Stoneage Ramblings

By John R. Stone

Many of us have been commenting on the weather this winter. It seems we’ve had more snow than we have had for a few years. That’s been great for people who like snow sports and even those who plow snow for a living.

But shovelers and others may not have quite as much joy in their hearts as they look at the latest accumulation of snow.

I sent a picture of the snow banks in our yard to my brother who lives in North Carolina. His reply was this; “I was going to send you a picture of the snow in my yard but it melted before I got home from work.”

Thanks for your sympathy, bro.

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We’ve been watching on the news about the huge snowfalls in California.

About 30 years ago I was working at the Pope County Tribune booth back when we had a bridal show at the Minnewaska House. Ken and Jan Koob were there with their travel booth which was close to our booth. Ken told me he had a real deal on a trip.

For $500 two people got air fair to Reno, Nevada, rental car for a trip down to South Lake Tahoe where five nights lodging was included. That was a deal!

Our youngest daughter had learned to ski at Andes Tower Hills and we had taken trips to Lutsen and Red Lodge, Montana to ski so this looked like a real deal.

Tahoe was having a snow year like this one and it was something to see. Houses had 5-6 feet of snow on the roofs and people were shoveling them clear. Motel parking lots were mostly piled full of snow that had been removed from their roofs.

One day we went on a group snowmobile ride up into the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Midway through the ride we stopped for a hot chocolate break to warm up. We were outside standing around and we were warned not to step anyplace where the snow was not compacted. As I looked around I saw the tip top of a cabin’s roof. Where we were standing there was 12-13 feet of snow beneath us!

From what I see on the news some places have more snow than we saw. I can’t imagine going out the front door of a house and walking a narrow pathway with snow 7-8 feet high on either side to get to a street. And it would drive me nuts to sit in a house with snow piled on top and wonder if the roof was going to cave in!

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The folks in California had issues with snow removal in some of the mountainous areas because they had so much snow. The snow was so deep that snowplows couldn’t move it, they needed those huge rotary snow blowers.

Highway departments don’t need that heavy machinery very often but when they do they really need it. This is one of those “really need” years.

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You may or may not have noticed that the Minnesota Highway Department had equipment out earlier this year cleaning our ditches so they would hold more snow. I saw them working on Highway 29 north of Glenwood by 5-mile church, up near Villard on Highway 28 and also east of Westport on Highway 28.

It looked different to see a grader and snow blower in the ditch but it seemed like they were able to move some snow. It seemed to work!

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The good thing about this time of the year is that the sun becomes so powerful. Even when it is cloudy the rays from the sun cut through and melt snow. It is nice to see snow and ice melt from the streets!

I was watching a weatherman last week and he was commenting upon how the temperature was “only” going to be in the 20s after a few days in the 30s and 40s. When you look out the window and see all that snow the 20s don’t seem so bad. Now if the yards were bare and brown temps in the 20s would be ugly.