We got some heavy wet snow today - almost a foot of the white stuff. It should help the grass grow in the pastures when it melts. We really need the moisture because we haven't gotten much precip all winter long and we were very worried about a high fire danger summer again. This will help raise the levels of water in the lake and give us some badly needed moisture. Above is a picture of the lake. I wish I would have brought the camera out sooner because when I first went out to feed, the lake was a gorgeous teal blue color but by the time I was done with chores it started to cloud up and got darker and the color was this deep dark gray.
Here are the weanling llamas with Uncle Nimbus chowing down on hay that I took out after the snow stopped.
Our area is under a Winter Storm Warning from 10 AM this morning until Noon tomorrow (Friday). We can expect from 1 to 2 feet of snow! Last night Jim brought in lots of firewood (we heat the house exclusively with a wood stove). Today I fed extra to the weanling llamas and the horses and raked up all the loose hay under the trees and into feeding boxes to reduce the amount of hay that gets covered with snow and gets wet (cuz then, eeewwww, its gross and the llamas don't wanna eat it!) This is what Springtime in the Rockies of Colorado can be like. We can set record breaking high temps one day, followed by record setting blizzard conditions and snowfall the next. Don't like the weather? Wait five minutes...it'll change. That's a frequent saying around here. We need the moisture though, so we won't complain (much - we were really enjoying those record high temps!) Several years ago we were snowed in for four days because there was so much snow the plows didn't get out to us for that length of time. There were four to six foot drifts in the road in front of the house. At the time, we didn't have a tractor so we just hunkered down and waited for help to arrive. Now we have a big tractor so Jim is all excited about being able to get the tractor out and do some snow plowing this weekend. Boys and their toys!
Hopefully we'll still have power and internet service throughout this storm - or we'll be playing poker and backgammon by firelight. So, til next time, stay warm and dry, wherever you are!
UPDATE:
The snow has started and is coming down horizontally. We could have up to 50 mph winds this afternoon and 16 below zero wind chills tonight and tomorrow morning. I dread the thought of going out to feed the horses this afternoon! I put the blanket on Puff, our 29 year old mare, and hope she rides this storm out okay.
Here's a link to the cams in Woodland Park (the closest major town to us - 25 miles away): www.utepasscams.com. On one of them you can't even see anything right now because it is snowing so hard.
