Nemo Has Come and Gone

It began snowing here at approximately 7 a.m. Friday, Feb. 8th and stopped today, Saturday, at around 12:50 p.m. It was light at first, but during the evening and overnight hours it was snowing 1-2 inches per hour. The storm stretched from New Jersey to Maine and went inland as far as Vermont and New York State. Connecticut received the brunt of the snow...and along the coastal areas it turned into a blizzard because of high sustained winds.
We have about 20 inches by us...fluffy, bluish white snow, etched by the bruising winds.
I read an article in Think Progress, which suggests that climate change could have made the right conditions for such a rare heavy snowfall to occur.

Jan and Early Feb.

We have had a little more snow than last year, but not much more...some extremely cold days in January followed by an unseasonably warm day then back to normal seasonal temps. In other words...lots of fluctuations!  The warm day was followed by wild windy weather. One large dead tree fell across the pond after refroze as the cold front came through. To our South it spawned tornadoes.
Now it's February and we are looking at two back-to-back snow storms...one a Nor-easter.

I walked up the back and saw prints of turkey, deer and possible a small bear?

End of Year

Two snowstorms this past week...about a foot total. Nice to have snow...for us, animals and dormant plants. Winds were high yesterday...blowing snow off trees and across the snow covered pond.
Saw prints of deer, squirrel and maybe slides from the otters from pond to brook.

December 8, 2012

When we returned from Jamaica, the ponds were frozen solid and our first Saturday back, snow fell lightly. Now it looks more early November-like. The ground is bare and yellow and the forest and wetlands are cold soggy. Beatitude Pond looks fuller than I remembered.
We thought that pond would never overflow the driveway as it's a few feet down, but now I am not so sure. The beavers reinforced the dam at the edge of the pond well before the summer's end.
Will we get much snow this season? so far it's looking like another warm winter.
A bug was on the outside bedroom window screen yesterday. Not normally a December visitor.
The resident squirrel is huge...like a monster squirrel.

Aftermath Hurricane Sandy

Sandy hit the East Coast on Monday with great power, combined with the Nor'easter. NH escaped significant damage this round, as the eye passed in New Jersey. Storm surge washed away homes, property, sand, cars, boardwalks...along the coast and places I used to ride along are under the sea now or heavily damaged. Still many folks with out electricity, no heat and other resources where other parts of the NY metro area were undamaged and have power now. Lives have been lost.

We were fortunate here...w/o power for just a half an hour...but many people in NH were without power for several days.
Finally people .....politicians, mentioning the forbidden words: CLIMATE CHANGE.

Hurricane Sandy - Mega Storm

In midst of effects from the outer edges of approaching Hurricane Sandy which is due to make landfall later today somewhere between Baltimore and New Jersey. Has combined with a Nor'easter to make a super storm about 900 miles wide.
Here we are expected 40-45 wind gusts and up to 5 inches of rain later on in the day. The wind is howling through the trees now as we speak. Luckily most leaves have fallen of the trees which hopefully will reduce the chance of their falling over! Wishing safe passage through the storm for all our neighbors affected near and far. I think this big storm is just a harbinger of bigger storms to come due to a warmer climate. Photos later as we take them!

September - early October

I have been remiss and haven't posted since late August. September was fairly dry and warm. Local farmers in New Hampshire say that the season is two weeks ahead due to climate change. Late September-present we have experienced a lot of rain and intermittent sun. Beatitude Pond is full again as is the beaver pond. The beavers were busy up until about two weeks ago and then disappeared for a few days. We were worried someone had trapped them, but in the last couple of days we have seen all three of the colony going about their business and getting ready for the winter; whether it be a cold or warm one remains to be seen, but so far the temperatures continue to be above average for the time of year.

Other wildlife sighting this past month and this month:

• the foursome came back- twice...and those otters have really grown!
• many northern flickers in the oak trees in front of the house
• lots of chipping sparrows feeding on seeds in the field out back
• wood ducks making an appearance now again
• small frogs still active
• newts still active
• coyotes yowling on clear nights
• moose prints out by the beaver pond
• earlier in September we met one of the beaver kits...cute and spunky!
• beaver colony has made a lodge against the bank on Beatitude Pond and have added to their existing lodge in the beaver pond.

Flora

• lots of chicken of the woods mushrooms
• good crop of asters this year
• some black eyed susans still flowering as of 10/6/12
• green beans still growing as of 10/6/12
• tomatoes still growing, but not turning red