With the copious amounts of rain and snow that we have received recently, our reservoirs are full and they have reached their peak and are now overflowing.
Approximately 10 Miles from my house is the Croton Falls Diverting Dam. Only a few times a year are we given the privilege of seeing the reservoirs water cascade over into the spillway.
”Do you love life? Then do not squander time, for that’s the stuff life is made of.”
-Benjamin Franklin
Tonight marks the beginning of the best time of the year. At 2 am Sunday morning, we move the clocks ahead an hour. For those of us who cherish being outdoors, this means an extra hour of daylight to do what we love to do. While most folks bemoan the loss of an hour of sleep, I see it as an opportunity. An opportunity for adventure!
Instead of coming home every day and climbing on my stationary bike, the extra hour of light means that I’ll be able to head out to Ward Pound Ridge for a hike. If only for a few miles, being outside to witness the change from winter to spring and eventually summer is a much greater gift than you can imagine!!
Happy Hiking to each and every one of you!!!
The past week has not only been a difficult one for the humans in our house, but for our animals as well. Due to two nor Easter’s, we were left without power for just about seven days. As good as a friend as he is to us, I know that our dog Jase was as miserable as we were.
Knowing this, he was still the same happy member of the family that he always is. Needless to say, this pictures say it all!! I can’t tell you enough about what a great dog he is.
Jase trying to stay warm.
“Please come sit next to me!”
On Friday March 2nd and Wednesday March 7th, we were hit with two nor easters. The first one dumped 2 inches of rain and then 8 inches of snow. The second was a snow only event and when it was over, 19.5 inches of snow blanketed our area. To add insult to injury, high winds during both storms caused extensive damage to the Hudson Valley Of New York.
The woods behind my house at the start of Wednesday’s storm.
This is where the fun begins. At 5pm that Friday, we lost power. Now when we lose power, that means everything. No heat, hot water, nothing. Of course we notified the power company and waited. Saturday came and went and we waited some more. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday passed and we waited. As each day creeped on, it got colder and colder in the house.
Daily calls to the power company did no good. Don’t worry they said, we’re doing everything we can to get you back online they said. Thursday then became an effort just to stay warm. Our county was in a state of emergency and all non emergency vehicles were not allowed on the roads.
Fast forward to Friday. With the house hovering at around 40 degrees, tempers were now starting to wear thin. After an incredibly long week, it was time. Time for life to get back to normal. So, after 6 days, 21 hours and 15 minutes, our power was restored and as if nothing ever happened, our lives continued.
With that said, it’s times like these that make me realize how lucky we are to live in the country that we do. We had to do without things that we take for granted-heat, hot water, just plain running water for a week and although it wasn’t the worst, it was uncomfortable.
This is my tale of woe.
I had a little time before my daughters hockey game so I walked around and took these pictures.
Her game was held at the South Kent School in South Kent, CT.
The water was still and that gave me this picture.
A cloudy day in South Kent.
A wider shot of the previous picture.
When I checked the weather this morning, it said a high in the 50’s with rain after 5pm. At the start of the hike it was 46 degrees and mostly sunny. As I made my way through the park, it got cloudier and cloudier, with rain falling on me for the last 25 minutes.
With that said, it was still a beautiful hike for the 24th of February. It could have easily been 20-25 degrees colder with some type of frozen precipitation either falling or on the ground.
The parking lot at the start of the hike.
The entrance to Nirvana!
During the summer this stream was dry, even after rain storms.
A shot of some trees and the blue sky.
My favorite picture of the day!
Happy Hiking!!!
Hike #2-5.0-9.2
“Hiking is the answer. Who cares what the question is.”
-Anonymous
Greetings my fellow hikers. I don’t think I need to say anything else, do I?
Naked trees on the years first hike. I love my naked trees!!
Happy Hiking!!!
My trusty companions!
With a starting temperature of 56 degrees at 7:30 this morning I made my way to Ward Pound Ridge for my first hike of the new year. With my daughters hockey schedule, weather concerns and no real daylight in the afternoon, hiking really hasn’t been a possibility. For several days now, we have known that today was going to be a warm one.
With that in mind, I knew that I had to get out!
With a new pair of boots that needed breaking in, I decided to keep the distance relatively short and the pace kind of slow. Needless to say, it was great to get out.
Hike#1-4.2-4.2
Happy Hiking!!!
The Zen Hiker 