The older I get, the more I am remiss to “wish away summer.” That said, I love autumn. What could be better? The crisp cooler air, the transition of green to scarlet and gold, migrating waterfowl and, of course, musky fishing at its finest. My report from Hayward is the cooler temperatures are upon us, but for the most part the frosts have evaded us. But the rains have not. We had a huge deficit of moisture this past spring and summer, but Mother Nature is making up for it this fall. I believe the dry summer and wet fall has allowed our foliage to remain with us for an extended period. Usually by October 10th we are mostly void of our leaves. Not this year, our colors have hung on even as I write this. It appears, however, that will be changing shortly. The wind has turned northwest, and frost has been forecasted for the next several mornings. Is that white stuff also in the forecast you ask? Yep. Bring it on I say!

Our museum and grounds operation ends in just a few days. It’s a melancholy time of the year for me as I will miss the crowds and all the smiling faces. However, after the bustle of our visitor season a respite is in order. But the slack in operations won’t last long. Our maintenance crew is busily preparing our grounds for winter. Our administrative staff is keeping itself occupied by the inherent duties of preparing for our year end. In many ways I can be busier this time of the year than during the summer. This is made possible by our permanent and seasonal staff. They are diligent and hard workers all, which makes my load much easier. I thank all of them one and all.

A project that has been overdue on our grounds has just been completed. We have replaced all our 35 memorial benches and 60 memorial garden plaques with composite materials. Our endless cycle of rebuilding benches and plaques is over. It was expensive, but they will last for a long time with little to no maintenance. Please go to page 4 of this issue for a few more details.

Happy Thanksgiving and Holidays to all.

Until the winter,