We're getting the wet snow as promised - it didn't get started quite as early as expected, but by supper time tonight it was beginning to stick to our driveway and the road by our house.  The road is still very bad coming off of Route 2.  I left a message about it a couple days ago for the Danville road crew.  Today when we went for the mail there was a traffic cone by the big hole over the culvert, but nothing had been done about the really, really bad potholes and washboard along the flat by the Hamilton farmhouse.  I understand - the road crew knew this storm was coming and the snow would fill the potholes, and with any luck it will be a while before the snow melts and they have to think about potholes and washboard  again.  The mud is appearing like living, growing slime monsters in a few spots on our road regardless of the weather.  In some places it's working from the outer edges of the road towards the middle; in other spots it's on the edges, waiting to slither under the tires and pull your car into the ditch.  I can only imagine what some of the mudholes will be like with five or six inches of wet snow mixed in.  If we actually get that much.  Tonight it looks as if we might be on the lighter side of the storm and get only 2-3 inches.  Oh, well, that's part of the fun of living on a back road in Vermont.
 
I'm showing you a couple of photos - the top one we took yesterday when the sun was so bright and it was beginning to look like spring; the bottom one was taken today on West Shore Road - but not where the mud is really getting bad.  There are some pretty gnarly spots already, but we've seen it much worse, and expect we'll see it a whole lot worse in the weeks to come.  

We stopped to see Diane Rossi for a few minutes today and while we were there, a snowmobile went back and forth on the pond and some ice fishermen with portable shelters by the fishing access.  The ice isn't showing any sign of melting on top, but perhaps it's beginning to underneath.  Hard to tell.

Tomorrow is the final day of the Joe's Pond Ice-Out Contest, so be sure you get your tickets in the mail or drop them off at one of our outlets to be sure they get included in the contest.  You can get tickets at most outlets until close of business tomorrow (Saturday) or on line until 11:59 p.m. Saturday.  After that we wait for Mother Nature.  Thanks again to everyone who is in our contest this year.  We'll keep you posted on ice conditions and let you know as soon as the block sinks and the clock stops.  Stay tuned!

Another pretty nice day with temperatures that actually got some melting going on.  The snow has settled at least a couple of inches in the past two days - but tomorrow we're expecting another 6-12 inches of snow, so we really aren't making much headway there.  As I've mentioned before - the earth is warming gradually as we have more sunlight each day, kind of like putting a frozen turkey in the refrigerator to thaw.  It stays cold but gradually thaws out, and so will we, in time.  The snow we're getting is going to be wet and heavy, so it's probable we'll have power outages with trees down and limbs on the wires.  Old timers will tell you that snow like that helps melt the colder snow beneath and therefore hastens thawing.  We'll have to wait and see.

We're almost at the end of the Ice-Out Contest - only two more days to get your tickets.  Even though we'll be having snow for a while yet, that ice is eventually going to melt and someone is going to win a fair amount of money.  This year is especially tricky because of all the weird weather and wild temperature swings.  It's hard to guess what the makeup of the ice is this year as a result of all of that.  But we know it's going to last well into April - even a stretch of 70 degree weather would not do it in quickly.  Some local folks are thinking we could even have a rare May date this year.  That has happened only twice in the past 19 years - on May 4 in 2001 and May 1 in 2007.  The first 10 years of the contest, the dates were even between April and May.  It's gone out in May only 7 times in the 39 years of the contest.  You should remember that it went out on April 29th in 2014 and 2015; April 12th last year.  Whether these figures help or hinder, get in the game and take a chance.  

I want to thank all the JPA members who have either sold or bought the 10 tickets we dole out to them each year.  It seems more of you than ever got in the contest this year, and so many of you sold way more than just those 10 tickets - some of you literally hundreds, we are very proud of all of you for making the Joe's pond Ice-Out Contest such a big success each year.  We also thank all the non-members and business owners who have faithfully bought or sold tickets for us each year.  You make it fun to be a part of the contest.  We had some tickets come in from Japan this year - I have no idea how that happened, but what fun that someone that far away is part of our contest.  

It's that time of the year when the folks who tend to Ice-Out are busiest.  Fred and I went down to the flag site this morning to do an interview with the Lyndon State College team, News 7.  It was very cold and pretty windy, but we got the job done.  The two young men who did the interview were filling in for Jessica Gullbrand who had set up the interview with us.  It seems Jessica suffered a fall on one of the rock climbing features at the college gym and had a concussion and several broken ribs.  She e-mailed me this morning.  Poor girl - she must be in a lot of pain.  The young man who filled in for her was Ted Gilman;  cameraman was Alex Pinkham.  Ted hadn't expected to be outside in the weather today, so he was woefully underdressed.  Alex at least had a fleece jacket on, but he was cold, too.  Fred and I were chilled through by the time we were finished, and we had heavy clothing on, but Ted and Alex were working without gloves.  I'm sure it took them a while before they "thawed out."  I forgot to ask when it will air - probably tonight on their 5:30 newscast.

In the top picture, Ted is telling me his family used to own "The Hideout," off of North Shore Rd.   Then in the middle picture, he was getting background material before the interview, and you can see the flag setup out on the pond - absolutely no sign of melting out there!  The bottom picture is during the interview, with Alex manning the camera.  What doesn't show is the cold breeze and flecks of snow that were in the air. 


There is no sign of spring here today - except the road has deteriorated a bit, especially the Danville end going onto Route 2 where there is impossible washboard and now a sizeable hole over the culvert on the pond side.  I noticed today there's a piece of metal resting in the hole - perhaps a piece of car left behind!  I left a message with the Danville Road crew, and I imagine they'll get to it as soon as they can.  I know they've been busy keeping the roads sanded and salted during this crazy stretch of weather, so probably hadn't thought much about that short stretch down to the Cabot line.  There are some spots along West Shore Road that are showing signs of beginning to break up, especially by Drown's and Decker's.  It's perfectly passable, though, and except for the snowflakes drifting down intermittently today, we might think mud season is has started.

