What do you hate most about winter?

[oldie moldy]

Well, here we are; stuck in one of the ugliest months of the year, smack dab in the middle of winter. The dogs and I are stuck inside pretty much, unless we wanted to go out and be concussed by the latest pacific storm. Last night my good wife asked me to carry some groceries in from her car, I opened the trunk and was reaching for the bags and a playful gust of wind slammed the lid down on my head. Saw stars and said bad words. Dang! I hate winter!

First on the list of reasons is the wind. It always seems to catch me off balance. It pushes and shoves me and it's always at the most awkward times. I walk around the yard picking up shingles parts that have blown off the roof; knowing I have some replacement to do when it warms up.
Then there's the dark. Boy, every year I wrestle with the blues; it's silly really, I don't lack for anything important but they still show up. Keeping the blues at bay reminds me of trying to get the cat into her carries to take her to the vet. You can do it but you can't relax one smidgen of she's loose again!

Now, how about you? What do you hate about winter?

Best Wishes, Rob

 

[snapper]

Sorry but my answer to your question is...NOTHING! Seriously, I never want to retire somewhere that has no snow. I'll be 61 in April but still love to get out xc skiing and snowshoeing. I still winter camp (both with modern gear and in 18th century winter re-enactments) and love to ice skate on my 18th century skates. While day after day of shoveling/snow blowing can be tedious at times, that one day of gorgeous sunshine and blue sky makes up for it in my opinion. Just the other day I was out snowshoeing in a local state forest. It was a beautiful mid 20 F afternoon with sun and blue sky. The woods were empty, quiet and alive all at the same time. Being alone was just the icing on the cake. I was snowshoeing in an area where I had hardwood forest to my left with lots of great views and a conifer plantation to my right with lots of darkness and hidden nooks & crannies. It was marvelous. We live on an old farm and can go out for a 45 minute ski loop right out our back door. It's not uncommon for my wife and I to don our headlamps after dinner and go out for a ski. Now that winter is coming to an end the barred owls are looking for mates so you can either listen for them or call them in. Either way, it adds another great dimension to being outside at night. And, since my wood pile is always a year ahead, even hauling in wood isn't a bad thing. It gets me active in another way and believe me, the warmth of a good wood fire is a whole lot warmer that what comes out of my oil furnace. Couple all of that with our outdoor wood fired hot tub where you can soak and enjoy the astral show up above and you've got the makings of a wonderful season.

That's all for now. Take care, spring will be here soon enough if you're not enjoying winter and until next time...Be well.

snapper

 

[Guest]

First on the list of reasons is the wind.
Then there's the dark.
What do you hate about winter?

Rob, in the midst of this stupidly long, cold and snowy winter the answers are easy:

Not being able to get the truck to the top of the steep ice covered driveway.

Driving home from Florida prematurely in order to beat yet another winter storm in the south.

Finding my favorite mid-Atlantic venues iced over and snow covered. And far colder for far longer than in recent memory, without the usual 50F weather breaks. We still have compressed snow on the ground from storms 5 weeks ago, layered like a pousse café with bands of ice.

I shouldn’t need crampons to walk in my yard in the mid-Atlantic. This is not a happy tripping truck.



I’ve found ways to deal with the wind – breeze blocking tarp set up, wind chair, boots, gloves, warm fur hat and layers. I’m happy to look like the Michelin Man in capaline, fleece, down and wind-proof rain gear. And would actually prefer that to the mid-Atlantic summer routine of hot, humid and sweaty.

The early dark doesn’t much bother me; I’m not on a schedule and if I want to climb into the nice warm sleeping bag in the tent at 6pm and read for a couple of hours so be it, I can hibernate.

The last two winters here in the mid-Atlantic have been unseasonably mild, and now we’re paying the dark Yin for that sunny Yang. This crap has to end sometime and I’m packed and ready.

I could move to a condo in Florida and take up golf, but I’d probably have to wear those ugly pants.

 

[Steve in Idaho]

The Dark. Yeah, it gets to me. We always have a period of temperature inversion here in the valley that locks in stale air. It gets very grey (often dense fog) and dark - all day and all night. So it's worse than just longer nights. It usually doesn't last more than a couple weeks, but this year it started early and lasted better than a month. No sun, moon, or stars for over a month - unless we get out of this valley.

