Cold Snow

Mrrrr Friends,

It's a gorgeous snowy morning here in the Adirondack Park. Our neighbors across the lake in Vermont received 26" of snow overnight. Here in our little valley shaded by the Sentinel Mountains, the accumulation is much more modest...so far.

Looking forward to frolicking in the fluffy stuff, I went out this morning and, within seconds, thought my little pads had fallen off.

After getting down the hill, I bummed a ride on Oom's shoulders. We got down to the bench but, my paws were still cold. We took a quick peek at the  brook...

But that was it. I was trekking back...for about two seconds. Then I bummed a ride again.

Turns out it was 4 degrees out there.  I kind of thought twice when Oom first opened the door. The second clue was that there were no birds or chipmunks noodling about... Then, my paws hit the permafrost.

I now know my paw limit in human temperature terms. Don't go out for a bare paw walk when it's 4.

I'm thinking hibernation is sounding pretty good right now.  That, and intensive cat toy research.

Has anybody found me a set of catluks yet?

The Chill is Good

-4 Fahrenheit? No problems.

I know a lot of my cat pals are keeping their paws inside these days. That big freeze that hit in the Rockies meandered over this way this past week. Boo looks a bit intimidated, but I say: bring it on!

I'm still a little short on snow here, though. The nice lady who writes the Adirondack Naturalist blog has lots more than we do, even though she's a way south in the Big Park. Check this out under our arborvitae where I've been keeping my cleavers sharp:

But with the cold, having a snow free option isn't completely bad cause, I admit, the snow can get cold.

It's moments like this that I feel a pair of catluks would be a great addition...

But you're wondering about my brook aren't you? Well, we went down this morning when it was just single digits (it got up to a balmy 18F or so later).

And look at the cool stuff we found...water still flowing but some great ice. Check out my rock:

Cool formations...I was gonna walk out an lick them but Oom kind of freaked when the ice creaked under me.

It means a lot though to be able to go inside and warm up, get some chow, nap and read a good bird book.

Times like this, I think about wanderers, or cats at shelters who are looking for homes, or, worse, cats stuck outside who want to come in and can't find a haven. For goodness sake, this is a good time of year to help out your local shelter.

My local shelter is the North Country SPCA and I sent my people off to their fund-raiser last night to chip in some kibble. I'd have gone, but I didn't want to steal the limelight from noted human author, and furry man, Russell Banks. I mean he's furry, he's smart with words, and spins a good tale, but I don't think the womenfolk really want him to sit on their lap.

It's a Start

Mrrrrr Friends,

Well, we did wake up to a powder sugar coat this morning.

It's a start.

It was a crisp snow...stiff and wet under the paw. The temperature dipped below 20 last night in human degrees. My brook had ice on the boulder tops.

I walked around a bit, following a few interesting tracks in the snow. It was coming down lightly the whole time...you could look up and see little snow crystals in the slanty half light.

Woodswalker commented the other day that she was amazed I like going out in the snow and cold. And my neighbor cat pal Brewster, he doesn't get it either. I love the snow...I really do. I guess it's in my genes, being from Wisconsin and all. Here's a pic from a earlier blog - a younger me in the snow at our house in Rock Springs. This was about 3 feet of March snow pack so, with wise paw placement, a fellow could stay on top...most of the time.

My paws are pretty furry in the winter. Nice tufts of fur - not long - between each pad help keep things insulated. But, I gotta admit, as I get older, my tolerance for cold paws has diminished. Perhaps I got soft during the two warm winters on Long Island? Who knows.

This is a bad picture, but here's one strategy I pursue. Occasionally, I'll ask Oom to kneel down. I can hop up, warm my paws and do a little grooming. Or, when the white stuff gets deep, I'll clamber up on her shoulders and ride for a bit. Usually, she gets that I don't want to go inside already and she'll head off in a direction I'm interested in exploring. My paws warm up in a few minutes, and then I'll do a Diesel Dive, clambering down to go on my merry way.

I'm looking into getting a pair of catluks though. You know, mukluks for cats? Nice moose-hide catluks would really make the difference, especially on my longer snowy treks and for rock hopping in the brook during the winter. I wrote the cool people at Steger - Boo has a pair of their mukluks - about a set of catluks - like small sled dog booties but for snow cats. I haven't heard back from them. Hmmmmrrr?

Tomorrow's forecast?