Friday -- June 1, 2001 -- The Club is OPEN
Water Level at Little Falls: 3.8     Water Temperature:
This morning a meeting was held on the Island at 0800 hours between Al Brown's Quarters Committee and a prospective contractor being considered for the contract to upgrade the Caretaker's quarters. Attending were Messers Brown, Kosok, Goddard, and Bertaut. The Club should be pleased and impressed that so many Members took time off from their important and busy schedules to do the Club's business at such an hour. Considering the agenda, the Caretaker and his Wife are humbled.

Unfortunately, early this morning the Caretaker was rushed to the Sibley Hospital Emergency Room where he was diagnosed with serious cellulites, a severe infection of the connective tissue, resulting from another insect sting. Serious is defined here as being kept at the hospital so that intravenous antibiotics could be administered. The doctor opined that the unusually large number of successive stings received by the Caretaker over the last three weeks had reached a toxicity threshold. A more complete report, including the hospital report, will be submitted to the Personnel Committee.

Saturday -- June 2, 2001 -- The Club is OPEN
Water Level at Little Falls: 3.7     Water Temperature:
Today, Robert Gelb is the substitute caretaker, as the normal caretaker is incapacitated and restricted to bed rest for the next several days. Next week Members should mindful that they might expect to find the ferry locked, and coming onto the Island may mean accepting the responsibilities of a substitute caretaker.

Monday -- June 4, 2001 -- The Club is OPEN
Water Level at Little Falls: 3.6     Water Temperature:
Anyone coming to the Island should be warned to expect serious obstacles on the path coming down the hill. Be sure to allow for extra time, as the path is now often blocked with people who may look like lotus eaters, but have simply been overwhelmed by honeysuckle fragrance and are either bent over with nostrils stuck to blossoms or are standing motionless with slack jaws and wide eyes. You will be OK if you make it to the Island where the fragrance is pleasant and not overpowering.

Tuesday -- June 5, 2001 -- The Club is OPEN
Water Level at Little Falls: 3.5     Water Temperature:
In the last two years the sycamore trees have suffered terribly with sycamore anthracnose, a fungus that attacks sycamore trees early in the spring, causing a rapid wilt of newly emerging leaves. We know from Gerry Barton that "Weather determines the severity of anthracnose. Frequent rains and cool temperatures promote the disease. If the average temperature during the two-week period following emergence of the first leaves is below 55 degrees F, the shoot-blight phase of the disease will be serious. Disease intensity decreases as the average temperature increases from 55 to 60 degrees."

Remember that series of warm days we had before falling into this cold/damp pattern? The timing in the cycle must have been right... because the trees are healthy and thriving.

Members should expect to find the ferry locked up, as the Caretaker is still convalescent. Members are fortunate that yesterday the Caretaker's Wife handled the ferry on her day off... despite a schedule requiring her to work 5 of the next 6 days. Lucky Club!

Wednesday -- June 6, 2001 -- The Club is OPEN
Water Level at Little Falls: 3.4     Water Temperature: 70
The Captain's float is widening the Island quickly and considerably. Because of the way it sticks out on the Virginia side of the Island and the pattern of river current flow on that side, the float catches river debris and sediment falls out as the water velocity slows. There is a piece of iron rebar sticking up out of the mud near the ramp one uses to access the float. Last year this rebar stood in the water and was a frequent problem because it was often catching onto the bottom of the float. This year it sticks out of the ground, well inside the now-normal Island perimeter, and serves to mark how far the Island has widened. Because this rebar marks the end of the pipe where the old grey water outflow used to empty into the river, the Island Fathers should consider whether or not this constitutes a problem or not by evaluating the current status of the old grey water drainage system.

Wednesday -- June 7, 2001 -- The Club is OPEN
Water Level at Little Falls: 3.6     Water Temperature: not given
The first thing you will notice coming up the walkway to the Clubhouse is that the large mulberry tree that shelters the wooden bench is tilting at a unusual angle. During last night's deluge the roots lost their grip and the tree fell forward upon its arching branches until they were resting on the lawn and thus supporting it. This is a great thrill for the geese... who had already stripped the lower and reachable branches of fruit and now can get at much more. They have flocked all day, so any late arriving humans will not likely find many mulberries left on the lower reaches... but far more are now in reach above them.

By the way... because of these rains the river is expected to reach hazardous levels (5 feet at the Little Falls gauge) Saturday morning. This means that the Annual Whitewater Race may indeed have white water and the river levels should be monitored Friday night or Saturday morning on the back page of the Metro Section. Information about the race is available at : www.ccadc.org/race2001.htm . 

Members are reminded that should they arrive at the towpath landing and find the ferry locked up... it may not be enough to line up the numbers of the combination and pull... you may need to push the hasp inwards first to disengage it and then pull it open.