Doe in Cataloochee Valley, giving me a stare-down.
'Tis the season, of course. A quick hitting shot of cold air with a limited moisture field will arrive tonight and give us a very cold Wednesday before departing. As I write, we are simply under a "Hazardous Weather Outlook" (HWO) as opposed to a Winter Weather Advisory (WWA), but I expect that advisory to be posted some time later today.
It's a northwest flow event, which we all know is not a great snow producer in most systems. If that NW flow sets up truly from the NW down the I-40 corridor to us, that will put down the expected 1-2" for Apple Creek, at least the upper half. Down in the valleys, like Waynesville, I'm expecting a dusting to maybe 1/2" tops.
My bus route runs rural backroads from the end of Jonathan Valley to near Fines Creek, so I'm expecting a bit more out that way. The spine of the Great Smokies could see 3-5"...going back to our actual flow, if it is more WNW, the Smokies will block a lot of our accumulations in ACA.
All this to say this is a baby event, but it's a first. It takes very little accumulation on Apple Creek Road to make it a skating rink, and it may well not snow enough to warrant a snow plow. I'll update accordingly much later today and early tomorrow morning.
Apologies for the lack of posts from me, but there hasn't been anything monumental to pass along of late. Alas, there are now several items that bear mentioning and 'food for thought' that serves us all here in Apple Creek Acres, so that'll make for a good fireside post.
By now, lot owners should have received our annual dues notice along with the minutes from the annual HOA meeting a few months ago. You will notice the annual per lot assessment is now $300, up from $250. We still can boast to having one of the most affordable HOA fees in the area, but as with everything else it seems, prices for goods and services continue to rise. The oil component for asphalt is one good example, so our paving/upgrades take on bigger costs. Insofar as winter weather concerns, I'll address that further into this post.
I am now in ACA much more than normal as I stepped aside from driving tour buses out of Asheville and now work in the Haywood school system full time. Two 'truths' come to mind: 1) nobody wants to be behind a bus, and 2) nobody wants to be on an HOA board. While many HOAs have a bad reputation, we're in pretty doggone good shape here....except we're wearing out those that are currently serving because noone wants to come on board, so it would seem. If that trend continues, we may have to consider moving to a third party to operate our HOA and there is nothing good to come of that, unless you are willing to fork out a significant annual assessment fee increase. Just food for thought for now...but we really need residents to step up to the plate and help out if at all possible. The time commitment is rather minimal, and you get one lot fee waived for serving. Please mull the issue over...
This winter....if I could get a dollar for every time I get asked about "What's this winter going to be like?" I could comfortably retire. Looking back over the winters since 2008, we have been in a bit of a snow 'lull' the past few years. In terms of the Pacific Ocean currents that affect us here in the Southeast, La Nina has been in place the past 3+ years, but El Nino is now setting up shop, though we won't feel the full brunt of it this year, and not right away. Climatology maps are showing moisture being prevalent in the Southeast throughout this winter, with temperatures trending downward from our above-average temps for November and December as we enter 2024. Several models predict snowfall for western NC to be above average for the January-March period. In the lot assessment letter is a smaller green sheet that goes over the Winter Weather Policy here in Apple Creek Acres. Please read and take heed.
Personally, I'm agreeing with models anticipating more snow than usual here. On December 18th, 2008, we got dumped with 18". I've seen a few others in the 10-14" category, as well, but not the past few years. This ol' body of mine is reaching a limit in my ability to manually push a 40" plow blade to clear my goony-golf driveway, so I invested in a great used UTV setup with a 6' plow blade. It damn well better snow...LOL! I've never been fond of long-term forecasts, but I watch incoming systems like a hawk and will be posting potential impacts here on this blog.
Just got word, so please pass it along:
PAVING IS A GO for MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 25.
Apple Creek Road will be closed from 869 Apple Creek Road on up from 9am to 3pm.
