Winter: Fierce or Fluffy?

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.

Winterfest 2012

The week before the Winkle Picker Festival in Ashfield (see previous post), there is a Winterfest in Amherst at the Cherry Hill Golf Course-- a full day of winter fun for the whole family -- especially if we finally get snow.
Check out the fun:

• chili cook-off
• cross country ski lessons
• ice sculpture contest
• sledding
• bird-watching treks
• frisbee toss
• fireworks
• food
• oh -- and the cardboard classic!

Like I said -- fun for the whole family!  There is a cost of $5/child, $8/adult, or $20/family.  Visit the website for more info (like sponsors, directions, etcetera.

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.

Winter Hiatus

Late autumn/early winter has been bumpy at the Madley household, and so the blog has had a brief break -- time to rest up during the darkest season of the year.  It will be back in the New Year, however, with restaurant reviews, local photos, and other things of interest -- all those things you expect from Madley Hadley.
In the meantime, enjoy looking at this pronunciation guide for Massachusetts town names.  Mr Madley came across it last night and was kind enough to forward it along to me.

Enjoy the holiday season -- take some time to rest and find peace.  See you again in the New Year!

(And if you have some time off, stop by the library to see their new selections of books, magazines, and movies.)

Seasonal Scenes of Beauty: Winter

I know we're all completely tired of winter these days, snow piled everywhere higher and higher.  But we're in the middle of a February thaw, and I just loaded a new set of pictures from my camera, and by golly -- winter can be pretty!  (Click on the pictures for larger versions.)