The trails are manicured and the windfalls have been cut and cleared. Snow fence is up along the highways and the wood is split and stacked. All we need now is cold weather and a fluffy white covering of snow.
The warm waters of Green Bay and Lake Michigan are one of Door County’s most valuable assets. The peninsula of land that extends up from Green Bay to Washington Island is surrounded by more than 250 miles of shoreline. These two large bodies of water on the east and west coastal shores are also heat sinks, holding back the harsh effects of winter as it advances it grip over the land between. Lake Michigan does not freeze closed but Green Bay eventually seals itself shut from coast to coast as the cold settles in.
With all of that geothermal physics at work we are late to get the snows that usually start to cover the central and northern regions of Wisconsin. In Door County we are usually delighted to have a “White Christmas.” I located a NOAA report of the Worst Snowstorms on Record in Wisconsin, but I am still trying to find a chart with dates of the first significant snowfall over the years. It seems to me that the odds are even on whether we will have snow for the holidays. But, my skis and snowshoes are ready… and we’ll be the first ones to spread the word if and when that magic white stuff descends.
For now, we quietly remain in that season my friend Toby, the Door County Kiteman calls, “Wet Sticks” – no leaves, no snow, just wet sticks.
