Compass and Camera: Through the storm

On Saturday night, a winter storm swept over the Door peninsula. We woke to inches of snow that even bi-hourly shoveling and blowing could not constrain. By Sunday afternoon, the snow was more than the snowblower could handle and I was reduced to shoveling a path out the door and a spot for Gus to use as his winter latrine. He was not amused with the 35+ mph winds and driving snow.

Monday the blizzard continued and despite putting in trails the snow was hip-deep in the yard. Tuesday we were due to drive to Chicago for the Matt Berninger concert at Park West, but we had 3-4 feet drifts across our drive and our cars were snowed in. Finally on Wednesday afternoon, 3/18/2026, we were plowed and set free!

It is a strange feeling being snow-bound. Not even being able to walk to the road except through hip-deep snow. It is quiet. There are no cars. The only sound is the wind blowing at 35 miles per hour, building the snow into more than it seemed. More than the record-setting 33 inches. The lack of traffic feels like early in the lock-down in 2020. Where nothing moved. Except this would have an end. The snow will indeed melt. Most likely soon. But nothing moved.

I trudged through the drifts to the garage and then to the bird feeder. It isn't not the birds' fault that Mother Nature covered their thawing ground leaving them without much food. Within hours they were huddled under the feeder or on the feeder, taking turns, refueling.

The snow will melt. Spring will come. We'll joke about this in the years to come. But for now, it feels like all of us here survived something.

Kevin

The drive and porch