Winter is Here

NOTE:  I began writing this blog post some months ago, but life overwhelmed me a bit and I didn't make it back to finish this post.  Alas, here I am again.  Thanks so much for following. :)

It's both amusing and shocking how quickly the weather changes up north.  Looking back on my last entry reminds me of the heat and humidity we had to cope with during the warm months.  Now, we're seeing the first snow!

Saturday Dec. 2 at 3:28 p.m.

Saturday Dec. 2 at 5:43 p.m.

I love snow - it's incredibly beautiful - but boy does it give me the chills thinking of how suffocating it can be in the winter months.  Knowing that we're in the cabin this winter instead of winter camping in the a-frame tent gives me the warm and fuzzies inside, but the 2 mile snowy trek in and out of camp is still mighty daunting.

Speaking of cold winters, R was able to secure some free insulation from his work - the pink cotton candy-looking stuff and a few cans of spray foam insulation.  I'm grateful for this blessing!  It's not enough to do the whole cabin, but it's a start.  There are so many little nooks and crannies where cold air rushes in...or rather, where hot air rushes out.  I once heard that hot air is drawn to cold air.  Note:  don't wear anything important when you're using spray foam insulation.  It's very messy and doesn't clean up easily.

A wall filled with "Pretty in Pink" to keep us warm.

It *was* my favorite sweater...

I'll tell you hwhat (read in a voice mimicking Hank Hill from King of the Hill) it was a little stressful putting up the pink insulation knowing all those little fish hook insulation spores are floating around the cabin, resting on every surface, being inhaled and embedded in our lungs.  We wore full-body tyvek suits over our clothes, dust masks, and gloves, and were very careful to not move the insulation around more than necessary.  We even put Tyson and Willow in another area of the cabin until the particles settled, and then promptly swept as well as we could so the spores didn't hitch into their paws.

Overnight surprised us with a bit more snow than expected (what's new?)  Now is the time we start feeling the pressure of the isolation pressing upon us!  Do we leave now, or hang out a little while longer...?

Sunday at 9:25am

We figured probably it would be wisest to wrap up now.  We certainly don't want to press our luck.  It's really starting to accumulate.  We had hoped we would get more time at camp this winter, but it's coming in hard and fast.  Time to fasten the snow chains and call upon all luck which may be had to get us out of here safely!

The driveway looking up towards the trail

Parked in the driveway.

Hopefully the 33" tires will be enough.  We didn't have a chance to switch over to the 35s.

White knuckled ride out!  I don't think Willow understood the gravity of the situation.

What you don't see in between the pictures above and the video is when we got stuck for about 30 minutes halfway out.  I was too concerned helping R getting us unstuck to take any pictures or video. 😅  It was quite treacherous - sliding in the snow while slipping nearer to some large rocks along the edge of the trail that would have really put us in a pickle.  We haven't equipped the truck with a winch yet, though we had straps and a manual winch if we really got stuck.  We were lucky to get out of the trail unscathed.  Experiences like these really hit the nail on the head as we plan for our future up here.  One potential plan - which requires much more research - is the possibility of starting a Recovery/Emergency Tow business in addition to plowing during the winter months.

Fast-Forward to Today - April 9, 2019

It's been a long winter away from camp.  December 2, 2018 was the last time we visited.  I'm eager to see if our trail camera survived the winter and what/who we've had for visitors.  We have two more trail cameras that we'll put up, too.  Probably one near the water, and the other near the cabin.  I learned that much of our land is in a designated Deer Wintering Habitat, however we haven't seen much in the likes of deer except for the twin fawns early last summer.  Our Forester said that we should contact a Regional Biologist who will come and check out our land to see if the designation is still applicable.

We have plans to visit camp soon, even though the website I look at for current snow depth says there is still 2-feet of snow on the ground!  Keep an ear out for another blog post in the next week or so to hear of our next adventure!