virtualDavis

Warmer and balmier this morning. Though hazier than yesterday’s bluebird skies when I posted this clip on flickr.com with the following description:

Pretty crisp out this morning considering the beautiful weather we’ve been enjoying. There was still frost on the ground when I headed out to the dock house to watch the sun rising over Vermont’s Green Mountains. Wisps of clouds over Vermont, but crystal clear overhead. (This jerky video is proof that I am an amateur at shooting moving pictures. Of course, this was shot with the video feature on my still camera, so that accounts for some of the poor quality, doesn’t it?)

Today, I’m trying to wrap up at my desk early to get outside and work in the garden. A week and a half of rain expected to start tomorrow. If I could only get some spinach into the garden first…

The remains of what may be a French fort dating back to the 1730s has been found on the Vermont shore of Lake Champlain.

When engineers determined the old Lake Champlain Bridge was unsafe and needed to be replaced, it seemed like the regrettable end of a historic landmark. The project, though, has led to a major archaeological discovery.

Scientists have found what appears to be a nearly 300-year-old French fort. The fort’s discovery would be significant in its own right, but it would also represent the first physical evidence of a substantial French settlement known to have existed on the Vermont shore of Lake Champlain starting in the 1730s.

“It’s a hugely exciting find — one of the great and exciting finds of a lifetime really,” said Elsa Gilbertson, administrator for the Chimney Point State Historic Site, where the apparent fort was discovered.

“You would be hard pressed to find a more significant archaeological site in Vermont,” said John Crock, director of the University of Vermont’s Consulting Archaeology Program, which conducted the dig in cooperating with the Vermont Agency of Transportation and Division for Historic Preservation.

via ablogabouthistory.com

Exciting discovery just down the lake from us. One more reason to visit the Champlain Valley! Hat tip to @SaundraMitchell for tweeting the post.

So how’s everybody coming on the NATO Phonetic Alphabet? Next time you book your airline tickets, read your confirmation code back to the attendant employing this new tool and she just may be so impressed she’ll give you your tickets for free. Maybe…

Just returned to the North Country after a couple of groovy skiing escapes. First a short week at Stratton in Vermont for the Philips US Open 2004 with my brother, and my buddy who works for Burton. He had volunteered us for the banner crew which meant we helped prepare all of the marketing banners, signs, etc. for the competition each day. And we skied. And skied and skied. We received plenty of fresh snow, and we threw ourselves into it like it was the last chance of the season. And it almost was. Except…

The following week I headed off to Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia with MHD for another short week of skiing. Spring conditions the first couple of days, but amazing snow since it had dumped just before our arrival. Then some base rain which was snow on the mountain. Skied the hell out of both hills including both glaciers. Visibility wasn’t always so great, and the bottoms of both mountains tended to mashed potatoes, but everything else was amazing. And hardly no lift lines since we went the week after most spring breaks. Then a stop-off in Chicago for several days to take a seminar on e-publishing at the University of Chicago. Also a chance to catch up with a couple of old high school buddies which was great fun. Then back to NYC and a long drive back to the Adirondacks where spring is arriving ahead of schedule.