“Freeze At Last, Freeze At Last…”

Well, we failed miserably at our stated intention of having a White Christmas, but it looks like we’re working our wintry way toward a White Martin Luther King Day.

Let me know if you detect a hint of irony there.

Not that it’s entirely “in the bag” – we only have a couple of inches from last night’s weather event, and a bit more predicted for tomorrow – but still, it’s as close to Winter as we’ve gotten since October!

I took a ride up into Hawley to catch a few views of the white stuff before nightfall.  Along Route 8A, stately white pines stabbed skyward beneath a burden of heavy, wet snow:

It was the kind of snow which insists on not being shoveled despite its low loft, and even when it’s plowed, can render a steep driveway a Triple-Black-Diamond run:

The sign here reads “Eggert’s Folly,” and it’s rated Most Difficult.   I took their word for it.

The new coat of white rendered a hot property a bit easier on the eyes:

That tumble-down old garage actually sits on a nice piece of property, if you don’t mind being limited to six hours of sunlight a day (it’s in a narrow spot in the deep Chickley river valley.)

But my favorite shot from the ride was this one, of the Chickley burbling along through a relatively undamaged section of the elsewhere devastated river:

I’m always amazed at the vivid greens proffered by snow-sopped rivers; it often (as here) contrasts with the monochrome surroundings of wet wood and white snow.

We’re expecting a bit more snow tomorrow, followed by blistering (but seasonally appropriate) cold, which I hope will provide me with more traditional winter shots, with sparkly landscapes beneath Arctic-blue skies.

Hey, I can dream, can’t I?

😉