The temperature is 36, and there's a light north wind from time to time.  According to the forecast, there probably will be more snow coming our way later this week.  Right now we're getting a snow shower - a few minutes ago the sun was peeking through the clouds, but that didn't last long.  



There was a lot of activity at Three Ponds today, and I think Ted stopped in to see if he could do an interview with them.  The plan is to open within days now, I believe.  We'll keep track of that and let everyone know.

We have lots of ice on everything today.  The rain started last night and didn't seem to be freezing, but this morning it has been building up on trees  and some are beginning to bend under the weight.  The thermometer is staying right around the freezing mark.  The rain has not been heavy and seems to be stopped now, at noon.  It's a good day to stay off the roads if you don't have to go. 

As we head into the final week of the Joe's Pond Ice-Out Contest, I've sent notices to several TV and radio stations.  I sent a photo of our flag before and after the Nor'easter last week and she said she would have it on tomorrow (Monday) - probably noon and perhaps evening as that's when she does the weather.  We took one of the photos I sent on Thursday when the weather was pretty wild and we couldn't see the eastern shore of the pond through the blowing snow out there.  A friend of ours has a sugar woods in Berlin and said he came to Cabot Plain on an errand last week and was amazed.  He called it going from spring in Berlin to winter in Cabot.

It's been a really nice day today and the road actually got a little slimy where it melted on surfaces where the sun hit.  It's a long way from mud season, but a nice break from the deep cold - although last night was below zero again.  Diane Rossi reported something like -3 and Shelly Walker reported -9.  We weren't quite that cold, and tonight my weather station is still showing 31 degrees.  We are expecting freezing rain tonight and/or tomorrow - on the scanner the reports are rain and 34 degrees, but I expect that's in the St. Johnsbury area.  It is colder here, so may be freezing on.  Could be messy for people getting to work tomorrow.

 

I want to share some photos this morning.  We have a beautiful day building here.  My back yard looks as if someone had sprayed glitter everywhere.  Everything is fresh, white and sparkling.  It's one of those days I really appreciate living in Vermont - a lot!  It is so clean and pretty, and quiet, too.  No wind today, no snow plows rattling along Route 15 and Route 2; hardly any traffic on West Shore Road because it's Sunday in March and the neighborhood is enjoying the weekend.

I haven't shown you pictures of the pond from my living room window recently, but now is a good time - the pond is solidly frozen with lots of fresh new snow covering everything, and up in the channel, all is quiet and serene.  Not a sign of melting anywhere.  And here's why:  After another almost five inches of snow on Friday and no temperatures more than a few degrees above freezing yesterday, the temperature slipped into the single numbers above zero again last night.  Even with warm temps today, (it's now 29 degrees and rising)  I don't think there will be much melting going on.  However, I bet the sap will run!  So click on one of the pictures and enjoy the morning with me! 


I can't believe this is the last week of the Joe's Pond Ice-Out Contest!  It's always fun to see the tickets come pouring in by mail - this is the first year West Danville's new postmaster, Dennis, has been on the job here, and already he's been a little overwhelmed by how stuffed our mailbox gets.  I'm sure he has no idea how much mail he'll be handling from the contest.  He's a good sport and we enjoy his constant good humor.  It's really nice, too, that we get to visit with Diane Jeger every now and then since she's at the Cabot Post Office now!

We'll be picking up mail every afternoon from now through Saturday, so if you haven't gotten your tickets in, it's time to get it done so there will be a postmark on or before April 1.  Anything that comes in postmarked after April 1 cannot be entered in the contest.  Ticket sales stop at outlets at close of business and on-line at 11:59 p.m. on Saturday, April 1.  Then we watch and wait for the ice to melt.  

Finally, it's beginning to at least feel a little more like spring.  We have 36 degrees outside right now!  The sun peeked through the clouds for just a few minutes, and may make a return run before it goes down for the evening; it's enough to make birds sing and start the frost seeping out of this old Vermonter's bones.  I don't mind a chilly night, but I really hope we're through with zero and below temperatures.   I'd like to see some water running and even muddy roads would be welcome right now.  Well, perhaps that's a little extreme - muddy roads are never really welcome, but some gradual melting is very nice.

I have a message from Helen Morrison, who volunteers at the Kingdom Animal Shelter.  They are getting ready for their big spring yard sale, and Helen told me if anyone has an item or items to donate, give her a call and she'll arrange pickup.  Her number is 563-2488. This sale helps provide for the rescue animals housed at the shelter, and we all know how important it is for these animals to be well cared for, healthy and comfortable until they can be adopted.  It all costs money, and you can help by donating something for the sale.

One day of sunshine and now we're back in a snowstorm.  Snow has been falling steadily all day - we have perhaps another six inches on top of the 18 - 20 inches that was already on the ground.  The only good news is that the temperature is in the high 20s and there isn't much wind.  Even so, I have to say this weather is getting to be pretty disgusting. We're all looking for a glimmer of spring, but it sure hasn't shown up here.  We know it will come, but slowly.  All next week is going to be snow and other stuff we really don't need any more of.  I've had the scanner on and there have been all kinds of slide-offs on roads everywhere - nothing too serious reported so far, but this snow has made roads slick and sometimes people just forget how slippery snow can be and drive too fast.  You'd think everyone has had so much practice they'd have their winter driving techniques perfected by now!

I walked today at noon, and Fred made a path up the hill for me so I didn't have to wade through 4-5 inches of loose snow.  He will go out later with the snow blower, but for now there are two wheel tracks cleared for us and our two neighbors to allow everyone to get home and then if the snow lets up, he'll clean up the rest.  The Town of Cabot has been by plowing and sanding, and the State is busy on all the highways.  It will be a good weekend to stay put!

