Snow Days, Again

It started early in the evening as freezing rain. Sharp snapping sounds of sleet hitting hard surfaces. When I first poked my head out the front door, there was barely anything sticking to the walk; just patches of ice pellets. A couple of hours later, I poked my head out again and there were about three inches of snow and it was coming down heavily. Small, dry flakes like it does when it’s really cold.

In the morning…

The bird feeders were fully occupied. These are mainly finches and Pine Warblers. But House Finches, Chickadees, Titmice, and Cardinals are frequent visitors. It was interesting to note that the Cardinals, in spite of the fact that they are twice the size of the others, don’t fly in and force the other birds off the perches; they wait their turn.

The trunks of trees by the walk. Drifts of a foot or so accumulated under the trees.

Across the field. Unlike the previous snow that was wet and heavy, this snow was powder and, for the most part, didn’t weigh down the bamboo or the Broomsedge (Andropogon virginicus) grass. About an inch of ice accumulated on the power line; luckily it didn’t break the line.

*****

Snow on the Rav. Almost five inches had accumulated on the spare tire cover. Some may have blown off in the strong wind. I measured 6 inches on a surface that was protected from the wind. First time I’d used the measure that W had bought me for just such a purpose.

The recliner out in the field. Don’t think I’ll be using this for a few days.

At the road. A few intrepid drivers had made their way down the road - but only a few.

But no tell-tale tire tracks to the mail and paper boxes. No deliveries today.

The snow that did accumulate on the trees gave them a strangely contorted appearance due to the frozen rain that held the snow to the branches.

Footsteps in the snow. It was a hard walk to the road. There was a thin crust of ice on the surface of the snow. If I put my foot toe-first into a step, the ice would ‘grab’ my foot and trip me. I had to place my feet vertically into the snow to avoid tripping.

This snow is going to hang around for a few days. It’s not going to get above freezing for another three days. A rare event in these parts.
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Related posts:
- Snow: In The Field