancing Fuddy!
Mute Swan visits Manchaug Pond – Wild but NOT Native
The visiting swan is a beauty: large and magestic. Seeing us on the shore while about 100 feet out, it swam immediately to us looking for food. My 9 year old got within 7 feet before it started to hiss. Click on to the title of this post for a link to a Humane Society which details an encounter with “Genghis swan” and their recommendations as to how to handle this large birds. Beware as they will attack and capsize a canoe! For a little background, the Mass. Department of Fish and Wildlife reports: “The swans you are seeing are mute swans, and like English sparrows and starlings, they are not native to North America, but an introduced species. Originally brought in from Europe and Asia as ornamental waterfowl to grace the ponds of Long Island estates, some escaped to the wild where they became established, spread up and down the coast and are now moving inland. Highly aggressive and territorial, there is evidence that they are displacing native waterfowl and can be destructive to some aquatic habitats, destroying more vegetation than they actually eat. Unlike native waterfowl, mute swans were not federally protected until Dec. 2001 when a court …
Water Level and Fuddy’s Rain Dance!
Rain yesterday, rain today and rain in the forecast! Go rain!! Sunday, our friend Fuddy from Guilford(the keeper of our dam), gave me a call to update me on things from his perspective… Fuddy has been in his position monitoring our dam and the water level on a daily basis for 22 years. He reports this is the worst he has seen it: a dry spring and of course no snow melt to bring us into spring. We started with hurricane Katrina and then a winter which saw snow which melted inbetween storms. With the early melts, I was calling Fuddy to open the dam as the high water level was causing havoc with docks and boats usually high and dry on shore. Fuddy has had the dam closed for March, April and May or open just a “trickle”. He wants you to know he can’t do much about the weather (he says it is the Man upstairs!) but did report doing a rain dance last week! Further Fuddy reports he is still on the payroll with Guilford along with about 20 other employees. Guilford has relocated to North Carolina where the winters are mild making for lower energy costs …