I got an email update from Diane at Avian Haven today reporting that the loon they’re taking care of is showing signs of improvement and an added surprise- she was able to track down some information about the loon that turned up dead over by the shore by Hodsdon Lane last year in July (picture at left). I had mentioned to her that we’d found a dead loon and that it had been sent to Tufts University but we hadn’t heard back anything. At the time my State Wildlife Biologist friend Keel Kemper told me that Loon-on-Loon fighting was a common cause of loon mortality. It would appear that was the case with the bird from last summer.
George — I am happy to report that your loon lived the night and is showing slight improvement today. She had refused fish yesterday afternoon, but ate quite readily this morning. She is also spending more time in the water and less time on the haul-out. She is still quite lethargic, preferring to drift quietly rather than swim around (much less dive), but we are seeing some signs for the better, and are hopeful that they will continue.
David Hodsdon reports that the lake water quality has improved from 2 weeks ago when an algae bloom was rapidly developing. The secchi disk reading at 9.84′ was almost double the last reading and they observed “particulate matter” on and just under the surface which undoubtedly the decaying carcasses of the blue-green algae that were causing the bloom. I’ve updated the 
The Department wasted no time in addressing my submission last Friday of Kelley’s Covenants, issuing this afternoon Department Procedural Order #8. The Order is short and sweet as is the time given for comments: 3 days. The Order included an updated 
Our treasurer Linda Gallion tells me that she’s received only 44 membership renewals so far this year. The majority of our members pay up at the Annual meeting but this year a number of people showed up for the meeting but must have forgotten their checkbooks. It is not unusual for membership renewals to trickle in for a while after the annual meeting. It’s not too late! Dues are $25 and you can sign up online if you want.
For the second time I have written a (lengthy) letter to Kathy Howatt, the DEP staff person in charge of Kelley’s petition for release from dam ownership or water level maintenance, requesting the Department dismiss Kelley’s petition 
I just sent the following email to the Clary Lake water level petition 
I’ve been going through a raft of documents on a CD that David Hodsdon gave me recently and I came across this piece written by Ed Grant and decided it needed to be posted. I don’t know if it was ever published anywhere, but it certainly deserved to be. Perhaps he wrote it for use in a newsletter. In any event, his recent passing makes this piece seem all the more poignant. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did.
I’ve updated the 
I saw Tim Chase at the store the other day, he told me that Paul Kelley finally responded to 
Finally got around to posting the proposed agenda for the Annual Meeting scheduled for this coming 
Many of you were subjected the other day to the first mailing of the Association’s E-NEWS Newsletter which I liken to an Emergency Broadcast System but that’s just my flare for the dramatic. In reality it’s just another way to disseminate information in a timely, cost effective way to a targeted audience and one which we have no intention of over-using: the ability to drop emails into your inbox is a privilege we don’t want to abuse or lose. We’re happy most of the time to let you drop in and peruse the website at your leisure but there will be times when we want to get your attention sooner rather than later. And of course there is an 
Paul Kelley has fought this water level petition tooth and nail ever since it was filed over a year and a half ago. All his efforts have been futile while costing him a lot of money. Stalling is a fine tactic I guess when it leads to a tactical advantage; when it simply delays the inevitable, then it is just a waste of one’s time and money. He has lost the battle and he knows it. He is now on record saying that he just “wants out” and he’s looking for an exit strategy. What he’s come up with defies understanding: he sees his petition for release from dam ownership or water level maintenance resulting in a breach order from the Department. Once he has that in hand, he hires a backhoe to come in and dismantle the Clary Lake dam and then he just disappears. His development plans thwarted through his own incompetent efforts to ram them through the town planning process, he lashes out leaving destruction and devastation behind him as he departs for greener pastures. What a guy. Well, that scenario will only happen in his dreams. Reality I’m certain has a less pleasant outcome in store for him. 
Plans are well underway for the Association’s Annual meeting to be held Saturday August 3rd at 2 PM at the home of Robert Antognoni. Robert lives on the south side of Clary Lake at the end of Robert E. Dow Road in Jefferson. For those of you who don’t know where it is, here’s a