Fortunately, we usually have to get out of the valley to go x-c skiing anyway.

If my work didn't keep me on such a short leash this time of year, winters would be a cinch. There is plenty to do around here in the winter, if I have the time. And we have been geared up for that since we were young adults. Snowshoes, x-c skis, ice auger, and lots of wool, down, and fleece. I don't like to complain about winter, because the snowpack it brings makes summer fun.

 

[stripperguy]

What do I dislike about winter?? The thaws!! They completely wreck the powder...
I skate, hike, camp, snow shoe, XC ski, alpine ski and BC ski as much as possible.
My favorite activity of all is skiing, in particular Back Country skiing. I have a set of skins, alpine touring binding and AT boots. I slap on the skins and climb up, then put the skins in my pack and ski down. last week I did a series of runs, in 3 feet of untracked powder, through the trees...a total of 4,000 vertical feet. Then I went home and worked on that canoe.

Even though I love to paddle, and sail, my favorite season is still winter. No bugs, no mud, low humidity, better stars.

 

[Waterdog]

I'm with Snapper on this one. The only thing that gets old is the shoveling before work and after work nearly every day it seems. Otherwise the more snow and colder the better. I spent the last two weekends snowshoeing and camping in the back country. I'm camping this weekend and overnight canoe trip next weekend. I've found that the best time to paddle is in the winter, especially white water, the rivers seldom freeze and there aren't any people around. Winter's too long to languish inside....







Cheers,
Barry

 

[Guest]

What I hate most about winter is my own lack of patience. I get wrapped up in wanting it to be easy so I resent the snowplow, freezing rain, and my hands always being cold. Then I go skating or showshoeing or just take the dog for a walk and I recover my sanity.

There's no such thing as bad weather, just bad attitude choices.

 

[Guest]

I hate to see a good man outnumbered Rob, so I'll cross this frozen forum to stand shoulder to shoulder with you. Erm. Sort of. I remember loving winter as a child. Pond skating, snow fort building, and tobogganing filled my days. When I was grown (but not entirely grown up) I stole spare time to x-country ski, snowshoe, and play the odd outdoor pickup hockey game. Now that I'm grown up and older (not old yet) winter's lost some of that shine. It delights me to read about folks who immerse themselves in wintry outdoor adventures, even though I've taken to happily hibernating. But, I've not given up on it yet. When I'm in the yard, and all is still, I feel that old tingle of winter excitement creeping up on me. (Though it may simply be a tickle of frost bite.) I might just have to dust off my skates and snowshoes, and relive some of my younger years, before a sudden thaw spoils all the fun.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

What do you hate about winter?

Everything.

It's only a question of what winter does to me first . . . literally: kill me or bankrupt me.

I so regret moving from northern California 32 years ago, and would move to Florida in a femtosecond if it were solely up to me.

 

[jbull380]

In Oklahoma I get 4 seasons almost perfectly spaced apart. I always look forward to the beginning of a new season as I grow tired of the one Im in. The older I get the more I prefer the 110 degrees in July and August though. But Fall is still my favorite of all. Cool and crisp after a long hot muggy summer. This time of year is my most hated. Wind! I hate wind! Its about 30 mph today. The part I hate about winter is the tail end of it because Im tired of it.

 

[Guest]

It's not my favorite season, but we adapt and enjoy

 

[yknpdlr]

I like winter, but not as much as other seasons. I willingly accept winter because if I did not have it, in most other places that people go during winter (from Florida to Arizona), the summers are absolutely horrible. I've suffered through some of them, and with the 90+ to 110 degree temps every day, especially with humidity, living in an oven is not for me.

I very much like that I can ski the many miles of broad hilly fields and heavily wooded backcountry right out my back door, but the frequency of deep snowfall here in lake effect country east of Lake Ontario means that I almost daily have to renew my track. I do rather enjoy the more varied activities when the water is not in solid form and the fields and woods are not up to my waist in snow as it are here. I don't like shoulder seasons of mid November and most of March with rain and mud. I don't mind the dark, apart from limiting available time outdoors.