(NOTE: this is just before the downhill side of the mirror curve)
Bob
[the above pics are some wonderful recent dawns/sunrises from home at the end of Staymon Road. Click on image to enlarge]
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By now surely everyone has received the notice for the Annual HOA meeting and the Board of Directors to be voted upon.That meeting is coming up soon:
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 2
10:00am - 12:00 noon
WAYNESVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY: 678 South Haywood Street, lower level (down behind back)
PROXIES: In your mailing was a proxy sheet and a self-addressed stamp envelope. To have a quorum, the association needs X% of lot owners to either be there to vote in person, or at least turn in their proxy to be voted by the board or lot owner of your choice.
This is a great time to meet some new faces and catch up on the latest news, issues, and developments. You'll find out about the director's reports, road maintenance/repaving topics, and other new business.
We live in a fantastic place with the lowest HOA fees around. Hopefully you can attend...and if not, I pass on what information I receive via this blog.
Bob
I've been asked by the board to post information concerning the upcoming annual meeting of our HOA in August. At least two board members will be resigning, so if anyone is interested in helping out with the board, let them know. The link to the board members and how to contact them is listed HERE, so feel free to ask away as to what's entailed with being on the board.
No doubt Jeff and Keith carry the board weight of dealing with road work, paving, repairing, etc. But there are positions like treasurer, secretary, etc. that also help our HOA tick. As long as we can staff within our own HOA, we can avoid having to do what so many HOAs around here now do, which is to hire outside organizations to run the HOA. That might sound convenient, but our VERY modest annual dues would surely soar (double to triple) if we had to go that route...and for multiple lot owners, that would be a significant hit in the wallet. Our HOA fees are some of the lowest in the region...let's help keep it that way.
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Every first Friday from May through December, downtown Waynesville has an "Art After Dark" gallery stroll. Well, July's is this evening, and specifically at the Haywood County Arts Council store front (86 N. Main Street), they're holding a reception for their new exhibit "Water" which is up through the end of the month. I took several of my photographs to go on display, but I have no idea what is actually hung...but I'll be there at the reception which runs from 5p-8:30p this evening. I can only HOPE they hung one of my faves, a bull elk lying down in heavy frost in Cataloochee Valley (hey, frost is simply frozen water!):
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So, that's all the news from Lake Wobegon for now. Cheers.
Bob
I had been planning on posting about an outdoor idea you may not know about, that I just discovered...but I'd better address the storm we had and the ones coming in tonight.
This afternoon's storm was one of the quickest developing storms I've seen in a while...and right over our heads. I'm surprised we didn't lose power, given the copious lightning very close by. We did enjoy a rather protracted hail storm with pea-sized hail (0.25-inch, some pieces close to 1/2"), but thankfully we didn't hit warning criteria (1").
We're not done yet...another round of storms and potential hail and damaging winds moves in tonight, moving almost due east out of TN. Unlike our isolated Haywood storm cell this afternoon, this could arrive as a more widespread line when it passes through. Just FYI.
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With a big holiday period upon us, some may be looking for something different to do outdoors. I am prone to being a hermit and not keep up with news items in our area, but today we ventured to a new wonderful assortment of trails throughout the impressive campus of Haywood Community College (HCC). "The Dahlia Ridge Trail" was unveiled just this past June and is full of well-cleared trails, allowing for hikes/walks as long or short as you'd like.
Excellent signage ensures you will know how to get around, which trail you are on, as well as locator diamonds in case of an emergency which you can report if help is needed. Too, for maybe younger family visiting, they have a challenging disc golf course all throughout the same area. Where the Lake Junaluska path is wildly popular (for good reason!), you will often find the trails to yourself at HCC
HCC is a real feather in our county's hat, and has been for quite some time. Weekday hours run from 6am til 11pm Monday-Friday, and 8a-8p Saturday-Sunday. NOTE: Campus will be CLOSED Tuesday July 4.
To read more about it and see a detailed trail map, click HERE.
Happy 4th of July to all y'all!
Bob
