We’ve had almost a week of dry weather, which has been most welcome. September is traditionally our driest month, and perhaps we are passing out of the rainy cycle a bit. There’s more rain forecast later in the week, so that may be more of a hope than a promise. It’s also been cooler, with morning temperatures on the deck in the lower sixties.
Despite the efforts of the Lake Blue Ridge Community Association to persuade the TVA to delay the winter draw down until October, which included a petition drive, they started pulling down the lake August 1st, as they always do. As the sign at Bud Holloway’s barbecue used to say, “There’s no reason for it. It’s just our policy.”
The Fannin Focus, one of our three so-called newspapers, published a somewhat grainy photo of a mystery critter that has supposedly been seen in the McCaysville area. If it isn’t a photoshop job, it looks to be about the size of a coyote, with the face of a hyena. I’d venture a guess that if it exists, it’s perhaps a coyote-dog cross, if that’s biologically possible. (It is also reported to be able to jump like a deer.) People are requested to report any sightings to Animal Control, 706.632.3845.
In the “more bad news” category, whirling disease, a parasite that affects trout, has been found in the Watauga River in North Carolina. Here’s a link to the story: http://www.ncwildlife.org/News/NewsArticle/tabid/416/IndexID/10195/Default.aspx
Here’s an announcement of a “hands-on fossil talk” at the Moss Library in downtown Haysville, NC. If you go, be sure to visit the Friends of the Library bookstore, which is attached on the library. It’s one of the best in the mountains. ”
Saturday August 8, 2015 at 2:00 p.m. Award Winning Educator, JAYNE LOUISE BRECHBILL, will present a program on a Hands-on-Fossil lesson. She will cover 4.6 billion years of earth science. She will provide attendees the opportunity to hold and examine fossils that are millions of years old.Jayne is a retired professor who taught in public schools after developing her lab for over 900 students. She continues to share her knowledge and exposure to her museum quality fossil collection with students in Georgia and North Carolina and serves on the Education Committee at the Georgia Mountain Research and Education Center in Blairsville and teaches at Young Harris ICL.
She received her masters degree in science from the University of Central Florida and was awarded two separate “Teacheriffic” awards from Walt Disney World. She continues fulfilling her passion for teaching since retiring in Florida.
For information call: (828) 389-8401 Funded by: The Fred A. Moss Charity Trust