A Little Annoyance Along With All The Enjoyment

My new-ish neighbors are loud (sometimes). I'm a fairly tolerant person so the loud parties can mostly be ignored. However, the police visits are new, as is the parade of visitors to the house. I can't wait to see how this all plays out. 😳

Earlier this spring, I made arrangements for a new patio and hot tub to be installed in my back yard, but I've since decided a (tall) privacy fence is definitely going to be part of the project. I discussed details with my builder yesterday as to the color and pattern of stone (grey) as well as the fence (also grey). The town Building Inspector will be by on Friday to discuss how far my 6 ft fence can extend. I hope a dog will be in my future which is another reason for the fence. By the end of August I should have a backyard retreat to enjoy all winter.  Or at least the part of the winter I'm not travelling.

The other day, I went on the most challenging hike in a couple of years. Hurricane Mtn which has an elevation gain of 2100 ft for the 8 miles round trip. It was during the heat wave and I've never sweat so much in my life. This mountain's expansive, bare rock summit is one of my favorites.

View of the high peaks from the fire tower. At the far end of the rocky summit, you can see a few hikers making their way to the fire tower, for scale.

Our intrepid group after lunch and lots of water. 📷: Amyjean

In order to get some bike riding in I needed to get out and back before 10 am to beat the oppressive heat. I managed this 16 mile hill ride right on time. For future reference, I really need to finish by 

9 am on these 90+ days. 

The scenic farm on the hill.

The temperature was closing in on 90 F.

The heat wave continues, the AC has been on for days on end, and I look forward to the thunderstorms for a little relief.

Meanwhile, back in the garden, it seems the growing rate is accelerated. My day lilies have never been so prolific and I've managed to keep the deer from eating them - mostly. I have been watering almost every day during this hot spell. Sometimes I can get away with every other day. The remains of hurricane Beryl missed my area completely even though lots of rain was dumped just north, east, and south of here.

A pair of house finches at the bird bath.

I observed this mass of tiny caterpillars on a milkweed leaf.
My ID app called them Tussock Moth larvae.

Two weeks later they have grown quite a bit and have eaten most of the milk weed plant.

Today I enjoyed a nice 26 mile bike ride on the Harlem Valley trail with 17 other hiking mates. The sky and scenery were picture perfect though I took only a couple of photos.

Wild bee balm.

A new solar farm.

Al fresco lunch at the Oakhurst diner in Millerton.

I'm now looking at a weekend of activity which may be more than I can manage. A 33 mile bike ride event near Poughkeepsie NY by the Bike New York organization. There will be lots of food and parties along the way as we bike around the Hudson Valley. The next day a group of us are doing a Muddy Princess obstacle course which runs over a 5K course. I'm just hoping for lots of laughs, especially since I don't run anymore. Then Monday a kayak trip on Lake George to celebrate Susan's birthday. I will be taking several days off after that run of activity!