Ohio weather has been changing too. Mid 40's on Monday and Tuesday and high at 1:30pm of 28 degrees today.. Have a couple big hickory and red oak trees I am anxious to get cut up. Worked on the hickory yesterday morning, but the mud got too messy. Was cold and cloudy today and would have been a good cutting day, but woke up with a headache and aches all over. Hope I am not coming down with something. Got the wood fire going, but just can't seem to keep warm.

I used to haul water to where I lived in Broadway. Had a 550 gallon tank on my 3/4 ton pickup. Picked up a few custom hauling jobs as cisterns were common back then. Finally had a well drilled and water softener so didn't have to haul my water.

Looks like the temperatures are moderating for all of us. Charlie is above freezing today and Ralph has a more tolerable temp to run the 40.

Gene

Gene, sounds like you better stay by the fire and make good use of that firewood today.
I put another hour or so on the 40 and blower again yesterday getting the driveway cleared and 24 hours later it is snowing again. Wind warnings for later today so that should put up some more drifts. Sure is keeping the snow blower shiny this winter. Tried out some new camera angles on this video.
[video=youtube;BuqkgJUVGKM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuqkgJUVGKM&feature=youtu.be[/video]

Ralph;

Pretty good video. That 40 is sure a sweet running tractor. Haven't missed the snow here. Be glad when the mud season is over. Have the little Case snowblower tractor in the heated garage. Just being pampered.

Been staying close to the house this afternoon. Had to do some grocery shopping this morning and stop at the bank. Walked to the mailbox this afternoon and by the time I got back, I was about worn out. Think I will run a good hot tub of bathwater and soak for a while.

Gene

Ralph, you blew that snow a little too far.  About two inches of it landed here this morning.  Still not bad for this time of year, so I am not complaining.  Pretty nippy at 16 degrees with some wind blowing.  We went out and shoveled for fifteen or twenty minutes and that was enough for now.   I should have been dressed warmer.

Gene, I hope you are over your bug and hitting on all cylinders by now.  Not feeling well is never a good thing.  Probably still plenty of work for you in the woods to get finished before the spring mud.  With only eleven days left of February, the spring mud may not be too far off.

Charlie V.

Only  a morning dusting of snow here in Ohio. Had 8 degrees this morning ans warmed to 18 now at 1:00pm. Light winds and periods of sunshine, so not a bad day at all.

Still not up to full speed. Feeling like a caged animal. Neighbor came over yesterday and brought in enough firewood to last for a few days. Brought in the mail too. I was able to get dressed in my sweatshirts and carhartts and go outside today for a while. Couple little jobs in the shop and taking trash out to burn barrel was enough for now. Back to hibernating until tomorrow.

Last week I got started cutting a really nice oak and getting anxious to get back to it. Will be a lot of prime firewood in it.

Have a great Sunday

Gene

Gene, sounds like another day's rest might be in order. Today is a holiday anyway.
Charlie, that snow was heading south again yesterday and last night behind a strong North wind. It blew in my driveway pretty bad. In spite of opening it twice in the past week I still got stuck coming home last night. Even four wheel drive , winter tires and momentum will only take you so far before it all comes to  a halt. Time like that is when I appreciate having an old gas tractor in the shed that doesn't need to be pre-heated with the block heater for an hour before it will start.
[video=youtube;GLl9RzAei14]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLl9RzAei14[/video]

Gosh, Ralph, looks like it is getting worse by the day. Not much chance of a spring thaw in the near future. Wish I could turn the fan in your direction and give you some of our 54 degree temperatures. Had 18 degrees this morning so ground was frozen enough to get a little wood cut. Mainly piled up brush that I cut last week and cut some more from the tangled mess in the tops of the oak tree. Tree was so big that when it fell it just compressed all the brush in a big mass. I am making progress though. Had to quit by noon before the ground started thawing and getting greasy.. Nice to be able to get back to work. Just took my time and didn't overdo it. Rain forecast for tonight and tomorrow.

Still cold in Charlie's corner of the world. He should be getting some of our nice weather soon.

Gene

Correct, Gene.  Started out with 8 F. this morning, but pushed 32 by late afternoon.  Heading into the 40's tomorrow, but with rain promised.  Turning cold again for Wednesday and Thursday.  At least we do not have any high snow banks to look over.  Have only used the truck to plow once this season, but it is not over until ??  Not about to remove the plow yet.  Speaking of truck, how is the Dodge working out so far, Gene.  I think Ralph needs a good one ton 4 x 4 with a decent load in the back and a V plow up front.  I know side banks are not a good thing with the cross wind, but they could still be moved out with the blower when needed.  With the truck you could do a quick clean up each time you went anywhere.  Naturally things like that do not happen without spending a pile of money.

Charlie

Still dreaming about Ralph's new plow. It sure would be overkill for my needs, but if I can link the video, it does look like it would be fun for the first hour or so.

 http://www.westernplows.com/wp/showroom/mvpplus

Charlie V.

