Snowshoe Hike on Mount Warner

Yesterday, The Trustees of Reservations led a snow-shoe hike around Mount Warner.  It was the perfect day for it, with the freshly fallen (and falling) snow.  For upcoming events at Mount Warner, see the TToR website.

 Snowshoes were available for rent.

 Our young fearless leaders.

 The beauty of the snow.

 Our fearless leader/coordinator, Josh.

Don't get lost -- follow the yellow dots on the trees.

 Snow on wire.

 The view from atop, by Carr's Orchards.

Celebrating the end of the ascent with hot chocolate and whipped cream, provided by the other fearless leader/coordinator, Scott.

There will be more hiking and biking events coming -- don't miss them!

Twenty Thousand Inches of Nemo

I decided to post just a few pictures after all, before we lose all the images to rain and melting.

I'm not sure what the final snowfall count was.  A yardstick in our front yard measured 19 inches, but drifts were much deeper.  The shallowest snow I could find in the back yard still came over my knee-high boots, and out on the field next door, snow was thigh-high.

I love how the sun plays shadows across the snow.  Beautiful.

This Nemo Was Not a Little Clown Fish

I suppose I should post a little storm stuff, even though I haven't yet been outside (stuck inside with the flu this week).  Therefore, everything you see here is seen through windows.  The videos show the gusty blowing snow, not during the gustiest part of the storm (Saturday morning, in fact), and some of the big machinery that came down our street (I am feeling grateful to still have an upright mailbox).

I'm skipping the before and after pictures for now, though getting some pics of the huge snow piles lining streets and driveways would be somewhat impressive.  (A BIG thanks to the Hadley DPW for working so hard and keeping our streets clear -- we appreciate it!  Also, thanks for the phone updates on the storm and the driving bans.)
I know they say there hasn't been a storm like this since 1978, but I think that is more true for Boston and the coast than for us; I could swear there was a storm here recently that gave us this much snow, though perhaps not as much wind.  Plus, this time we got to keep our electricity.
Get out and enjoy -- ski, sled, make snow angels.  Tomorrow we get rain and ice....

Icy

Remember that freezing rain we had back in December?  It sure created some beautiful art in our yard.

Amazing.

Sun + Rain

The light played brilliantly against the turning leaves and falling raindrops this afternoon.

Snow-capped

Root for Your Radio

Make a pledge -- plant a tree.
NEPR has partnered with the Connecticut River Watershed Council and several area nurseries to distribute 2600 trees to local environmental organizations who are working to restore areas of the Connecticut River affected by the June tornadoes, the August storm and flooding, and the October nor'easter.

So, for every contribution made to support WFCR and WNNZ during the current fund drive (February 24 – March 3), a tree will be planted in our community -- a tree to replace one of the thousands of trees lost or severely damaged.
Curious?  Interested?  Want to know why we care about replacing those trees?  Find out more (and even make a contribution) at NEPR.

 

Updated School Closings Links

Some of the links have changed (and the radio station disappeared) since I first created my shortlist of school closings links, so here's an updated version.

22News WWLP
WGGB ABC40

If I come up with more, I'll land them here.
Happy Friday!  Enjoy the white.

Snow Closures -- Find Them

Since it is January and we are supposed to get some snow, freezing rain, and a nice wintry mix over the next 24 hours, I thought this would be the ideal time to remind you of the link to the right which will direct you to three sources of information for snow closures.  The link is also posted below:
Info for School Snow Closures
(Public buildings and churches are also frequently listed, so even if you don't have kids in school, this can still be an important link to look at.)

Halloween Storm of '11

One week ago Massachusetts was hit with what is coming to be known as the Halloween Storm of '11.  Inches and inches of heavy, wet snow fell across the region of Western Massachusetts -- up to 28 inches in some locations.

At my house in Hadley, we received something close to 8 inches of snow.  Our electricity went out around 4:15 Saturday afternoon, flickered around 5:30, and then remained off until Wednesday evening -- 101 hours later (we are so thankful to have it back!).  According to the WMECO outage map, there are still 77 Hadley customers without electricity (I know N. Maple is still closed because of downed trees and wires) -- there are still thousands without power across the state.  We fared well, all things considered.  We lost 2 limbs off our old apple tree and a few small branches from other trees at the perimeter of our property, but others in the neighbourhood and town lost entire trees and branches the size of trees.  Massive old maples and oaks were wrenched apart, split down the middle, limbs ripped down the side.

Sunday evening we went out for a short tour.  The entire Rt 9 strip was black, except for Target; Stop and Shop was open and receiving a truckload of goods.  Darkness everywhere else.  By Monday, many of the stores were open again and we were able to charge up our cell phone at The Black Sheep.  There were shelters with charging stations, heat, and food around the Valley, but we mostly stuck to our fireplace.

The pictures below show some of the story (click on the pictures for larger, higher resolution shots).  Make a comment, share your story.  I'll follow this up later.

Waking up on Hallow's Eve eve.

Low lines, broken trees.

