We hope everyone had a nice day yesterday. It doesn't seem like spring is here, but just the flowers, colors, and events of Easter and Holy Week tend to alert us that time marches on as usual, in spite of the unusual weather we're experiencing this year.

We had very cold temperatures last night. Early this morning our thermometers were reading six above zero. This is much colder than normal, and the day didn't warm up all that much, either. Typical of the trend - sunshine, bitterly cold wind. Some places had below zero readings last night.

Fred and I walked this afternoon. West Shore road isn't showing much evidence of thawing - it is mostly ice. We found it very slippery in some places, and it was sometimes difficult to stay upright. The road is heaved so unless one walks in the middle, you're on a slant and when it's icy underfoot, you need to be very careful. Getting out of the way of cars can be testy, too. Not a good thing to hurry down the slippery slope of the road towards the ditch. Snow banks are tall and solid. You can see here that someone started through the bank. Big job. Time consuming, however you do it.

We noticed in LaPrade's driveway there was a little melting going on. The sun is warm even if the wind and air aren't. At the new Rouleau cottage there's a big pile of snow from shoveling off the roofs. They won't need a ladder if they need to do the roof again. We're promised warmer weather later in the week - even in the 40's. It would be a nice break if that happens, but after the winter we've had so far, nobody is going to believe it until we see it.

Ice Out Contest tickets have been selling well today. A lot of people like to wait until the last minute to make their pick, hoping to get a clue as to how the weather may influence the probable date, so this week will be a big one for ticket sales. We don't have any tips to offer. We saw Dave Covell on our walk and he was saying he'd just been out on the ice to take pictures for his web site, www.joespond.com - but there's nothing there! Dave is a good friend and our neighbor, but about all we can offer is that we'll let everyone know when Ray Richer puts the pallet out on the ice - and we'll keep you informed as to the progress of the melting when it gets started. I can tell you that around the first of March I had a report of about 30 inches of ice. On Friday when Dave Parker was on the radio, he said the latest report was 32 inches. Goes to show you, we're still making ice, not melting it. Near the end of our walk, Fred scaled a 10 ft. snowbank to take this picture looking towards the Morgan cottage. Looks about like the pictures we were taking in December and January. We promise some spring pictures soon - unfortunately, they'll probably muddy road pictures for a little while, but things will improve.

Don't forget to click on the pictures to enlarge them. I imagine you'll want to get a good look at the snow before it melts away . . .