Alaska: Blizzard - February 2011

Back last February, we had a true blizzard. Nearly steady 55-60 mph winds blowing for two days and dumping LOTS of snow!!!! OK, so the second day, the wind was maybe only 50-55 - can you tell the difference!! It was truly awesome!!! I understand "white-out" conditions on a whole new level!! School was actually closed for the first day and delayed for the second day. It was the first time in 12-15 years that school was closed for snow. I was one of the lucky ones - I could get out of my house with very little work. The way my house faces, the wind blows through, only dropping a little snow. So, I had maybe 2 feet in front of my door compared to 1/2 the villages , who had snow nearly or completely to the roof. For several reasons, I had to get up to my classroom both days - that was truly adventurous! Walking was slow and very thought-out, to keep from dropping into a drift. I learned that if you feel yourself walking uphill, that the other side of the drift is usually a drop off. I learned the hard way to inch your foot in front of you and feel for semi-solid or solidness before marching on (since I couldn't see much of where I was going. OH.... and if you start to fall off the drift, loosen up and bend your knees so they don't lock up. I walked into the backside of a few drifts - that was a funny experience. OK, so walking off of a drift was fun - but I suspect it is only because I landed safely! Snow machines don't do well in large amounts of fresh snow and neither do 4-wheelers.

This video is from the second day of the blizzard, taken from the top step of the EDA building -where my classroom is. I was still under the roof and bracing myself against the side of the building trying to hold the camera still.