Winter Photos

Winter 2007 was a "good one" by most standards. The people who like snow got plenty to recreate with, and the people who don't like snow (so, why exactly are you here?) didn't get buried in it. Here at 3,000 feet we got just over 10 feet (123 inches) total, with about 2.5 feet on the ground most of the time. We had below freezing temperatures most of the winter months, which kept the snow reasonably fluffy. When you get 10 feet of snow on your driveway during the course of a winter, fluffy means moveable, which is always a good thing.

This Local Look is a review of some of the beauty and challenges we experienced over the past few months.

Jan 19, 2007: Normally, we get a few thaws during the winter that give the snow a chance to slide off the roof. However, the thaws this year were brief, so the snow would often melt just enough to create an ice layer on the roof surface. That ice layer made the snow stick to the roof even more tenaciously. So, with a heavy sigh, you break out the ladder and the snow shovel once in a while, and you clear the roof manually. It is good exercise, but not much fun. In case you are wondering, the tractor does not have it's lights on: what you see is just the camera flash in its reflectors.

Photo courtesy Susan Daffron

Photo courtesy James Byrd

Feb 10, 2007: You might be wondering why someone would need a tractor up here anyway. My Southern California friends think it's pretty funny that I program computers for a living and own a John Deere. Well, when you live on a private road and have 10 feet of snow to remove for a distance of about a half-mile, that tractor comes in handy. This picture of our driveway gives you an idea of how much the stuff piles up.

Mar 2, 2007: By early March, winter was pretty much over in the lower elevations from a new snow perspective. However, it was certainly cold at times. This picture was taken in the morning of a day that dawned at 13 degrees (F). When the weather clears off and it gets that cold, the residual moisture in the air forms spectacular ice crystals on just about every surface. With the early morning sun sparkling on the crystals, you feel like you are walking through a fantasy landscape.

Photo courtesy James Byrd

Photo courtesy James Byrd

Mar 2, 2007: Narrow dirt roads dominate the countryside in North Idaho, and they become even more narrow through the course of winter as the snow berms close in. When two cars meet on a road like the one you see here, one or the other of you has to back up to the nearest pull-out or road intersection and yield to the other. Most people are very courteous when this happens.

Mar 2, 2007: Creek beds freeze and thaw throughout winter, creating canyons through the meadows. On really cold days, they frost over and become a surreal pathway through banks of snow.

Photo courtesy James Byrd

Photo courtesy James Byrd

Mar 13, 2007: A mere two weeks after the frosty visions above, temperatures in the 40's had melted the snow off the roads and started the dreaded break-up period. The rapid snowmelt and periods of rain caused local streams to overflow, as you see at this road intersection where the culverts are just too small to handle the spring runoff. A vehicle with ground clearance is necessary as you drop off the 4-inch ice shelf in the foreground into several inches of water and mud.

Mar 27, 2007: By the end of March, spring breakup was in full swing. The folks who live in town and don't get out into the countryside very often really don't understand the true meaning of the term "breakup." When you live on a private road, you see things like this, where a creek has bypassed a crushed culvert and is carving a rut down the middle of the road around islands of ice. Some of the giant puddles of water and mud feel they will swallow your truck whole. You might say that four-wheel drive is recommended.

Photo courtesy James Byrd