It doesn't matter what the weather is or isn't - the Joe's Pond Ice-Out Contest will end in just another week.  It hardly seems possible, but that's the rule - 11:59 p.m. on April 1st is the last moment you can get your pick to us.  If you don't have your ticket(s) yet, keep that date and time in mind, make your best guess and get it into the contest.

We had sunshine today, but it was still cold, and last night the low was as expected, in the vicinity of zero degrees.  There has been a blustery wind all day, but it's been nice to see the sun.  Now we're bracing for some rain, sleet, snow and general misery again for most of the coming week. 

When I was at the bank in Danville this morning, there was quite a conversation going on between tellers and customers who had been stuck yesterday morning trying to get up the hill into Danville from St. Johnsbury.  There were tractor trailer trucks hung up after having to stop for the traffic light coming into Danville.  A good many of us locals knew a light there would seriously snarl traffic in the winter.  Yesterday we had just enough snow and the temperature was such that it packed down and turned to ice and vehicles simply couldn't move once they'd stopped on that hill.  After the road crews got things moving again, the light was switched to blinking so traffic didn't have to stop unless there was another vehicle in the way - and drivers are usually good about letting traffic through on a grade like that.  

Lots of folks are really fed up with winter at this point.  It seems there have been an unusual number of cold and flu bugs this year, too, and it's time for a break with some warm air and sunshine.  I had a message and this picture from Karen Cobb in Virginia after she had read one of my blogs about the weather and decided perhaps we could use some cheering up.  Obviously, the poor dog is sitting in a snowbank, too.  We know the feeling.  Thanks, Karen.

 We took some pictures yesterday - the top one is of the Ice-Out flag, barely visible above the snow.  You can also see how the wind was moving the snow down the pond - and what doesn't show is how bitterly cold it was.  
    Then I took the next picture as I waited for Fred to get the mail at the West Danville Post Office.  It was about 3 o'clock in the afternoon - but dark, dreary and very cold, and of course the wind was blowing a gale.  The snow was plastered on the porch of the store.  There were a few people out and about, but they didn't linger on the porch to talk.  In weather like this, a wave is about all anyone can expect.  Spring IS coming - but when?
 

For those of you who are in  some sunny, warm place - this is probably an appropriate time for you to do a happy dance to celebrate not being at Joe's Pond.  We awoke to blizzard conditions this morning and four inches of additional snow.  The snow has mostly stopped, I think - but it's hard to tell because the wind is still blowing a gale right out of the North.  It's only 15 degrees, so you know it's bitterly cold in that wind - like 4 above zero.  This was all predicted yesterday, and warnings posted that it's going to be this way all day with colder temps tonight.  Perhaps this will be the last hurrah of winter?  Probably not.  I checked the backyard stake and it shows 21 inches of snow out there, so for those of you wondering if the ice has gone out of Joe's Pond - it absolutely has not, and it looks like it will be a few weeks before we see open water.  No worries this year about it going out before April 1st!    

Today has been a fairly typical March day with the temperature hanging out in the 30's and spitting snow off and on all day.  It is presently still 30 degrees, but slipping downward and tomorrow is going to be bitterly cold, according to the forecast.  The calendar may say "spring" but the reality is it's still winter mode around here.

We had a message from a gentleman in Greensboro who follows our website and the Ice-Out Contest.  He has plotted the running average of dates the clock has stopped on a graph and sent it to us.

He wrote: 

Hello,

  I've done a little analysis on the wonderful ice-out data from your website.  In particular, I have plotted the running average of ice-out days.  I think the result is remarkable; it shows a dramatic four-day decrease in ice-out over the period covered by your data.  I won't say "global warming,"  but one is led to wonder if you haven't detected a warming trend. --Tom

Conventional wisdom has to agree, if we go by the numbers, but the reality outside indicates we may skew the figures a little this year and move a few days further into April than we've seen for a while.  I've noticed already a few people who had picked dates in early April have bought more tickets in order to extend their picks further into April.  That's what makes the game fun - the weather is so darned unpredictable, it's a true "game of chance" that really can't be figured out precisely even with lots of past data and perceived know-how.  There are just too many variables.  

We had a plumber here this morning, adjusting one of our drains that accommodates both the kitchen and the laundry downstairs.  We have had problems with it plugging in the past and Fred wisely decided we should have it "fixed" once and for all.  Turns out some of the plumbing in our 1960's house just isn't adequate for modern appliances like our dishwasher and front loading washing machine.  The plumber was able to rearrange the piping so it should be ok now, but he showed us the inside of the old, smaller pvc pipe and told us within a few weeks it would probably have plugged again.  It was an ugly sight, for sure.  I thought grease cutting detergents that we use for dishes would cut any grease in the pipes, but that's not so - it's the soap that tends to build up.  It seems the new appliances that save water, along with our personal efforts to conserve water, contribute to soap and debris collecting in plumbing.  He told us, "Plumbing needs water to work well."  So we'll be using less soap and more water, and give the drains regular cleansing with vinegar and baking soda.  We're feeling good that we dodged a bullet - those times when the sink wouldn't drain were maddening.  I hate when things don't work as they are supposed to.

Bundle up if you have to go out tomorrow - we're going to have a wind chill well below zero, according to the weather forecasters. 

We're kind of back to "spring" mode.  It's been beautiful today with lots of sunshine and temperature around freezing.  There has been a bit of a cold wind, but still, the sunshine has been really nice after all that cold.

