Jay's Newspaper Column - Winter snow

Snow Time
By Jay Anglin - January 2009

This week I proved to myself again that you can harvest a pair of geese over eight decoys in driving snow on a day that barely saw the temperature get about 10 degrees Fahrenheit. I was comfortably ensconced in my layout blind
out of the wind staring out of a little opening into the blur of white, listening for the telltale sound of honking geese on the wing. For whatever reason, it just seemed like the thing to do.

It was difficult to hear through the heavy fleece cap and two hoods so I held as still as possible so I could concentrate on the white noise beyond my cocoon. It didn’t take long and the show started as the telltale honks built up in the distance. I managed to work some “traffic” birds into my measly spread but sometimes less is better apparently. Even with the benefit of lightweight expensive “miracle fiber” clothing reducing bulk, shooting was tough at best with the multiple layers of insulation. I laughed to myself as I envisioned what I must’ve looked like. I couldn’t help but to remember the kid in the movie A Christmas Story that was so bundled by his mother he could hardly move.

What is it about getting all bundled up and lying in the snow that seems to attract people like me? It starts at an early age. There can be fifty gorgeous days in a row and I’ll have to tell the kids to go outside and play but once a blizzard comes along they can’t get their snow pants on fast enough. At approximately 6:00 am Thursday morning I heard “Dad can we go sledding?”

“Kids, I’d love to take you sledding but it’s way too cold out there”, I had to tell them on yet another snow day. My four year old son RJ looked at me with disdain. He is the daredevil. His first solo sledding run a few weeks ago ended in a spectacular crash whereupon he emerged from the heap laughing and began to jump up and down and bellow unintelligible gibberish.

“Whooahhh, that was quewel! Whoohoo man, yeah, yeah, yesss!.....blibbity, blabbity etc etc”. I had visions of future requests for sky diving lessons and really expensive doctor bills. But, he gets his love of the snow honest as his father has a particular penchant for inclement conditions like we have now. But at some point you have to be smart.

Back when I was attending school in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan I used to have to deal with these conditions throughout the winter months. I recall one time I swung though East Lansing, Michigan on my way back north after Christmas vacation to catch the Hoosiers playing the Spartans in an early January basketball game. It seemed like such a brilliant idea, I’d buy a student ticket for $4 by borrowing a real MSU students ID and be back in Marquette by about 1 am or so. The game was great and I did manage to get that cheap student ticket with a friendly ID loan from some guy in line. But I did fail to realize that the northern two-thirds of the state of Michigan was under siege by a massive blizzard. Note to self, always check the weather.

So I trundled forth in my trusty ’89 Cherokee and managed to convince the Michigan State Police blocking my passage at every major exit that I was up to the challenge and had to be back in Marquette before class Monday. I begged and pleaded and told them my ride could handle the 14 inches of snow and larger drifts on the highway. The road was only fit for the really brave and stupid and there were only a handful of us that hadn’t wiped out already. Interstate 75 was like a graveyard for semis and station wagons, mini-vans, pickup trucks and ’84 Caprice Classics. I safely arrived in Marquette about a half-hour before my first class thirteen hours after I left the friendly confines of Breslan Arena.

I skipped all my classes Monday by the way. Apologies to the police I spoke with, hey it was a long night. The best lesson I learned that entire semester was how fast I could go in four wheel drive on an abandoned expressway through a foot or more of snow. At night. You just never know when you’ll be confronted with a rare situation such as that and it’s always good to be prepared.

I did have one thing going for me that time and I know the police figured this. It wasn’t all that cold and with all the junk I had in my Jeep I could’ve probably lived out of it for a week or so. Its one thing to get stuck in a snow bank when it’s 28 degrees but entirely another to be stranded in sub-zero temps. It’s downright deadly in conditions like we are experiencing now.

There were several drowning incidents this week across the state that involved ice, open water and frigid temps. Just because the ice is good in one spot doesn’t necessarily mean its good all over the lake. Waterfowl keep holes open on most of the larger lakes so be careful. God forbid a potentially deadly mishap occurs at anytime but with temps like this it makes it exponentially more difficult for the rescue crews to do their job. And while they are doing their job their lives are also at risk.

I’m going to wait until the temp cracks about 18 and then I’ll load the crew up and hit the sledding hill. For now, they can practice in the yard.