Snow/Ice Report

 This morning I measured 9.5 in. of new snow. This brings the total for this storm to about 18.5 inches that has fallen over the past several days. There could have been more or less in places nearby - but that is what has landed on my snowboard here at Joe's Pond. The snow is piled high around my deck, which is a little over four feet off the ground, and we had to actually shovel and toss some over the rail instead of using the usual "scoop it off-no lifting" method I prefer. I say "we" because my daughter-in-law, Marie, came this morning with her trusty coal shovel to help. Jamie used his tractor to clear the driveway and Marie shoveled the walk and helped me with the deck. I am so appreciative. 

The snow has all but stopped now, at noon, and the forecast seems to indicate we will have some scattered snow showers most of the coming week, but not much accumulation; and then probably by the weekend we'll have another heavy snowstorm hit us. What we are getting is nothing compared to the western states, but still, I'm tired of pushing snow around.

The newsletter from Responsible Wakes for Vermont Lakes has an interesting take on the wake boat situation. I have been hoping to have a response from wake boat owners, but this approach rather surprised me. When I thought about it, it wouldn't surprise me to learn that some of the wake boat owners on Joe's Pond are in agreement. It would be interesting to hear what they have to say. I believe we have only four wake boat owners here, and they are all good, thoughtful people. 

I had a message from Shelly Walker, publicist for the Ice-Out Committee:

Tuesday, I had a student reporter from News7 at Northern Vermont University here to do a segment on the Ice Out.  Matt Condon is a senior at NVU [Northern Vermont University] studying meteorology.  He was very interested in our contest and asked great questions.  He and I did an interview by Diane Rossi’s home.  The snow makes getting onto the lake a bit challenging.  Larry and Louis Cassani put the block out on Thursday.  Matt was not able to make it back here to record that.  His segment on the Ice Out will be on News7 Tuesday, 3/7 on the NVU Facebook page.  

 All this new snow will insulate the ice from the sun's rays in the coming days, slowing the melting process. The temperatures during the daytime are expected to be well above freezing, but below freezing at night, which is going to keep melting slowed down. As we trundle into March, it seems we still have plenty of winter weather ahead, and that is reassuring for the Ice-Out Contest committee; they always worry that the block will fall and stop the clock before the official end of the contest at midnight on April 1st. The ice may not be quite as thick as some years, but as we head into the final weeks of the contest, it seems likely it will still take plenty of time to melt all the snow and ice, so it will probably be an April date that wins the kitty. 

Ice-Out ticket sales have been steady and are about normal compared with other years, so the winning ticket(s) will be worth at least $4,000 or $5,000. And they are still only $1.00 each! If you haven't entered the contest, you can do so by going to the Joe's Pond website Ice-Out Contest page. All the details are there.

Stay safe and healthy - shovel slowly, drive responsibly, and rest up for the next snowstorm.