Another beautiful sunset over Sucker Bay, Leech Lake
For the third day in a row now I awoke to find myself inside a cloud. Heavy fog and mist extended from the ground up into the grayish-white of the sky. At 8:30 a.m. the wind was blowing out of the north at 8-12 mph, the temperature was 72 degrees and the humidity registered at 95%, but I don't see how any more water could be infused into the air since I can actually see water in the air.
Nature Update: I've talked a lot about the humidity the past few days but I'd like to give a couple of concrete examples of just how humid it is. Last night I made popcorn. Knowing how humid it was I put most of it in a plastic bag and sealed it up. I left a small bowl of popcorn out for me to eat. Within two hours of me making it, the popcorn was soggy and chewy, not exactly the characteristics of good popcorn. Then this morning when I got up, I looked at the big metal mixing bowl I used to put the popcorn in when it comes out of the pan. The bowl was empty (since the popcorn was in a bag) but what was in the bowl was water. Not a ton, but a significant amount. Apparently the dew point was so high last night that dew actually formed in the bowl and then collected at the bottom of it. That's how doggone wet the air has been the past few days.
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Here's a Heat Warning from the National Weather Service issued for the North Central part of Minnesota (home to Leech Lake):
Mon, Jul 18, 2011, 9:00 AM CDT
... EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM CDT WEDNESDAY... ... DENSE FOG ADVISORY IS CANCELLED...
* HEAT INDEX VALUES: A PROLONGED PERIOD OF HEAT INDICES FROM 95 TO NEAR 110 DEGREES OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS HAS PROMPTED THIS WARNING.
* IMPACTS: DEHYDRATION... MUSCLE CRAMPS... SEVERE HEADACHES AND HEAT EXHAUSTION ARE POSSIBLE WITH PROLONGED EXPOSURE AND OR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY. THERE IS EVEN A THREAT OF HEAT STROKE.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
AN EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING MEANS THAT A PROLONGED PERIOD OF DANGEROUSLY HOT TEMPERATURES WILL OCCUR. THE COMBINATION OF HOT TEMPERATURES AND HIGH HUMIDITY WILL COMBINE TO CREATE A DANGEROUS SITUATION IN WHICH HEAT ILLNESSES ARE LIKELY.
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It's days like these that make me wish we had air conditioning here at the lake. But when the temperature is sub zero for so many months, air conditioning seems like such an extravagant waste.
But today, air conditioning would be most welcome. By 11:30 a.m. the temperature was at 80 degrees, and the forecast called for the mercury to hit 91. The humidity hadn't backed off any, so simple movements inside or out, led to immediate sweat and exhaustion. I'm sure glad I'm not out tarring a road or re-roofing the cabin, like I was doing last year. Wind was blowing lazily out of the NNE at 5-8 mph and the sky was mostly sunny and blue.
Nature Update Two: I took a ride on the ATV to cool off and as I rounded a bend on West Shores Road I spotted an auburn-colored doe standing in the road. I slowed to a stop and watched her. She stood motionless for a few seconds then turned her head and looked back toward the woods. A small fawn, no bigger than a large dog, stepped out onto the road behind its mother. Then the two of the trotted gracefully across the road and immediately disappeared into the woods. Its amazing how quickly whitetail deer can blend into a forest.
Midday I couldn't take the humidity any longer and jumped into the lake. Its cool waters were refreshing, although the deer flies buzzing around my head weren't making the experience all that enjoyable. I remained cool for all of about 15 minutes.
By 5:00 p.m. the temperature was at 82 degrees and the humidity had actually dropped to 84%. Still, it felt very hot, and sitting still was about the only activity that didn't raise a sweat.
No fishing tonight. Instead I stayed inside and tried to stay cool. More tomorrow.
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