Winter Wonderland

In a recent eight-day stretch here at Shangri-la we had more than a foot of snow, much earlier than normal for us in the Virginia (!) highlands.  My pal MikeM lives in upstate New Tork and we note that our weather is basically similar, just one day earlier or later depending on which way  the fronts are moving.  Tomorrow night I think the overnight low will be approaching zero.  That usually does not happen here until late January or early February.

Just for reference — the snow buildup on my shooting bench of 6″x8″ timbers.

It made me all the more thankful I have a mondo snow blower that can clear the driveway with three passes.  On the other hand, even though it is power-drive it still requires rasslin’ a 350-pound machine on slippery ground. It took about an hour to clear the driveway from the front gate up to the barn.  It took two days for my shoulders and hips to quit barking at me.

Last night as I was heading down the hill for supper I noticed this fascinating formation on the edge of the log barn roof.  I’ve never seen anything quite like this.

Definitely time to get back to processing next winter’s firewood.