How cold was it?  So cold the pussy willows by our mailbox closed up.  They were out before the snowstorm, but I haven't seen anything of them since.  I'm not sure what the low was last night, but I heard from Pam Hebert, in Tuscon, who had spoken with Dennis at the post office in West Danville today it was zero in West Danville.  Pam said it was 94 in Tuscon.  Andy Rudin said all his spring flowers that were blooming last week in Philadelphia are under several inches of snow.  But the signs of spring are around - the sap will begin to run again now with warm days and cold nights; there are a few more birds moving about - I am seeing and hearing more crows, and soon there will be geese and ducks returning, looking for open water.  If they fly over Joe's Pond in the next few weeks they'll be disappointed.  Our ice isn't going to melt right away with two feet of snow insulating it.

I'll be checking in with "Three Ponds" this week to see how they are progressing towards opening.  There are lots of people anxiously awaiting their opening - people have missed the old Joe's Pond Country Store as a place to congregate in the morning, and Three Ponds will be open for breakfast and lunch.  Someone said they keep looking for a "coming soon" sign or something to let people know who they are - lots of folks still don't know that Lynda Markison and her son, Caleb Clark, are opening a restaurant in the newly renovated building - opening later this month, they hope. No word yet about what business might open in the north end of the building.  Nice space - someone will surely want it.



 

We hope everyone is enjoying the sunshine and St. Patrick's Day, wherever you are.

We are basking in bright sunshine today - the temperature has been in the 20s and there's still a cold wind, but the only snow in the air is what blows off the trees or sifts across a snowbank.  And there are plenty of snowbanks around!  We got a total of about 26 inches of snow from this storm - not as much as some areas west of us and in the mountains, but more than we really needed this late in March.  There is no big warmup in our immediate future, so we'll be stuck with this snow for a while.

We're heading into the last two weeks of the Ice-Out Contest, so be sure you get your tickets in.  The contest closes at 11:59 p.m. on April 1st, and if your ticket isn't here by then or doesn't have a postmark on or before that date, it will not be considered.  Our outlets will sell and accept your tickets until close of business on Saturday, April 1st.  The web site printable and pay-on-line tickets will no longer be available after 11:59 p.m. April 1.  From then on  we wait for the sun to warm things up, melt the ice and let the block fall!  We'll announce the date and time the clock stops here on the blog, on the website Ice-Out Page, and through local media as soon as it happens.  We will announce the winner(s) as soon as we have verified all the information.  That usually takes at least a few days.  Good luck!  

I measured another 6.5 in. of new snow this morning and I think we may have received a few more inches during the day today.  The storm seems to be over, but weather people are saying there's no big warmup in the immediate future, so this load of snow will likely be around for a while.  Good news for the ski areas and snow machine enthusiasts.

I found an interesting link in the Cabot Historical Society mailbox a few minutes ago. It's to a paper written by two UVM students in 1983 on the French in Vermont.  Since our area has a rich history of French families living here, I took time to read it and found it really interesting.  Perhaps some of you might, too.  It's quite long, but there are parts of it that brought back fond childhood memories of some of our neighbors - and some of my playmates.  The French families described by Peter Woolfson and Andre Senecal in this paper were not much different from the Scottish, Irish or Italian  families in Northern Vermont who were only one or two generations away from the "old country," I believe. I bet they would have discovered very similar cultural traits in them, too.   Anyway, I enjoyed the nostalgia.

I hadn't given much thought recently to the block and flag out on the ice for the Ice-Out Contest.  Diane Rossi sent this picture this afternoon.  This is a really good indicator of how much snow we have had! 

We've had snow all day, adding at least another 3-4 inches, and it's still snowing, and the temperature is falling - now at 19F and the wind seems to be picking up.  Not great news.

I think the Burlington area actually got more snow in this storm than we did.  The weather people reported 24" there, and in Walden about 18", which is what I measured here this morning.  So if it has been snowing in Burlington today, this will turn out to be the 2nd largest snowstorm ever recorded.  The most snow recorded up there was in 2010, but I noticed the earliest date was 1900.  Also, I'm pretty sure Burlington usually gets less snow than along the ridge from Hardwick through Walden, Cabot and West Danville. Of course, the mountains in between get much more than either the west or east sides of the state.  Here's a chart of snow depths on Mt. Mansfield - looks like about 80 inches right now.

I wonder if anyone can tell us anything about little buildings like this one in the photograph.  I believe they were called "ash houses" and had something to do with making potash or leaching ashes for soap making, but don't know for sure.  My friend, Barbara Carpenter, has been researching and hasn't found much on them, so any information would be of interest.  Send it to me at: janebrowncabot@gmail.com.

We're pretty well through this storm, I think - digging out and enjoying the calm after the storm.  It's still snowing very lightly, but there's not much wind today, so the snow will have a chance to settle.  Yesterday it was mostly airborne.  I measured a strong 18 inches this morning and that contained almost 2 inches of moisture.  However all measurements are imprecise when dealing with a storm like this because so much snow was on the move.  There are drifts that are much deeper, and probably spots where the snow was nearly swept away entirely - like on Cabot Plain.   Actually, all of that would be on Cabot Plain, by the cemetery.  It drifts there and also sweeps areas down to the dirt.  This storm was not as bad as predicted, and most of us are happy about that.  I took a picture of my measuring stick out in the back yard yesterday morning as the storm was beginning (top picture).  This morning I took another one (bottom picture).  The area where the stake is gets lots of wind, so again, the measurement is just an indicator.  In order to make it closer for reporting purposes, I should go out and measure in several different locations and then take an average.  I'm not as dedicated as I once was.  This is close enough.



There were lots of accidents on the highways yesterday - cars and trucks sliding off the road, mostly because they were going too fast for the conditions.  People who could have stayed at home didn't and some got into trouble.  I guess a storm like this is a challenge for some to get out there and prove to everyone how tough they are.

