Winter Wonderland

 I know it's sometimes hard to appreciate winter, especially when you have to shovel away piles of snow and face bitterly cold temperatures made worse by howling winds. We've all had our moments when we've asked ourselves, how did I end up in this godforsaken place. But then, if we're lucky, we get to see the beauty of our surroundings. It doesn't matter that I've seen Cabot Plain hundreds of times and in all kinds of weather - dressed in autumn's brilliance, summer's hay-scented star-lit nights, the warm spring sun drying mud-filled roads, and plenty of windswept snowfields. Every now and then, when the temperature is just right and before the wind interferes, the world up on that hilltop turns into an unbelievably lovely picturesque landscape. Gretchen and Jim Farnsworth took advantage of the sunshine after the storm and went snowshoeing on the Plain. Gretchen took these photos near the cemetery.

This photo is looking northwest from Dubray Road. The Richard Spaulding farm is just out of sight on the left of this picture. That is the Worcester Range in the distance, a bit of the Woodbury Quarries showing, and perhaps Jay Peak. Below is the Spaulding farm south of the covered bridge. That farm belonged to Hartwell Stone when I was growing up on the Plain. After Hartwell and his wife, Florence, or "Flossie" as she was known to her neighbors, died, their son, Edward ran the farm. Eddy raised strawberries to make a little extra cash, and hired neighborhood kids to pick for him each summer. Another son, Howard, married a neighbor girl, Frieda Maynard, and had a small farm about a mile east of his father's, with abutting land.

 

Below is another view of the field opposite the cemetery - and in this one, those most distant mountain peaks are in Canada.

 These photos have caught the Plain at one of its most beautiful moments. It looks peaceful here, but there are times when the wind blows relentlessly. It can come at you from any point on the compass. It rattles windows and whistles around corners, and it's best not to be caught unprepared. Many thanks to Gretchen for sharing these beautiful photos.

She also took these - Bolton Road leading to the farm where I grew up, and below, the former Cabot Plain School, where I went. It is now a private seasonal home. The sky was looking a little threatening - I suspect there was about to be a big change in weather!

To see these pictures at their best, click on them to enlarge them.

Today has been a gloriously sunny one - warm in the sun, but the air was cold and there was some bitter wind. The snow has been swept off most of the trees, and we are ready for the next onslaught. People have been shoveling off their roofs - while most of our snow has been fairly dry and light, there is still a lot of it and it does get heavy on roofs. Best not to take chances. 

Stay safe and warm.