It was
bound to come, the first heavy frost, and come it did.When I looked out the window, the scene was
white and frosty, but full of its own particular beauty.
It didn’t slow down the goats any,
either.They still rushed out to the
orchard when I opened the gate.They
were noticeably disappointed, though.The apples didn’t seem quite as tasty as the days before.Usually, nothing can call them away from
those lovely drops, but this time, when they noticed me watching them, camera
in hand, they considered there must be better prospects elsewhere.
We've had three storms in 7 or 8 days, all of them dumping anywhere from 8 to 12 inches at a time, an interesting change from the temperature fluctuations of late fall and early winter.
The first storm was almost fun. "Look at all that snow!' I dug a path to the goats' underbarn sanctuary, and they seemed grateful, or at least interested enough to use the path.
The does watched with interest, but didn't seem inclined to do more.
It was a daunting task, and as I looked over the field of snow, I almost changed my mind. But with Mime following me as I shoveled, patiently waiting for me to dig so he could take a few more steps forward, I persevered.
Once I had completed the dig, the rest of the herd took notice and followed. You can see them in the background, jumping up and down as they came.
Three days later another storm hit, the wind howled, snow filled in the path, making it doubtful there had ever been one. This time I enlistted the help of my son, who maneuvered the snowblower through the barn and out the big doors. Goats scattered everywhere! "What's that noise? Run for your lives!"
We took turns, slowly making another path through the snow to their favorite haunt. Zoë delighted in the path, running up and down inspecting everything.
Aren't you coming?
Walls of snow
Zoë through the gate
We took a different path, digging through nearer the feeders. The drift had looked more doable from our vantage point at the top of the hill, but it proved to be very wide indeed. The spot where they had come in after the first storm was nothing but a wall now, blocking the way.
The tunnel from the outside...
...and from the inside.
It took a while, but eventually the goats were all under the barn, happily pulling hay out of the feeders and scattering it everywhere. Little did we know...
The third storm hit Tuesday morning. It was supposed to start around 9:00, but snow was already falling byt 7:30. The barn was shut up as tight as I could make it, but since it was built around 1780, there are many little cracks and crannies where snow filters, seeps, and blows through The first storm blocked up most of those places, but the doors provide opportunity to bring the winter storms right into the barn. It's always intriguing to see what curious patterns have swirled and mounded inside those doors. While the storms raged outside, the does relaxed inside, knowing they were snug and warm.
Today is Friday. The storm ended around noon yesterday, but opening the doors quickly convinced me that blowing snow could fill the barn just as quickly as the storm itself. I quickly shut them and left the goats in. This morning dawned bright and clear, the snow brilliant, the breeze light. The doors are open, the goats can go outside, but nothing is left of the path that Shawn and I so painstakingly prepared. It doesn't matter. Another storm is on its way, and they'll just have make do with staying close. So far I haven't noticed a hoofprint outside the doors.
A blizzard is slated to descend upon us tomorrow, but today dawned bright and clear. The barn is old, built around 1780, and as it's built on a hill, a sizable area under the barn is a favorite loafing place for all the livestock that have ever lived here. The area contains two outsize feeders that can be filled from the floor above, and emptied willy-nilly, much of it wasted (from my point of view), but always enjoyed. There are also wonderfully large, flat stones that the goats love to climb and nap on
I suspect that they won't be venturing forth for a while, probably not until I break trail for them (horses were very good for that, but they're gone now), so it seemed like a good day to capture them in their sanctuary.
The day dawned bright and cold, with only a little wind.Yesterday’s gales had packed the powdered snow into swirls and eddies,, drifts here and bare spots there.
Enlarge to see the beautiful swirls and patterns from the wind close up
The wind blows lovely patterns.
I dug my way to the barn last night and finished the job this morning.A high drift sits just in front of the side door of the barn,
while the wind completely cleared the area in front of the big doors, so that when I opened them, the horses were able to go out onto dry ground. I should have put out the hay in the barn before I opened the doors, though, because Magic immediately headed for the gates and the space under the barn, Angel following slowly behind her. The goats, too, were happy to be out. I put out some hay and returned to the house.