I hope everyone is safe - I've heard from Tom Dente in Connecticut that the storm there didn't amount to as much as feared; also, Liz Randall on Long Island reported the storm started as snow and then turned into a "rainy mess."  I keep thinking of Barbara Pollack in Tucson's 80-90 degree heat.  I'm also thinking if the weather pattern we've been experiencing holds true and we get a really warm spell, imagine the tons of water that will be running down to the lowlands along the Connecticut River, for instance.  If it isn't one thing it's half a dozen others to worry about.   

The snow started early this a.m. and by 9 when I went out to measure, we had only 1/2 inch, but it's snowing quite hard and steadily, and it's cold, so it's going to build up - up to perhaps over two feet, according to forecasts.  Right now the snow is falling straight down - no wind at all, and it looks very peaceful out there. Being this cold (20 degrees now) when the wind does pick up, the snow will be very light and that will mean blizzard conditions with lots of drifting and poor visibility.  

I heard from Carol Byrd this morning that her mother-in-law, Ethel, passed away on Sunday.  Ethel was 96 and died at Woodridge Nursing Home, but had been living with Carol and Larry here at Joe's Pond and in Florida for the past five years.  If you wish to send condolences to Larry and Carol, their address is:  249 Jasper St., Largo FL 33770.  

We've enjoyed a pretty nice day - a little cold, but much improved over the last couple of days.  Tonight is still pretty chilly at 14 degrees, but it's not expected to fall below zero.  Tomorrow begins the big snow storm - upwards of 24 inches possible.  We'll see.  We are promised high winds along with the snow and schools will be closed tomorrow and probably Wednesday, flights canceled at the airport in Burlington, various meetings rescheduled and people being warned to stay off the roads unless absolutely necessary since the wind is going to create havoc with whiteouts, toppled trees, utility lines down - all sorts of warnings.

We have plenty of gas for the snowblower and shovels at the ready!

When I was at the post office in W. Danville this afternoon, I found out this weekend the ice on the pond was measured at about 24 inches a few days ago. That's more than I would have guessed, but  with all the below-zero weather, that may even be a bit conservative.  Once the snow comes tomorrow, that will insulate it for a while, at least.  However, with that much snow (if we get 18-24 inches!) when the weather shifts and all that begins to melt, there will be a lot of water running into the pond off the hillsides.  This all makes for a very interesting Ice-Out Contest year!

I was at the Danville Historical Society today for a meeting.  It is such a nice building and I really enjoy meeting there.  It's an old building, but very well kept - a former home - it has good light and is bright and cheerful.  They are very fortunate they are able to be open to the public two days a week, year around.  Our committee got a lot done, and we're moving ahead with the history of West Danville. 

I'm also working on the Joe's Pond Association newsletter.  Reports are beginning to come in and I have contacted all the advertisers we had last time and found a couple of new ones, but I don't have a lot of news items, so if anyone has something they'd like to share - a new baby in the family, a wedding, special birthday celebration or some other exciting event that's happened in the past year, please send it to me.  It doesn't have to be long - just a paragraph and a picture.  It's fun to learn what our members have been up to and share their joy or interests.  Send to:  janebrown@joespondvermont.com.

If there isn't a blog with snow pictures tomorrow evening (or sooner) it will likely be because we have lost power in the storm.  I'll get some photos on as soon as possible, and hope others caught in this storm will send some to share.  Stay safe and enjoy the last gasp of winter! (We hope!!) 

Just before supper I wrote that we might expect six inches or so of snow from this big nor'easter coming at us Tuesday; however, I must correct that.  The forecast tonight said 12-18 inches, so we could be getting as much as southern New England.  It's too soon to put the snow shovels away, for sure.

In the meantime, it's interesting what's going on in other parts of the country where Joe's Ponders are.  I had a note this evening from Barbara Pollack in Tucson, Arizona:  
 Hi Jane,
While you freeze, we bake.  It's been in the high 80s/low 90s here the past few days, and will be for the rest of this week.  That's 17-20
degrees "above normal".  Is there really any normal anymore?

It does make one wonder what "normal" is these days. 

Lots of folks along the east coast are bracing for a big blizzard during this coming week.  We expect some snow, too, and the preview seems to be frigid weather - below zero the last two nights and expected to be about zero again tonight, with wind, probably.  It's been bitterly cold even though the sun was bright most of the day.

I had this message from Tom Dente in Connecticut this afternoon:
 Hi Jane,

March is all winter here in Connecticut. Snow is forecast to begin early Tuesday and end after midnight Tuesday. I copied the accumulation map for CT. and Mass. Oh…and they tacked on a blizzard for some of the day on Tuesday. Second one this year. The first was on February 9, 2017. Will Spring ever get here!  Tom & Camilla

Tom also sent this map showing snow amounts they are expecting down there.  Last I heard, we'll get around 6 inches or so, so we may be far less impacted than further south and east of us. 

It has been bitterly cold here for the past two days - below zero each night and today, although there was bright sunshine, the thermometer didn't get much above 10 degrees all day.  There has been a mean wind, too, and that puts the wind chill really low.  My weather station has a wind chill low of -40, but I have no idea when that might have been.  Sometime last night, I expect.  Not much relief for the next few days, and snow on Tuesday and Wednesday.  I don't think we'll see the amounts Tom will be getting in Connecticut, but the weather is not going to be pleasant for a while yet.  No spring in sight!

The snow mobiles were out and Diane Rossi got the picture above.  I hope they stay away from the rope that is attached to the Ice-Out setup.  It looks as if they were just close to it.  It must have been a cold ride.

We are pretty cold here this morning, my weather station is showing zero now at almost 10 a.m., and a low of -10 overnight.  The wind is blustery, and the wind chill is bouncing around.  I saw -13 a few minutes ago, but it's really all over the place. 

