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It isn’t due to last much longer, but we’ve been enjoying a seriously cold snap these past few days.
Enjoy? My brother thinks I’m mad. He, like our father, has spent much time avoiding cold weather and is currently sitting on top of a heater in Cyprus.
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Like most people, I don’t much care for feeling cold, at least not for prolonged periods and not when it’s wet.
But a brief frolic in the snow before retiring to a warm house always invigorates me.
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It was different when I worked on Long Island and winter saw me scraping snow or ice off my car late at night before a treacherous drive home.
Or meeting flights in a howling gale.
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But when on leave I visited Maine, it was a whole other thing and up there they had serious snow.
Coming to live upstate New York I expected something similar, but apart from the year when we received 3 feet of snow, winters have been a little disappointing because in retirement, I do not have to deal with the tedium of it all.
Apart from the absence of hot, buggy weather, it is the sheer beauty of winter that so appeals to me.
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When in Greenwich on Monday, we stopped at the Batten Kill to discover the lower weir frozen solid.
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Finding the scene quite pleasing…
…we decided to explore further…
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…taking a look at the river above the weir, just the other side of the bridge.
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We found cold geese.
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Most were standing around or paddling back and forth. Shudder!
Quite a few were tucked up.
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We walked out onto the sluice gate to watch the water flowing over the upper weir, making note of heavy frost on the step up to it.
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Winter view of Greenwich.
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The sluice gate.
Not the best day for a picnic.
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Cold temperatures have an extraordinary effect on water, especially water that is in motion.
Or tries to be!
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When people heard I was going to Antarctica, I was asked:
“What does one do in Antarctica?”
Extraordinarily, some people played scrabble.
But most of us gaped at the most stunning and mind-blowing scenery, birds and wildlife.
One of the passengers who got the most out of her journey was blind. She went ashore in the rubber boats with her husband at every opportunity and was never less than delighted.
While it is very hot here, I enjoy looking at your snow photos! I can understand why you love Winter so much – it is definitely your most beautiful season ❄️. I marvel at the geese frolicking in the cold water, but I suppose that’s what geese do. And it’s amazing how blind people react to the beauty of nature – it makes me appreciate Nature even more.
Thanks for the lovely “cold” photos – I’m sweating a little less now 😄.
I like to see the snow and ice from across an ocean, but I really don’t want it here. I saw a recent forecast here for the chance of ‘Significant snow in late January’, and that fills me with dread.
Nice story about the blind lady. She knew how to appreciate the difference.
Best wishes, Pete. x
Thank you, Carolyn, for your tribute to winter, ice and snow. Although you make a wonderfully eloquent point, I am counting the days to spring!
Joanna
I love the subtle tones in these photographs!
SO beautiful!
I would love to visit Antarctica.
Some day, hopefully, when the kids are older, I’d like to play scramble there or watch the breathtaking views. Both seem equally pleasant.