Detour signs on many of the frequently-traveled roads.

Some detour signs were more creative than others.

Fast food restaurants were closed.

We did a lot of cooking over the open fire....

Trees split.

Branches breaking and falling like twigs.

Massive piles of brush were (are still) a common sight along the sides of the roads.

One of the old trees sent branches crashing into the cemetery.

Town Meeting -- a Go

According to signs around town, the town meeting is still a go tonight (the listing on the page linked below says the town meeting will go ahead despite the state of emergency) -- 7pm, Hopkins Academy.
For more information, visit this advisory page.

Irene?

If you look down the street in our neighbourhood, you would never know that a supposed hurricane passed close by.  The street is dry and clean, yards are mostly free of debris, and the sun is shining brightly.  There are a few scattered leaves and small sticks and garden soil is still moist, but overall things are clear -- we didn't even lose electricity. 
However, nearby towns were not so lucky -- there are overflowing rivers, closed roads, flooded dams, and outages throughout the area, so be wary and be mindful!

Coming Soon! -- Hurrican Irene!

I'm sure you've been hearing the weather statements and news on Hurricane Irene.  It would be a fine idea to follow the suggestions and prepare a few things in case of power failures (we received a call tonight warning us that WMECO anticipates power outages for up to a week), downed trees, flooding, etcetera.   Ready.gov has a good list of suggestions for preparing for an emergency.  If you have a phone that does not need plugged in or charged up, now would be a great time to get it out -- and don't forget to charge those cell phones while you're at it.  When last I was at Target (about 45 minutes ago), there were still lots of batteries, but not too many (if any) flashlights or unscented candles.
Take the opportunity to check school cancellations before the storm hits on Sunday -- there are already a couple of schools canceling Monday classes.
Remember that if the storm hits hard, many services will not be available on Sunday or Monday, so if you have the opportunity to grab a few extra items tomorrow, it might be a good idea.  If you don't need them this week, you'll have them for the future.
That's all for now.  Hope to be back on the blog soon!


(Can you believe -- hurricanes, tornadoes, and earthquakes in Massachusetts within the space of 3 months?!?)

The Storm of 2011

The storm of January 2011 hit on Wednesday -- schools were out, banks closed, businesses shut down, and plows were kept busy.  If you were in the area, there was no way to miss it.  Mr. Madley and I spent 2+ hours hand-shoveling the deep snow in our driveway -- and that was a lot of work -- two shifts worth, in fact.  But it was (is) beautiful (just look at those bottom two pictures, if you don't believe me).

When we started shoveling, shortly after 11 Wednesday morning, our yardstick read 21 inches.  It continued snowing until mid-afternoon.

Taken from the garage door, looking out over the driveway that needed shoveling. 

Starting the shoveling.

A picture from the back door.  It doesn't quite capture the depth of the snow back there, but almost.

The following morning, the sun rose bright and strong. It eventually warmed the bird feeder enough that its cap fell off.

Breakfast for the Birds

On a day like today, the birds are more concerned with getting their share of the food than if there's someone in the kitchen taking pictures of them.  Here's part of the breakfast bunch (house sparrows, cardinals, titmice, juncos, chickadees, unidentified finches and sparrows, downy woodpeckers, mourning doves):

(The pictures were taken inside, during the storm before 8am, so if they're a little on the dark side, and a little on the fuzzy side, I hope you'll understand.)

I certainly am enjoying the show this morning!

School Closings & More

In my Livin' in the Belch blog, this was one of the most popular pages, so I thought I'd copy & edit it for MH.

Most of you probably have cable television or local stations and can tune in to find out about school closings. Others of you may be on the phone-tree list and and will get a call on mornings when school is canceled or delayed. However, for the rest of you, and for anyone who would rather find the closings online and read through them more quickly than the scroll at the bottom of the news channel, check out these two websites for area school closings:

WWLP 22 News
ABC40
100.9 WRNX

These links are also good for town programs, libraries, churches, community centers, parking bans, and other such things.  Look as soon as you wish -- there are already closings in anticipation of tomorrow's predicted storm.

January Snow

I love a covering of snow in the winter.  I admit to constantly complaining about being cold, but a covering of snow makes winter so much more palatable.  I think I still get just as excited over the first snowfall as I did when I was a kid.  I love the freshness a layer of snow gives -- the bright white that glistens in the sun and hides all the dirt and the sleeping plants.  Snow is for building snowmen and making snow angels, and for skiing and snowball fights, and for studying wildlife and enjoying crackling fires in fireplaces.

I don't necessarily need snow that buries cars and wreaks havoc on a city,

But I do love to see the footprints of the birds,

And the tracks of the squirrels

Around the bird feeder.

Watching the birds and the squirrels in winter is one of my all-time favourite pastimes.  I hope to get some decent bird shots posted sometime, but the bird feeder setup at this house isn't quite as camera-friendly as the setup in Belchertown.
(As I write this, a large flock of medium-sized birds has swooped over the house and landed on the tips of the trees across the street.)