We had two inches of new snow during the day yesterday and perhaps some fell last night.  The weather isn't going to get much better for a few days.  We'll have cold and wind and then we're getting an old fashioned nor'easter beginning Tuesday for a couple days.  It should begin to moderate by Thursday or so.  In the meantime, we are no doubt gaining ice at the pond.  Diane Rossi messaged me a few minutes ago there is a car out on the ice and a couple of fishing shanties down near the state access.  They have until the last Sunday of March before shanties have to be off the ice - unless the weather changes radically and makes the ice unsafe.  We're thinking the ice will definitely make it into April, so there shouldn't be any worries about having to end the contest early this year!  Whoopee!

 

We got some new snow last night - a little more than 3 inches, and added a little during today.  The temperature has been pretty normal for this time of the year, in the 20s, and this morning there was a lot of wind and blowing snow so there were accidents on the interstates because of whiteouts.  The weather is going to get mean again this weekend with severe cold and lots more wind.  We'll be making more ice at the pond this weekend!  Hard to believe this is it's daylight savings time again!  Remember to set your clocks ahead Saturday night before you go to bed - "Spring ahead, Fall back."

Speaking of spring - here's something for those of you thinking about Joe's Pond, open water and keeping your boat safe.  George Baxter has a really nice aluminum boat lift for sale.  Here's the description -

SHOREMASTER boat lift.  Model #36108
108" wide, can support up to 3600 pounds. Aluminum, well maintained, and presently is at my camp on North Shore Road, Joe’s Pond.

If interested, contact me at: 215-675-6189.  George Baxter

 The lift is shown here after he pulled it out of the water last fall.  I imagine you could see it there now, but I wouldn't recommend going over this weekend - too darned cold!  The wind will be whipping down the pond this and it's no place to be out in the open for very long, believe me!  Unless, of course, you're a hardy soul, then just go for it! Don't those pictures make you think "summer," though??

Not so much this one we took in St. Johnsbury this morning. We stopped by Aubuchon's Hardware in St. Johnsbury today to replenish their Ice- Out ticket supply.  This is the view from the Hastings Hill approach.  You can also enter from Railroad Street.  Nice corner lot with plenty of space, inside and out.  I think the new location may be getting a lot more traffic than when they were up on Memorial Drive.  The sales crew there has lots of the same people as St. Jay Hardware had, and they were enthusiastic about the Ice-Out Contest, so the hype has been transferred, I think.  They are doing a great job, as are Caplan's and Natural Provisions.  I haven't touched base with the Tower - son Bill at Thurston-Dimick Auto Sales keeps them supplied with tickets. 

It's early yet, but Ice-Out is doing pretty well, I think.  Sales will slow with the cold weather back again, but in the next couple of weeks people will begin to realize the end of the contest is near and they better get their picks in.  

Another typically March day when we managed to get a little bit of just about everything weather has to offer.  We had quite a bit of rain during the night, but then it turned to snow this morning - big fluffy flakes I think called "sugar snow" just because it's sugaring season, I suppose.  Then the sun came out and it was very nice - in the 40s until just after lunch.  Then the temperature dropped and we got a little more snow and some wind.  Now it seems to be quiet out there but tomorrow more of the same only colder.  Fred took these pictures today.  What a difference a couple of warm days with rain makes!

This is another shot of the Ice-Out flag, perky as can be in a pool of water.  You can see how anyone might look at the pond right now and think the ice was gone - it sure looks like open water in places, but it's really only on top of the ice.


When I went for my walk this noon I noticed the willow by our mailbox has buds - lovely little white pussy willows high up in the uppermost branches.  That's a sure sign of spring!!  We still have a cold weekend to get through, however.  

I heard on the weather tonight that there is quite a bit more snow at the stake on Mt. Mansfield now than there was last year at this time.  I looked at our back yard stake and the measurement out there is 8 inches, more or less.  The snow has pulled away from the stake and without actually going out, it's hard to tell.  I should go out and measure in a few spots and report snow depth officially to CoCoRaHS - perhaps this weekend.

I heard in a roundabout way that Ted Chase's dogs got sprayed by a skunk recently.  That's another sign of spring, I guess, when the skunks are out.  They are usually pretty quiet until it begins to warm up.  Sorry about Ted and Barbara's pups - it's never pleasant when dogs tangle with skunks - tough on the dogs and their owners.

Joe's Pond folks - keep in mind that I'm putting the spring newsletter together, so if you have something you want to share like a wedding or birth in the family or an item for sale, send it, preferably with photos, to me janebrown@joespondvermont.com.

Another typically March day when we managed to get a little bit of just about everything weather has to offer.  We had quite a bit of rain during the night, but then it turned to snow this morning - big fluffy flakes I think called "sugar snow" just because it's sugaring season, I suppose.  Then the sun came out and it was very nice - in the 40s until just after lunch.  Then the temperature dropped and we got a little more snow and some wind.  Now it seems to be quiet out there but tomorrow more of the same only colder.  Fred took these pictures today.  What a difference a couple of warm days with rain makes!

This is another shot of the Ice-Out flag, perky as can be in a pool of water.  You can see how anyone might look at the pond right now and think the ice was gone - it sure looks like open water in places, but it's really only on top of the ice.



When I went for my walk this noon I noticed the willow by our mailbox has buds - lovely little white pussy willows high up in the uppermost branches.  That's a sure sign of spring!!  We still have a cold weekend to get through, however.  

I heard on the weather tonight that there is quite a bit more snow at the stake on Mt. Mansfield now than there was last year at this time.  I looked at our back yard stake and the measurement out there is 8 inches, more or less.  The snow has pulled away from the stake and without actually going out, it's hard to tell.  I should go out and measure in a few spots and report snow depth officially to CoCoRaHS - perhaps this weekend.

I heard in a roundabout way that Ted Chase's dogs got sprayed by a skunk recently.  That's another sign of spring, I guess, when the skunks are out.  They are usually pretty quiet until it begins to warm up.  Sorry about Ted and Barbara's pups - it's never pleasant when dogs tangle with skunks - tough on the dogs and their owners.

