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island loonification
Thursday, August 6 2026
location: rural Town of Hurley, Ulster County, NY
Today at some point I planned to drive to the cabin, something Gretchen couldn't do because of appointments scheduled for tomorrow, one for physical therapy and the other with an osteopath. But I was in no hurry to leave, as all I really cared about was getting there with enough time left in the day to do something recreational in the lake.
I waited until after Gretchen got off one of her endless Zoom calls before doing the final packing and loading up the dogs, because we probably needed to do some face-to-face communication.
On the drive to the cabin, I parked in that special shady spot northwest of the Cairo Hannaford next door to the Spray & Shine Carwash so the dogs would have shade while I was shopping. Oddly, as I was walking from that remote, unloved parking spot, someone else actually showed up and parked there too, perhaps to do drugs (as that is really the only other use for it and those people never even got out of their car). I didn't have a lot I needed to buy, mostly just sourdough bread, nuts, orange juice, and some sort of potent road beer that comes in 16 oz cans. (This time it was Ommegang Gnommegang Belgian-style ale.)
Soon after getting to the cabin, I took the dogs (both came) on a walk down to the dock. I immediately set off on the paddleboard and went to the biggest (or perhaps only) island standing at the entrance to the lake's outlet bay and spent the next half hour or so filling in another gap in the rocks to extend the ramp leading out to the water that I'd worked on last weekend. The gap I filled today was the last one between the lakeshore and the small interior of the island, which is flat, mostly shrub-free, and the size of a small living room. The material I used to fill it was mostly water-logged branches that had been left by beaver all around the island. Here and there, I also added some rocks. The fill didn't produce a solid surface, but it aspired to and might be all that it takes for a loon to visualize it as such. And then perhaps a pair of industrious loons could complete the work, maybe building their nest there. The filled gap is about a foot above the water line and is unlikely to ever flood. Perhaps I shouldn't be meddling with nature by trying to take an island that loons view as unsuitable for nesting and trying to push it towards suitability (that is, "loonification"). If a nesting pair of loons starts actually nesting on that island, it will mean that Throckmorton (and other bachelor loons like him) will have to find some other lake where nesting loons are not present to spend the summer.
As I worked on this project, I slipped multiple times on the rocks and fell into the lake, getting thoroughly soaked (except for the top of my head) in the process. Meanwhile Neville and Charlotte had found their way to the part of the lakseshore closest to the island and at one point Neville even went for a swim. Perhaps he thought he might be able to swim to me, but the depth of the water clearly unnerved him and he immediately returned to shore and gave up.
Back at the cabin, it took awhile for the dogs to return from whatever adventure they ended up having, and Neville was the first to arrive, all delightfully soaked from his swimming attempt. Once I wasn't worrying about the dogs any more, I could relax and watch the latest episode of season three of House of the Dragon, which was full of all sorts of crazy dragon activity.
The gloomy look of the sky this afternoon above the lake. Click to enlarge.
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