Winter Is Here

The weather bureau has teased us with warnings of cold, snow and all but famine and pestilence. Outside of the eleven inches  we got back a month ago, we have been dry and clear. cold but not too much.

Things are about to change. a small system is chugging toward us from the Canadian coast, full of cold air and a little snow. That will occur Tuesday. What follows is a massive low out in the pacific that will follow the cold air into the region with heavy snow fall.

The Weather Guessers aren't real sure about the eventual direction of the latter storm. It may hit us straight on with over a foot of snow, or it may pass us to the north or even the south.

In any event, if you haven't changed over to snow tires, you may be too late. Even Seattle has had snow and  with those steep hills in down town Seattle, trust me, even with good equipment, it's bad. Try stopping just before the crown of a West East street. The light is just short of the intersection. With packed snow/ice, stopping just short of level is not a got idea. The light changes, you are screwed as well as the cars behind you.

Here in north Idaho we are blessed with good plows, small rocks opposes to sand for traction and strong windshields. I will be writing about that and dangerous swales while cool for good runoff, tend to kill those sliding off the road on icy pavement.Check out the placement of crosses along hwy 95. Every one due to roll overs due to the steep slopes of the drainage swales.Anyway, good luck for the following weeks and remember, Winter is just getting started.