Joe's Pond folks - keep in mind that I'm putting the spring newsletter together, so if you have something you want to share like a wedding or birth in the family or an item for sale, send it, preferably with photos, to me janebrown@joespondvermont.com.
 

 

We've had another day of mixed precipitation - a little rain, some sleet, snow, and now back to rain.  It was quite slippery for a while this morning, but during the day warmed up into low 30s so I think things softened up a bit.  The rain on the extremely cold ground froze, of course (there were a couple of nights near or below zero).  I've had several people ask about the ice - one woman who drives past the pond to work every day saw all the water out there and thought the ice had gone!  Of course, there is some water on top of the ice, but still a fair amount of solid ice left so it will be a while before we actually see open water.  We are expecting cold weather again by this weekend, so it's a matter of alternating freezing and thawing and kind of it's own contest which has a more lasting effect on the ice.

We're having quite a bit of activity on the Ice-Out tickets, especially those available on line.  Most sales have been out of state, and today we had one from Alberta, Canada.  I have to wonder how people that far away hear about our contest.  I asked my Facebook friends to let their friends know about the contest, and I think that may have given us a bump up in the past few days.  The more people who get into the contest, the bigger the winnings will be, and that's good for everyone.  More fun, too.  Regular ticket sales have begun to pick up, too, but I think lots of local people are holding off to see what the weather is going to be like.  

Many thanks to all the folks who have asked me for tickets so they can sell them or give them as gifts - people who aren't even members of Joe's Pond Association.  I sent 55 out to a friend in Barre today.  Members do a great job, too - 300 went to son Bob at Wells Fargo, who gives them to his clients.  It's fun to just hand one to someone as a gift - for whatever reason, getting a $1 Joe's Pond Ice-Out ticket is a special treat for just about everyone.  Just fun to be in the game, I think.

Today has been like spring again - sunny and temps in the 30s.  Even tonight it's only 31 degrees.  We're in for some rain tomorrow, and perhaps some mixed precipitation, but overall it looks pretty good until the weekend, and then snow and cold again.  

The Ice-Out block and flag are out.  Larry took care of it early this morning and Diane sent this photo.  Click on it to make it larger.  Larry said he modified it a little by making the wooden support a little bigger for the blocks to sit on - and the flag is new.  Pretty snazzy.  Now if things just don't get all warm and sloppy so the clock stops before the April 1 deadline . . . but the way our weather has been all winter, it's impossible to know what will happen.  If the weather pattern holds and we continue to get these very cold periods, I'm thinking it could be a normal spring.  There's no way to tell.

Granddaughter, Jo-Ann ("Jo-Jo") is in Domican Republic with a group from her school, doing volunteer work during spring break.  Her dad gave me a link to the Batey Foundation Facebook page 
I also grabbed some photos from the page.  The top photo is Jo-Jo on the right and her friend from school, Chantal,  I think they were still in Vermont - on the bus before their flight Saturday.

 The group apparently got right to work - there were nine students in the group.  That's Jo-Jo in the light blue tee, and below, Jo-Jo working with some little ones.  She likes working with children and is very good with them.

It looks like they'll have plenty to keep them busy while they're there.  The Bateyes are communities where migrant sugar cane workers live and conditions there are very bad.  The Batey Foundation, based in Bethlehem, N. H., has focused on helping the people who live in these communities, many from Haiti.  Until I did a little research, I had no idea this was where these young people from White Mountain School would be working.  Conditions in these communities, or bateyes, are terrible and it will be wonderful if the group can help them in even small ways during their time there.

The cold persists - only 6 above tonight, which is only slightly less cold than last night.  I don't think the wind is blowing as hard tonight and that is a good thing.  The sun was nice today, but too cold for me to go outside.  A couple weeks ago I got a chest cold and I'm still coughing, so I figured I didn't need the aggravation of going outside and having the cold air set off more coughing.  Besides, my energy level is nil - I think I need some "Father John's" medicine.  Does anyone remember that?  I used to take that when I was a little tyke.  I think it was supposed to be an iron supplement or something, recommended for children.

I just Googled it and found out Father John's is still being manufactured, although it sounds like it's a different concoction than when I was a kid.  On Wikipedia it said it was for coughs, a combination of cod liver oil and something else and tasted like licorice.  That doesn't sound right to me because I hated cod liver oil and never liked licorice, but I distinctly remember liking the taste of Father John's medicine.  I'm surprised it's still made. 

When I was very young, there were two other things I remember not liking one bit:  maple syrup and molasses.  They were just too sweet.  My Grandmother Bolton would often give all the little kids molasses on home-made bread, and every one of my dozen or so cousins loved it, but I preferred just the plain bread.  Also, my family didn't understand why I would drink warm sap by the cupful but wouldn't touch maple syrup.  I sort of liked when they did "sugar on snow," but really preferred the sour pickles that were usually served along with it "to cut the sweet." 

I liked the salty smoked herring my Grandfather Bolton used to buy.  When I was boarding in Cabot during high school and got a cold, I would buy a few smoked herrings at the store.  I liked best little pieces of the fish on saltine crackers washed down with a big mug of hot lemonade or apple cider.  That seemed like the ideal comfort food when I was feeling lousy.  Then there was the time a few years later when I was first working in St. Johnsbury and came home to the farm with a really bad cold.  My Grandfather Bolton mixed a "hot toddy" and told me to drink it down.  I did as he said, and went to bed.  I'm not sure how I stayed on that bed, it was whirling around so, but I did, and either fell asleep or passed out, I don't know which.   I don't remember if the cold was better when I woke up or not, but I never accepted one of his "hot toddies" again.  

That was the first time I learned that he kept a bottle of whiskey "for medicinal purposes."  It was actually only used for such.  I never knew him to take a social drink, and he didn't tolerate anyone having alcohol on the farm.  There was never wine or beer or anything else around - just that one bottle of whiskey carefully hidden away on a high shelf in a back room closet. 

