Snow!

We woke up to lots and lots of snow this morning. Considering we haven't had much up until now, and were virtually snow-free until January 23rd, I guess one could say we were past due.

(Click on pictures to enlarge)

From our front window...


The driveway and car (well...the parts that didn't covered)



Larry on his way back down the driveway.....


Action shot! LOL ...





Making another run up the driveway...


Our neighbour's house



Again.....



And again....



Trees beside our house....


Still at it!



Shed at the back...


From the back our house (and yes...there is an ocean there, just beyond the trees)



How long 'til Spring???

Igor Update...

Not sure how long we'll have power for...it would be nice if it didn't go out at all. The lights have been flickering a bit, so it's anybody's call right now.

At last check, Igor is forecasted to be a category 1 hurricane when it passes by us tomorrow. The eye is not forecasted to hit Newfoundland directly, but we're still looking at wind gusts of 120 kms/hr and rain of 150 - 200 mms (6 - 8 inches). I cannot imagine what it would be like to have a direct hit of a hurricane.

For now, it's raining and raining hard. I can hear the wind and every once in awhile it gets stronger which causes the rain to hit the windows harder. I'm probably not gonna get much sleep tonight lol.

Anyway...I'll keep you all posted as I can. Thanks for the thoughts and prayers.

Preparing for Igor

It seems as if hurricane Igor is on his way to Newfoundland and Labrador. I was first made aware of his impending visit yesterday and have been watching various weather reports and the latest available tracking information.

Depending on the source, we're in for anywhere between 50 and 150 mms of rain and wind gusts of up to 150 kms. Other sources are saying winds of 90 kms...which is better than 150 kms....but still too high for my liking.

We're battening down the hatches...and Larry is out doing this as I type. Tyler has gone to town and will fill our water jugs on the way back (we have to get our drinking water from there anyway). Everything that could be blown around, such as the BBQ, smaller pieces of wood, lawn decorations, plants etc. are being moved inside the shed. Larry is checking the drain ditches and removing any debris and/or grown up grass. The firewood boxes inside are full.

Then there is the usual for inside: batteries, wind up flashlights, candles and matches. I should probably charge the cell phone (I realize that service could also be affected but just in case). The vehicles are full of gas, as are the gas cans.

It's not supposed to hit until Tuesday...bur the winds here have already started to pick up.

Here are some various sites I've been following (click on link):

Environment Canada -- Hurricane Tracking Information

Storm Pulse

The Weather Network

National Hurricane Center

Storm Tracker


GET LOST IGOR -- YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE!!


I will keep you posted.....

I will take it!

I am just not a snow person...not at all. I'd be more than happy if we never received another flake. Not ever.

Here is what's left of our snow. With all the rain and mild temps....the 40 cms we received last month....HAS ALL BUT GONE!! YAHOO!!!!

Here is what's left.....



Ohh...I found another patch.....(this size...I can handle ;))


None here...


None at the park (that's a mud puddle in the middle of the road)



Our front yard...none (those are white stones in the garden)



Looking down our driveway



I'm enjoying it while I can....they're calling for 15 - 20 cms (6 - 8 inches) on Saturday. I'm hoping it won't stay for long (and if it does...I'm sending it to Becky).

Update - The Raging North Atlantic

Just a bit of an update -- our friend Paul dropped by Tuesday evening (the same night I wrote my last post). Paul is a native Newfoundlander, he was a fisherman (before the moratorium) as was his father before him. Paul grew up by the sea and on it. He earned his living from it. He's witnessed a lot of different things over the years. When we first moved here and would comment (more like get really excited and wide-eyed) about the sounds of the ocean, Paul would really have to listen to 'hear' what we were commenting about. He was so used of the sounds, they did not stand out to him as they did to us. But...the other night...even he was shocked at the feel of the ground shaking and the noise. He wanted to know if we could feel it inside the house....said he'd never, ever seen it like that.

The ocean continued on like that for quite awhile, well into the next morning. The ferocious waves did settle down a bit...but it was still rough and loud. Even today the waves are continuing and the ocean can still be heard...thankfully not to the extent of Tuesday night.

The Raging North Atlantic

The ocean was rather tumbly today...make that very tumbly lol....

It's been windy here, again, with wind gusts upwards of 100 kmh (60 mph). Before the winds picked up though, the ocean became quite rough. It sounded like a freight train was coming .... or perhaps a lot of jets flying around way off in the distance. It was loud!

Then the winds picked up....and then the ocean became even rougher.

It's been interesting to watch and a little scary to experience. The churning, twisting waves, the white water, the deafening noise and the vibration we can feel through the ground....it feels so angry! All day the vibration from the raging ocean has made the house a little shaky and at times, the dishes in the china cabinet rattled. The force of the ocean is something else.

The waves were unbelievable as they crashed into the rocks. Here are a couple of pictures I took....but in actual fact, the waves got even higher than this. Sometimes, they were so high, the grassy section was completely covered (but try as hard as I did, I was unable to snap a picture at the right time in order to capture it)

Click to enlarge pics. Sorry they're not the best..but I took them from inside and the rain and ocean spray really shows up on the windows.

This picture is taken about 300 ft away from the ocean.







(Sorry about the flash)




The kids and Larry wanted to venture out into the back a bit...in order to get a closer look. Not to worry....they did not go back too far, just out in the back area a bit. They all came back amazed at the overall power and noise as well as the saltiness of the air. The spray of the ocean was everywhere and they were soaked. They could feel and taste the salt...an experience beyond belief and words.

Hopefully...it will quiet down soon.

White water rafting....anyone???

At least most of our snow is gone.

Ahhh....It Has Arrived!

Winter...that is.

Yesterday (Sunday) we had our first snow storm of the year....and it was a doozy! The winds were high...100 km/h (60 mph) and according to the news tonight, we had 39 cms (16 inches) of the white stuff. Seeing as it's fairly early in the season for such a storm....I hope it's not a sign of things to come.

Time will tell...

Here are some pics I took over the course of yesterday and today. (Click them to enlarge)

The calm before the storm...so to speak. Taken yesterday from our back deck before the storm started.








Ahhh...it has arrived. Taken a couple of hours later...around noon I believe...

These next couple are taken from the same vantage point as the first two pics. Hmmm...where has the ocean gone? It's still there....it just can't be seen for all the blowing snow and cloud.



Can you see the ocean in this one? Same deal as the previous one....it's there somewhere...we can certainly hear it!




Still comin' ....around 4:00 in the afternoon.....



The wind blew all evening and it continued to snow.

This is what it looked like when I opened the back door this morning....




A closer look....






Out front (I couldn't get the front door opened over the snow) Click the picture to enlarge it and notice the snow in the trees toward the back and on top of our shrubs in the front.



Closer up of the shrubs



Jake and I decided to take a walk. Standing in front of our house looking up the driveway toward the road.



Standing at the other end of the driveway, looking down toward our house. We have a long driveway...about 200 feet....which makes for a lot of snow to blow out. Thankfully, that wind took care of some of it....but still a lot to move.