Snow Cats

Day 137: Spring in the Pacific Northwest means weather. What kind of weather? You name it. In our history, we have had 80-degree days in February and we have had temperatures below zero (that's 26 and -18 to you Celsius types). We have had three feet of snow on the ground. We have had flood-producing rain. I've never suntanned in February, but then, this is the Pacific Northwest. "We don't tan; we rust," or so the saying goes. And conversely, we have had snow and killing frosts in June. Was I surprised to see snow on my pussywillows a few days ago? Not particularly. Was I surprised yesterday by the pea-sized hail which chattered so loudly on the metal awning over my back porch that it sounded like Animal playing the drums? Nope. I just shrugged and said, "Eh, February." Now that said, February weather is a little more consistent as you move up in altitude, and sometimes the snow accumulation on the Mountain is pretty impressive. Record snowfall at Paradise was 1,122 inches in the year 1971-72. Go on, divide that by 12. That's ninety-three and a half feet of snow (no typo there...93.5 feet)! Of course, that fell over a 12-month period. Currently, Paradise has 212 inches on the ground according to the Snotel weather station. Seventeen feet may not be as impressive as ninety-three, but you can't really dismiss its significance.