Overnight the temperatures were in the high teens, so the lake continued to make ice. The ice is about four inches thick now, strong enough to walk on, but we'll wait for another inch or two before venturing to shore. We're in no rush.

On our morning hike today we walked across the bays on the east and west sides of the island instead of staying close to the shoreline. I wear cleats on my shoes to keep from slipping and falling; Gary has better balance so he skims along in his running shoes, running and sliding. The ice on the lee side of the island, where the water was calm when it froze, is slick and smooth. On the windward side, it's bumpy.





There's so much to look at when the ice is new, our morning walks now take twice as long as usual. Animals, plants, and wind combined with freezing water create patterns you don't see any other time of year. We can see muskrats swimming under the surface where the ice is clear, and sometimes an otter or muskrat will have broken up through the ice, leaving a star pattern when the water refreezes.




Stepping from a patch of cloudy ice onto clear ice feels dangerous and thrilling, as if you'll surely break through the ice into the water weeds below. But you don't!









This morning a flock of trumpeter swans flew over, blowing their built-in birthday party horns. We saw otter scat and fox tracks in the snow, and the entrances to mink and muskrat houses on the west point.

We're starting to run out of things. Nothing major yet. Saturday we ran out of crackers during happy hour, so yesterday I made crackers from scratch. With crackers running $3 a box and the economy in the tank, it's probably better to make our own anyway, using this great (and easy!) recipe:

Combine in a bowl 1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds, 1 cup white flour, 1 cup whole wheat flour, and 1 teaspoon salt. Add 1/4 cup oil (I used half sesame oil and half canola), and mix. Start adding water slowly and mix until the dough is workable, but no more than 3/4 cup water. Divide dough into 3 parts. Roll each out as thin as you can make it. Bake at 400 or 500 degrees until edges are brown. Cool. Break into chunks. Eat. You can add whatever you want to spice things up: caraway seeds, fennel seeds, anise, wheat germ, sea salt, garlic, seasonings, and so on. This batch makes enough for three or four happy hours.

Three more days until Thanksgiving!