Later, after the driveway had been plowed, I went out again to clear the pathways, check on the poultry, and see if the horses had returned for their hay. They hadn't, and the goats had followed. The only response when I called was nickers from under the barn. Oh well. Out I tromped through the snow, hoping they'd made a good enough path that I wouldn't sink in. Wishful thinking! I struggled through the deep snow until I got to the rise above, Zoë ahead of me, struggling through .
Under the barn. They had to break through the drift to get there.
A huge drift blocked the barn area, but all was clear before it. Why they plowed through that drift to get underneath is a mystery to me, but there they all were, goats completely underneath, and horses on the outside edge. I called again and Angel pushed past Magic, eager to follow me and return to the barn. I scooped up Zoë so she wouldn't get trampled, for now Magic bounded up, scattering snow everywhere. She danced back to the barn, shaking her head in high spirits.
Magic waiting for me.
I left them there and came in. The goats turned up eventually. They had to brace themselves for the trek back, and hugged the clear area by the barn.
The herd
Snow is rumbling off the roof in small avalanches.This week's forecast is for warmer weather and rain.Everything will turn to ice at night and make it impossible to walk or drive.I can hardly wait!
I awoke at 4:00 this morning, remembering that I hadn't stashed any emergency water rations. Down I came and checked the situation. In the basement were 2 filled 5-gallon containers, and 3 empties. Upstairs they came, and I spent the next 45 minutes cleaning and filling. But first, Zoë had to go out. Well...she thought she did. I flicked on the light and opened the door to find the outside hallway filled with snow.
That's the door to the outside on the right
Zoë looked at it a moment and headed out the second door to the outside. It was comical to watch: she trotted about 3 feet and, without missing a beat, trotted back in the door.
After filling the water containers, it was 5:00, almost time to get up anyway, and hallelujah of all hallelujahs, we still had power! Okay, with the wind howling outside, rattling windows and blowing snow, that might not last. I turned on the coffeepot so my mother wouldn't have to do without if we lost electricity, and engaged my brain. It was cold outside. Thinking about that, I decided to bake some bread and some eggplant Parmesan that I'd been planning for tonight. Keep the oven going, and at least the kitchen would stay warm. I mixed together whole wheat bread and put it aside to rise, and then mixed up pita bread dough. I love fresh pita bread stuffed with salad, and kept that vision in my mind as I rolled out the pita circles.
The risen pita dough
Rolled out and ready to bake
Two done, 6 to go.
Around 7:00 Zoë asked to go out again. Same scene, but this time she sniffed the air before she quickly turned and scooted back through the door. It wasn't until 10:00 that she gave up the fight and stayed out long enough to relieve herself. Poor mizzable dog! She was not a happy camper, and neither was I, for I couldn't put off going out to the barn any longer. I put on two pair of socks, two pair of sweat pants, heavy boots, a heavy jacket, gloves, hat, and earmuffs, and ventured forth. All the snow that should've been outside the door was actually inside the door, so the first few steps were clear; then I descended into ever deeper snow drifts, until I was knee deep and struggling to get to the side door of the barn. No drift against the door, though! The wind had blown it all away about 6 inches from the door.
My footprints were quickly filled in.
Oh, the shock when I got to the horses! They were covered with snow, and there was a 2 foot drift against the door of the hay stall! Slush covered the top of the stock tank, and snow had even blown into the milking area. Worse, three of the goats were running around. I thought I'd locked them in their stall, but either they know how to open a slide latch, or I completely missed that one. I filled their feeder with hay, dumped some Chaffhaye into the round feeders, and secured them.
Magic, bless her cotton-pickin' little heart, had dumped the horses' feeder on the ground and pushed it around the floor. She's such a darling that way. Once all the snow was out of the way, I filled their feeder,, made sure the other goat stall was copacetic, and headed back to the house.
The drift against the door--and Magic's handiwork.
The water tank is right next to the outside doors.
Happy horses. Their feeder is full.
The wind is supposed to let up sometime tonight. It's still snowing, still drifting.
So far, we haven't been plowed out, so maybe we'll be farm bound for another day or two. At 3:30 in the afternoon, we still have power, so it looks like all that preparation worked. I still need to bake the whole wheat bread but I'll do that soon. I have some other things I want to do first, like write this blog and then kick back for a bit. I don't mind snowy weather one bit if I don't have to be out in it.
