I suggest you pull on your mittens and skis and glide on over to Barnes Park right away. Weatherman Bruce Laidlaw informs me that the Mad Trail Groomer has been at work again, and Bruce should know.
Isn’t that inviting? Don’t dillydally. You never know how long a good patch of snow is going to last around here. Waste not want not. (Sorry. As warned, I spent the evening at a Planning Commission meeting and came away infested with cliches.)
It’s the stroke of midnight, and the Weather Widget says it’s all the way up to 31. That’s a relief. I forgot to call for a propane refill this morning. Another item for tomorrow’s list.
Posted in: Adventures outdoors, Letters from the Weatherman
Torch Lake Views 
Cindy Lou
January 13, 2010
Planning Commission? Doesn’t sound fun to me! Bureaucracies, however small, tend to make me nuts!
Gerry
January 14, 2010
Ah. The workings of democratic self-government are, indeed, an acquired taste. I am unaccountably drawn to observe these rituals.
Fee
January 13, 2010
Had to convert the temperature reading to Celsius (blame my modern education!) as 31 degrees sounded fantastic there! We have to go the Mediterranean to get that kind of weather. Didn’t sound quite so appealing when converted, I can tell you.
Our outside temp reached the heady delights of +2C (35.6F) the other day and we were thrilled beyond words. Up north from here they dropped down to -22.3C (-8F) a few nights ago (which is the only reason the wee town of Altnaharra ever makes the national news).
Roll on spring …
Gerry
January 13, 2010
Oh my, I should have specified F. I could have been polite, too, and included a parenthetical conversion. The problem, of course, is that I always have trouble with the math, forgetting whether to divide by 9, carry the 5, add 212, no, that can’t be right, start over . . . Not being able to remember the formula, I have to recreate it every time I want to use it. Clearly I should simply put it on a yellow sticky note on my monitor, right next to all the passwords I can’t remember.
My sympathies to Altnaharra and all other wee towns that suffer such national attentions. I hope they all have plenty of wool socks. Meanwhile, the orange growers in Florida are gazing in despair at icicles hanging from their trees. This winter is a pistol, it is.
Bruce Laidlaw
January 13, 2010
I skied all 5 miles of the trails yesterday. Very nice. The only other trail users were the deer. Now I suppose we can expect a big thaw.
Gerry
January 13, 2010
So, if the deer have already marred the perfect corduroy may I bring Miss Sadie and the Cowboy over there?
If the Weather Widget speaks truth, we are in for a mild spell, but nothing like a big thaw. Fear not. Or fear, depending.
Scott Thomas Photography
January 13, 2010
Aw, very inviting indeed.
Gerry, your snow it a bit..well, grey. Does your camera have a snow photo mode? I know some of your winter scenes come out great.
Gerry
January 13, 2010
Ah well. The photo is not mine but Bruce’s. In his defense, he sent it to me in a condensed email version just to show the groomed trail.
As to whether my camera has a snow mode . . . I don’t know. I just try to find a good combination of light and subject and do the best I can to hold the camera still while remonstrating with the dogs. I should make a study of it. Who knew there would be so many lessons I would still be trying to complete this late in life?
Bruce Laidlaw
January 15, 2010
Photo was made with my new iPhone. Not a bad camera for such a loaded toy. But there are hardly any controls.
Gerry
January 17, 2010
I am deeply envious of the iPhone and of your other cameras, including the one that watches the deer and the one that makes amazing images of western deserts. I am looking forward to seeing what you do when you wind up the 44 Year Commitment to the Law, and you and Andi can frolic about at will.