Standing Room Only

Ever since the snow began falling in December, Mac and Reme have been standing in a corner of the field. A January thaw produced a buried layer of crust that is a no go for our creatures. The snow banks around the house were shoulder high by February when more than one barn in the Connecticut River Valley collapsed from the weight of snow.

 

 

The view is nice from the corner of the lower field. When I often looked out on cold winter days I could almost feel Mac and Reme dreaming of grassy fields. There appeared rather despondent, waiting out the winter months, clad in their green winter blankets when the temperatures dipped into the lower twenties.

Last week, though, warm heavy air and rain drifted in from the south. The farm is alive with the sound of water: the ice dams gave way and slid with huge roars into piles alongside the house and barns ; the streams raged with snowmelt ; and the road washed out.

Yesterday, though, Reme ventured down to the lower edge of the pasture. And today Mac and Reme left their little paddock in the corner of the field.