Can you believe it?

Last week our driveway was a sheet of ice! After some warmer days providing melting and some light freezing rain, our 1500 foot steep driveway was definitely a challenge. We used 600lbs of ice melt to try and make a dent in it on two different times with a little success. I have a seed spreader that I can hook to my ATV to help get the ice melt spread evenly. I have another 300lbs waiting for the next emergency.

Close to the top of the driveway, we spread out wood stove ash from a 55 gallon steel drum that we empty it into every day. With 5 gallon buckets, we spread just on the tire tracks which helps a lot in providing a little extra traction when you start to lose momentum coming up the driveway near the top.

On Friday we received another 6-7" of snow. Ironically, there was a 15 mile wide area that stretched from Dodgeville to Madison that had the heaviest snow. Everyone else only got 2-3". I guess we're just lucky like that!

Today we are to get another 3-4" of snow, with more on the way for Wednesday. I'd be lying if I said we weren't looking forward to spring already.

Making life a little easier

The friend I bought our ATV from gave me a cover his Dad bought for the ATV several years ago. He never got around to using it so he passed it on to me. It was brand new in the box, but I was a little skeptical about its usefulness.

We had another 2-3 inch snowfall last night so I was able to give it a try this morning while plowing. I have to say, it's actually kind of nice. It really cuts down on the wind and snow while playing and makes the whole process more tolerable. It is a little harder to see what you're doing, and I haven't tried it at night yet, but it seems to be a good addition. Any little things making the winter easier is always appreciated!

First "plowable" snow of the season

Well the weather outside is frightful...






But the fireside's delightful...









And since we have places to go...I'll go plow. Wait a minute! That doesn't sound quite right. Oh well, it's just part of the deal I guess. We got about 3 inches last evening and overnight.



Lily doesn't seem to mind as long as it doesn't interupt her "shows".

Let the fun begin...

We were blessed with our first accumulating snowfall yesterday. Nothing that caused any real inconvenience, but a reminder of what's to come. It was funny, by the afternoon, all the roads had melted except our driveway. Of course!