Jan 22, 2012 Baranof
31° CLOUDY, SNOW 30° CLOUDY 14†SNOW
We received a bona-fide snow dump last night and spent the whole day digging ourselves out. The morning snow sky was all shades of black and white, blotting out the world outside one’s immediate surroundings. The fluffy stuff had gone by the wayside and was replaced by the dreaded wet and heavy snow. It was slow, arduous work shoveling camp, with loads too heavy to lift. We’ve reached the point where the snow has built walls so high that there’s nowhere to conveniently put it without risking pain or injury. I was reminded of the larger-scale problem Minnesota had a couple of years ago following a major blizzard and subsequent snowfalls that piled up over the course of the winter. After turning many a parking lot into a snow dumping zone, the city had run out of places to put it!
We ate a quick lunch and then it was back to work. Suddenly it felt like a new, improved day when the sun appeared and the snow came to a halt. Baranof looked like the setting of a fairytale, the snow-laden gingerbread houses quaint against a thickly forested backdrop. The trees come alive caked with snow, their enormity magnified.
The snow respite was short-lived and soon flakes started to fall unrelentingly. Pete worked on fixing one of the snow blowers by parting out the second blower. Feeling the urgency of the task, he was back in action within a few hours. I spent eight hours shoveling today and finished just at dark. Somehow, I still had the wherewithal to whip up some cookies. Pete continued snow blowing until the job was done, well after dark. We were thankful for our conveniently located hot tub and took a not too leisurely soak on the porch. The water temp was tolerable for a quick bath and we sure needed it today. We crawled into bed with a VHS movie in store for the evening. After a full day of activity, we’re totally bushed!
