Wednesday -- May 3, 2006
We got the swim dock out on Sunday; but these cool nights are keeping the river from warming up to a comfortable bathing temperature. Maybe I'll jump in before the end of the week. I just saw another ground hog! How many can there be?! I saw two northern orioles yesterday and I think I heard a Prothonotary warbler. It must be May. The eagle chicks are growing fast and their grey downy feathers have changed to black flight feathers.

Tuesday -- May 9, 2006
Now that all the goslings have hatched, I'm trying to encourage the geese to go somewhere else. I chased some geese from the lawn but instead of flying away they just waddled as fast as their webbed feet would carry them. I was puzzled at first but then realized that they must be molting their flight feathers and simply can't fly right now. Once they can fly again I hope they leave; I'm tired of cleaning up the docks after them. Today, I'm going to take a cruise on the Schooner Sultana. It is a schooner used for environmental education and it looks really cool, like a big pirate ship. I'm going as part of my "Weather and Climate" class and it should be a lot of fun.

Thursday -- May 11, 2006
I'm pleased to report that I figured out what made the smoke alarms fail. I installed all the new smoke detectors and the system still didn't work. I then discovered a damaged input jack, replaced it and now we can all sleep safe again. The young squirrels are big enough to roam around on their own now. They're only slightly smaller than the adults but jumpier and not as good at climbing. I saw one fall from a tree yesterday. I paddled up to Minnie's Island last night as the sun went down and then paddled back in the moonlight; it was beautiful. On the way I saw two crows chasing a barred owl as it flew off with one of their offspring.

Monday -- May 15, 2006
There was a mix-up on Saturday and we had no relief caretaker here until 3:00. It was suggested that a reminder e-mail be sent to all the relief caretakers. Saturday morning I had my coffee down at the captain's float. It was so nice to sit in the sun and watch the pink fog burn off the river while the multitude of birds welcomed the day with their joyous songs. Cedar waxwings filled the trees above us. I have one ground hog living at the head of the Island and another living near the house under a big sycamore. That's at least two that I know about. I guess I'll leave them alone as long as they don't try to move in under the house.

Friday -- May 19, 2006
I often see solitary sharp-shined hawks but I have never seen two together as I did yesterday. They circled around me several times like two jets in perfect formation. Can one wood duck lay and hatch 18 eggs? That was the question I had this morning as I stood on the captain's float and watched a lone female scurry off with her long parade of tiny offspring. Maybe they have ducky daycare. The nighthawks are out in force. It is really incredible and hard to believe just how many of these streamlined fliers congregate over the river at sunset. I've seen nighthawks before and it is not uncommon to see six or eight of them over a field in Rock Creek Park or down at the beach, but to see nighthawks swarming like mosquitoes is rare. I counted sixty from my chair on the captain's float! There was another tame pigeon on the Island yesterday; it had bands on its legs and didn't seem afraid when I bent down to pet it. Two years ago there was a white pigeon that stayed with us for a couple of days as well. I saw a pair of common mergansers during my paddle last night, could they be nesting nearby? I know the weather has been cool but I thought all the mergansers headed north two months ago; very strange. There is a northern oriole nest visible from the towpath near the steps. The nest is really cool; it looks like a tiny, hanging basket. The mulberries are in and I see cedar waxwings feeding there daily.

Friday -- May 26, 2006
I bought a new toilet for the women's bathroom yesterday, carried it all the way down here and realized that it was missing parts. I wasn't going to carry it out and return it so I had to go to the hardware to replace the parts I needed. I'm ready to install it today. I wasn't sure that we needed two toilets up there but last week's large parties convinced me. I just hope that having another toilet doesn't double the number of backed-up clogs I have to fix. No sooner had I fixed the toilet upstairs than another one in the men's room started leaking. It looks like the bolts holding the tank need to be replaced. The toilet is another one of the old five-gallon ones (the new one needs only 6 liters to flush), but I'll try to repair it anyway.

-- Joe Hage, Sycamore Island Caretaker