Snow Day

There is no better weather than a good old-fashioned snowy day. The falling snow is gorgeous to see, the precipitation means that can't be too cold (else it won't snow at all), the accumulation messes with routines like walking and driving (it took me twenty minutes to "bike" home this afternoon - more than twice as long as usual), and above all the snow gilds the ordinary:

Library Trees


Beyond all that, snow makes skiing possible, and I'm getting my money's worth. Tonight was my fourth straight day of being on snow - not quite enough to get me to the World Cup, or even to the City of Lakes Loppet, but a hell of a lot of fun anyhow. I've mostly been tooling around Carleton's Upper Arboretum, but my loop has just the right mix of hills and flats to keep things interesting. Sunday and Monday, I skied on a thick crust of ice-covered snow which cracked under me, making it seem like I was traveling over shattered glass and not making for a very quiet outing. Tonight, after a good six hours of continuous snowfall, I was on wonderful but extremely slow fresh powder: almost totally silent and beautiful to see all around.

Forecast: Significant blowing and drifting, with the possibility of heavy accumulation in rural areas.