That's not to say at least two or three of his sons, my uncles, didn't try his patience when they were young - they certainly did, but I believe they must have felt his anger and disappointment and learned their lessons well, for none of the five of them got into serious trouble that I know of.  

I don't have any smoked herring - haven't tasted it for years, and have no real desire to.  These days I try to limit salt, and the herring, if I remember correctly, are pretty salty.  I'll stick with the hot lemonade.

Whoever thought spring was here last week is probably reeling from the rapid and drastic change yesterday and today.  Tonight my weather station is showing -1F and a mean -15F windchill.  It's actually been colder off and on during the day, and the wind has been relentless.  I was outside only long enough to measure the slightly less than one inch of new snow this morning, and haven't stuck my nose out since.  Even Woody knows it's no time for being outside - or even in the garage.  He asked to go out once today and I let him into the garage; he hasn't asked to go out again all day.  Smart kitty.

Our granddaughter, Jo-Ann (17) is on spring break with some of her classmates.  They headed for Dominican Republic today for a couple of weeks of volunteer work.  She wasn't sure exactly what they would be doing - possibly working on building projects or working with children in schools.  Whatever it is, she was looking forward to it - at least it will be warm and she'll love that.  She's such a good sport, whatever work she's assigned, I know she'll do just fine.  I'm hoping we'll get some pictures, but she may be pretty busy, so I might have to wait until she gets home.  

I've had some questions about this year's Ice Out Contest.  I've sent press releases to the local newspapers, but sometimes they don't use what I send, instead will do an interview over the phone when they get around to it.  We'll see how that goes.  In the meantime, I don't think the block and flag are out yet.  Larry was planning on doing it this past week, but the weather turned nasty and cold, so I imagine he has wisely postponed that project.  It would be brutal out on the ice fussing with wires and ropes in this below zero weather.  

We won't have the web cams this year.  Unfortunately, Bill Rossi has had health problems and Diane has to concentrate on other things than the web cams.  That is fine with us - we will be checking the setup twice each day when it gets close to the time it might sink and stop the clock.  There's no danger for the present - there was 14 inches of ice a while back and for the last several days we've probably gained a few more inches, so there's nothing to worry about right away.

I was looking at past Ice Out dates in order to write a press release this week and noticed that during the first 10 years of the contest, the clock stopped five times in May and five times in April.  The next decade, 1998 to 2007, the clock stopped twice in May and eight times in April, and since then it has stopped only in April, with three times being dangerously close to going out in March.  This certainly shows a warming trend.

It seems to me this year the ice didn't get nearly as thick as other years, but I haven't located any data to prove that.  I think it's usually been at least 24-28 inches thick in the past, sometimes thicker.  However, if these crazy deep freezes keep up, it all might turn out to be about the same as usual.  We'll have to wait and see.

Another question I was recently asked was when did we move the flag up the pond to in front of Rossi's.  The 2013 contest was the first year it was at that location.  The other question was about when the pay on line tickets would be available, and the answer to that is that is RIGHT NOW!  and RIGHT HERE!   Have fun!

I mentioned in an earlier blog entry that Shelly Walker had noticed a lot of material seemingly left behind when fishing shacks were removed from the ice.  Tonight Shelly called to say that debris has apparently been picked up - she said there's no sign of it, but there were fresh tire tracks on the ice.  This was good news.  We don't like to have a lot of trash floating around in the pond after the ice goes out.  As I explained, sometimes it's just physically impossible to dislodge a shanty that's deeply imbedded in ice, so parts of it have to be left behind.  This was apparently not the case - perhaps just items that couldn't all be taken in one load.  We appreciate it has been taken away.  Thanks to Shelly for letting us know there is no cause for concern.

We've been wondering what the ice depth is after this past warm spell, and according to Kyle Johnson (Edgewood Ave.) as of Sunday night there were 14 inches.  As Kyle mentioned, we had some warm days after that, but now that temperatures are going to be near zero for a few days, we should make up any loss and perhaps even gain a bit more ice.  Thanks to Kyle for that report.

March may have come in like a lamb yesterday, but it's a bear today.  The temperature is in the low 20s and the wind is blowing a gale and there are snow showers along with simultaneous sunshine every now and then.  More than the usual "little bit of everything."  The noon weather report listed half a dozen areas that have lost power due to trees blowing onto power lines.  We're good here so far.

There's a lot going on out on the highways, too.  Early this morning a big truck hit an icy spot just past Point Comfort going east and tipped over near the Thurston cottage and the little beach across from Injun Joe Cabins.  There was some diesel oil spilled, but we don't think it was a lot.  We'll keep you posted if we hear more.

Later this morning there was a car on fire on Lemay Road, I think they said on the scanner, and road crews have some trees and limbs to deal with on other roads.  

As I write this, the sun is shining, it's 22 degrees, and it's snowing and blowing.  Pretty typical March day.

Yesterday I posted some photos of the ice by the fishing access and mentioned there didn't seem to be any ice shanties left on the pond.  I heard from Shelly Walker (West Shore Road) this morning that there are still two shanties further down the pond towards the narrows that we couldn't seen.  Shelly also mentioned there seems to be a lot of junk left on the ice.  Unfortunately, that happens nearly every year - and what floats ends up going over the dam and what doesn't goes to the bottom of the pond.  Mostly fishermen are pretty good about getting all the junk off the ice, but sometimes it is so solidly frozen in they can't get it out.  Some years are worse than others - it all depends on the number of thaws and freezes we have and when the ice is no longer safe enough for them to go out and clean up the stuff.  Vermont law says shanties must be off the ice by the last Sunday of March, which this year would be March 26th, or before the ice becomes unsafe - whichever comes first.