Blue Wall Weekly: February 6, 2023

 Feathers 

Thursday begins with rain that slows to drizzle and stops by the time we are ready to board the boat. Around Lake Jocassee a low ceiling of cloud cover lifts just enough to reveal the lake and the base of Double Springs Mountain, but even the long low slope of Bootleg Mountain disappears into a gray mass of atmosphere. We prepare for departure as the ceiling of cloud began to lift, and by the time we pull away from the dock, the undulating lines of mountain ridges are outlined starkly against streaks of blue sky to the northwest, with feathers of leftover fog lightly brushing the water. By the time we round Roundhouse Point the fog has evaporated; the morning view is even more breathtaking as rays of sun break through to illuminate the water. We cut across to the dam, where, stretching all the way back as far as we can see towards the confluence of the Toxaway and Whitewater Rivers, real feathers float lightly on the water. Loon feathers. It isn’t carnage. It appears that every one of the hundred plus loons on the lake has begun to molt in earnest, simultaneously, the downy white evidence collecting in loose clouds across the water. For the next month the waterbirds will be in stages of molt as they prepare to look breeding-sexy. In the meantime, though, these birds are going to look nothing short of comical. ~K