The Cold Continues ~

 I think every person in our state, is ready to be Done with Snow!  In the month of February, it just kept coming, setting all-time records.  Saturday, we had a nice dusting overnight.  It was just enough to cover all the dirty snow from the snow plows going by.  I'm not complaining - since while I was in Washington - we had 15" & the neighborhood streets didn't get plowed for days.   This same weekend, our first March here, I was riding Farah at Indian Cave St. Park in NE!

North on 29~

 I have a difficult time explaining Iowa weather to friends in WA.  To have terrible weather one day & wake to brilliant sunshine the next is very different from there.  I don't miss the days or weeks on end of slate gray days.  So far, that has not been our experience here. 

Plattsmouth Bridge~

By Sunday, yes, the sun was shining!  That didn't stop the cold!  As we enjoyed our drive, the thermometer in the truck ranged between 1-3 degrees.  The 15-20 mph wind made it so cold that I was shivering just to get my photo!

I had Butch stop in the middle of the bridge so I could take the video above of the frazil ice floating down the river. 

Lake at Pony Creek~

We ended up going by the Pony Creek Nature Center.  The lake in front was totally frozen over, except for the outflow.  Hundreds of ducks were surrounding the open water.

Snow drifts~

I decided to walk out & around the cabin today & see what the timber looked like.  Butch kept the path shoveled to the porch.  As I walked around the west side though, the drifts were higher than the top of my muck boots!

Crusty snow!

The frozen crust on top, was about 2" thick.  I broke through & there was a crunch sound with every step.  Too deep for me to take Nika on our usual walk.  She breaks through it in the yard & has made a track around the edge, but this is a lot of snow! 

Pristine Timber~

The timber looked so pretty with the deep layer of white stuff. I could just see the wood pile I'd been working on in January. To think - that I thought then - we might have another mild winter! Not! It could be weeks before we see the ground again, especially since our forecast holds more snow showers past the middle of March!

Nika waiting at the corner of the backyard~

Nika's fur coat is the thickest it's ever been.  She seems to enjoy her time out each day, but is always ready to come in when I call her.  I knew full well, when I enjoyed those beautiful snowdrops at Jentry's & flowers at the Seattle Flower Festival, that it would be a long while before I get to enjoy any blooms here at home!