But to the OP question of what I hate most about winter, it is the constant need to mist of my car windshield due to the road spray of salty wet grit every time a car passes, or when following other vehicles, even if I stay at a goodly distance behind. I really hate that more than anything else about winter.

 

[Waterdog]

But to the OP question of what I hate most about winter, it is the constant need to mist of my car windshield due to the road spray of salty wet grit every time a car passes, or when following other vehicles, even if I stay at a goodly distance behind. I really hate that more than anything else about winter.

That's a good one. I don't think about that except in real time. Reminds me of how mad I get when the windshield fluid light comes on the dash 30 minutes after I left the gas station for a trip. Am I the only one who has stood outside the car throwing snowballs at the windshield with the defrost on high?

Barry

 

[sweeper]

Wind is right up there.

The snow is building and the dogs are having a hard time exercising on anything but a packed trail, so it limits my woods time. Their labs so if I don't get them out a least every other day they start to go a little crazy and I hate to leave them for some backcountry skiing.

On the other hand this winter I have spent a lot of time reading, mostly about canoeing, and planning this years trips,

 

[JustPaddle]

I tolerate winter. At this point I am ready to see it go because I am beyond sick and tired of ice and snow. At least we're gaining daylight now.

 

[yellowcanoe]

You have to prepare for most of what you do out there.

This often happens when walking around the block.. Its not icy here. So you assume the three mile circuit wont be icy.. Turns out the hill part is a sheet of ice bordered by six foot snowbanks. Where are the trail crampons? Home.

Or this little gem today. We went bc skiing on the Presidential Range Rail trail in new but wet snow.. It got warm; the first day in a long time above freezing under crystal blue skies.
We had devoted last night to making sure we had food water, bivvy, layers of clothes ( dang nab it we could have skied nakkid) and safety gear.

After mile 1 the snow got sticky.. "Dear where is the glide wax?" "Dunno." Unload entire pack in the middle of the trail with much f bombs. No wax. Hmmm but we always keep Mushers Secret in the pack for our dog.

It makes EXCELLENT glide wax for sticky conditions.

 

[yellowcanoe]

Oh yeah at gas stations fill the tank and the windshield washer reservoir. It's not too bad a problem here in the rural areas..
I do not like to ride shotgun. You need to cinch the belt tight and hang on cause the road is going to throw you all over.

Bump signs have appeared and are as numerous as snowplows and everone drives like drunk.

 

[yellowcanoe]

Well I hate shoveling too. Especially the stuff that flies off the two roofs and lands on the deck. Resembles Portland Cement. You can see the lake in the background..that itty bitty patch of white. Its actually 3 miles long.

 

[Guest]

dang! Everything was all sugar plum fairy friendly when I got home early from work today. After smiling at the sunny skies and humming my way into the house, I posted a message here to mirror my mood. Then I took a nap. Don't laugh. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time. I've just woken up and, well, danged if we didn't get a heavy new blanket of snow. How sweet (not). It matches the one's we've already got. I just checked the phone for messages, and it looks like my wife's been snowed in at work, and will spend the evening, or maybe overnight, at our friends'. Oh what joy(not), more shovelling with desperate house husband cooking thrown in for good measure. It looks like mother nature has called my bluff, and boy, I've been dealt another hand seriously short of face cards. With the sun down and my worn out shovel waiting for me, I'll probably take it for a walk up and down the driveway for awhile. Me and mother nature needs to have a talk, and things need to get said. She'll likely try to distract me with wisps of fresh flakes and sparkly starlit heavens. She might even blush my cheeks with a frigid kiss, and convince me our seasonal love affair is still timeless. Well. We'll just see about that.

 

[red langford]

Barry, that is an epic ice beard!!!

I don't mind winter at all. Somethings get neglected in winter like car care but other than that dress for success go with the flow. I don't enjoy the wind in the winter though. Goes right through me.

Now that I think about wind, I hate wind all times of year. Hate it in winter because it can make an otherwise beautiful day bitterly unbearable. In the summer it can ruin a day on the lake and sure makes golfing tough. So I like winter, but hate wind.