Charlie, the Dodge seems to do real well. Have pulled my loaded trailer through snow deeper than the front axle with no difficulty. Was hauling for the Amish during the last big snow and he was afraid we would get stuck. Didn't even have to use 4 wheel till I started backing it in to unload. It is a real horse. Has new high traction tires and they do really good. I haven't weighed it yet, but I estimate it to be close to 9000 pounds. Have had the little tractor and snowblower languishing in the heated shop all ready to go. Seems to be a good insurance policy. I put bar tread tires on the golf cart and it amazes be how well it handles the snow. Been using it to go to the woods for wood cutting. Was muddy last Tuesday when I came to the house and it pulled through the mud and didn't even spin. Works good for pulling the wood splitter too.

Radar showing rain about 1 county west of us now at 8:20 so looks pretty sure we will get it. Still 47 degrees.

Gene

Charlie, I like the idea of owning a truck like that but I don't think it would keep my driveway open this winter. Those snowplow trenches were quite accurately referred to as "snow traps" years ago when people used to ridge their fields to try and catch snow for moisture in a dry year. I think if I had been ridging up the snow this winter my driveway would resemble this scene from 1971. Believe it or not that road has ditches but you would never know it. The graders managed to push a ve plow through and then wing it out with the side wing.

We never see banks like that here any more, Ralph.  they used to wing them back pretty wide with the heavy plow trucks.  Now if we get those amounts of snow without a thaw, the big State owned blowers are brought in and the banks disappear.  Haven't even seen that in a few years though.  I always move most of my snow to the east or South side of the plowed area to help prevent fast fill back from the wind.  I do notice that a lot of commercial driveway plowers do not seem to think of that.  I suspect the faster it fills back in, the sooner they get paid to clear it again.  Too often money is the motivator.  

Great news about the truck, Gene.  Glad to hear it is working well.

Charlie V.

Have had 3 nice spring days. Frosty mornings and light fewwze. Warm up to 52 today with bright sunshine and no winds. Ground is starting to dry out some, but still plenty moisture on the crop ground. Been getting 3 or 4 hours in the woods cutting firewood. Finished a big red oak yesterday that will likely yield a good 3 gords of prime firewood. Been able to get close to the work area with the golf cart with the new bar tread tires. Have an area too wet to get through so have to carry the saws the last couple hundred feet to get to the work area. I spent about 5 hours splitting wood today. Finished the big pile at the edge of the woods without working in mud. Sure can feel it in my back tonight. I probably have at least 10 cords cut and spiit right now and another 4 cords ready to split. I plan to keep warm next winter, plus have some to sell.  Not an easy way to make money.. Don't know how much more I will cut, but still have a lot of down trees I can cut. Been feeling pretty good and nice being in the fresh air.

Have rain and snow forecast for most of this week, but looks like most of it will go north of us in central Ohio. Sure have enjoyed the weather the last 3 days. Was actually able to leave the Carhartts in the house today and work with only a heavy sweatshirt. Looks like Charlie will get some of the snow we will miss. Hope Ralph can finally see some light at the end of the tunnel.

Been seeing a lot of squirrels in the woods and they are driving Bandy nuts trying to get them. Yesterday I cut down a 24 inch ash snag about 35 feet high. When It hit the ground, a squirrel made a quick exit to another tree nearby.

Hope you all can finally get some relief from the weather.

Gene

Thats some big timber you are cutting Gene. Our squirrels have to make do with smaller trees.
Nice sunny days lately with a little melting on the roofs but no effect on the ground cover. A few days of hard blowing S.E. wind with temps about 0F put some rock hard snow on my driveway. Surprised that the snow blower would even cut it but I did get it cleared over the weekend. Ready for the next one.
Heres a picture of my tracks on top of the driveway drifts before I got it open. That barb wire fence is my only guide line on these dull cloudy days like today though.

Ralph;

These big trees are pretty common here. Lots of oaks, Hickoty amd maples with bases of over 24 inches and growing to 165 to 180 feet tall. Many trees over 200 years old. Would be a lot of good timber, but the owner doesn't want to have it logged out. Mainly doesn't want the woods torn up. Many of these trees are breaking off more than 30 feet high so leaves a lot of tall snags. We will eventually cut them for firewood. The summer wind storms were very hard on them last June. I will try to get some pictures of them when I can get back to the woods.

Had cold rain most of Monday and today light rain with a little snow mixed in. May turn to mostly snow and freezing rain by tonight. Have some ponding in the low areas of the fields. Still some frost in the ground to prevent soaking in. Don't think it is enough to kill the wheat yet. It is still dormant, so will not be hurt too bad.

I can imagine how the snow is being packed by the winds. Turning into glaciers like the arctic. Hope it warms up and melts slow and no flooding. Going to make some soggy fields when it melts. How much total snow have you had? We have only had 1 snow that I had to clear out. Hasn't been a bad weather at all.

Gene