I have seldom seen, or rather I cannot remember seeing, such a quick change from deep winter to an early spring. It is not that spring has actually sprung or that I am claiming that Old Man Winter is totally done with us, but he is on his way out the door. While I expect the old man to turn and spit back at us every now and then, I am looking for him to keep exiting.
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| February 27th from my den |
On February 27th it was snowing, and I recall actually beginning to worry about the snow buildup on roofs. February had been a pretty cold month, and if winter kept on keeping on, I wondered if snow on roofs would get to be a problem.
Not to worry. Just 5 days later, the snow was all but gone from the roofs. I am pretty sure that I took another photo at the time, like the one above, for comparison, but if I did I cannot find it.
However, I did decide to take a series of photos outside to mark the change in snow cover. I expected it to take all month for the snow to melt markedly, and it may yet, but so much went so much quicker than I expected.
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| March 04 |
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| March 04 |
March 04 was Thursday. Look at the difference by the following Friday.
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| March 12 |
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| March 12 |
All it took was a few mild days. The temperature actually climbed to 14C/57F, which is pretty high for the first third of March. It is a bit unusual for so much snow to go so quickly before mid March, and I have, in fact, seen seen it stay even into April. In fact, the snow cover lasted so late one year that when I finally shovelled it off the garden, tulips had sprouted under the snow.
This year, some of the garden section under the tree is already clear.
The long term forecast does not predict any balmy days like we had last week, but most days will rise above freezing,
With daytime temperatures usually rising above freezing and nighttime temperatures continuing to descend below, it should be good for the running of the sap in Lanark County, the Maple Syrup Capital of Ontario. At least we call ourselves that.
Isn't it wonderful?!
ReplyDeleteOur neighbours are madly gathering sap. There are two farms near us with major productions.
OH that's right, spring is an industrial time for syrup in your area. Oh now I want pancakes. No time to make them though. Loved seeing your recording of the snow melt.
ReplyDeleteOH, yes, it's happening. But March can be fickle--our biggest blizzard was in March of '93.
ReplyDeleteThat is very promising. It sounds like spring brings wonderful activities too. I wish I had bought some maple syrup while I was in Montreal.
ReplyDeleteOlderSon has been tapping his maple trees but weather conditions are not quite right yet. And YoungerSon's birthday is March, and I can remember many different weather conditions on that day, from shirtsleeve weather to full blizzard conditions.
ReplyDeleteJust, Oh, Burrrrr.
ReplyDeleteInteresting post. We don't have that kind of experience here, obviously.
ReplyDeleteWe were amazed here as well. We have a week of above freezing weather forecast and are chomping at the bit to get the garden tilled!
ReplyDeleteWe are back to cold again, cold wind chills, but without more snow. At least for now. Hope your luck continues to be better.
ReplyDeleteLess than a week before the first official day of spring!
ReplyDeleteDidn't know you were the maple syrup capital! There's a good maple syrup tour here, though it's not wheelchair accessible unfortunately.
ReplyDeleteFebruary certainly was cold! I had my highest ever electric bill here last month, and only 28 days, not the usual 30 or 31.
ReplyDeleteYour snow did disappear in a hurry! But don't worry. You'll get some more.
ReplyDeleteThis looks like the photos my daughter sent from Illinois. And this morning there's even more snow falling. An Illinois friend of mine said the snowflakes were as big as snowballs on the Lakeshore Drive. Winter is not over yet.
ReplyDeleteHopefully the syrup season this year is productive.
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