Bleh
Average time to make the trip here from Springfield-area: ~1 hour
Tonight? 4 hours. We tried to run back to check the house and drain the pipes before the storm hit, but the supposed "light snow" dropped on us with a vengeance around 2:30, while we ran into the thrift store to look for new(er) boots for everyone. Fat damp clumps that stick do not count as "light snow".
So we hopped on the highway, driving nice and slow. I think we did 45 at best, 5 at worse, but never really stopped, until we got off and found traffic backed up by a semi that had issues taking a corner and going up hill at the same time. We tried turning off to take the back roads, but they were in worse shape. The first street we tried was so bad we couldn't get up the hill. We got turned around easily enough and tried the other way, but we got to the base of that hill, peered up, and said, "Screw that." Turned back, went all the way back to down town (this 7 minute trip itself has now taken an hour, mind you), in the hopes that the bridge has cleared.
It hasn't, but the semi is worked over to the side enough that the cops are letting 1 lane at a time pass while they wait for the city plow to show up. We were the last one allowed through (Thank the gods!), and the rest of the way was (relatively) plowed. Snow still falling thick and heavy, plenty of people who didn't know how to drive while fishtailing, and my poor husband is pissing and moaning because he's up a good 4-6 hours past his normal bedtime, and hungry to boot. XP
We made it home safe and sound, however. Our only mishap was when we got stuck trying to get up the hill without hitting anyone and had to turn around. Saw plenty of idiots who were bound and determined to get over whichever hill was defeating them, making a complete has of everything in the process.
We only saw one crack-up, though: 4 cars on the other side of the highway, but they were already up on trucks by the time we drove by. A lot of people spun out and off to the side, both on the highway and off, including a Mustang in front of that semi downtown (don't know if he was part of the SNAFU, or just got stuck trying to get around it), and a Mitsubishi sporty (I think a Lancer? Hard to tell under all the snow) that was 3 cars in front of us and didn't quuiiiiiite make it to the top of a hill. And one semi-tanker in a ditch on the highway. Well, he was trying to get on the highway, through one of the access points, but didn't quite make the turn. I'm guessing he was a fuel truck for the public works station that was right near there.
But, like I said, safe and sound, we had a modest little car survival kit (candles in coffee cans, matches, lights, etc. We're still missing the spare blankets that're in the wash), cell phones were charged and had signal the whole way, and I spent most of it laughing at the ridiculousness of it all. 6" easy by the time we got in, and it's supposed to keep snowing until at least dawn tomorrow, maybe with a few clear spots.
My brother sent a text asking if it was snowing yet (he's in Boston). I had my husband take this and send it. (This was between getting off the highway and our happy fun trip to end up back down here.)
Got home to this:
(Kids didn't waste time, did they?)
Tonight? 4 hours. We tried to run back to check the house and drain the pipes before the storm hit, but the supposed "light snow" dropped on us with a vengeance around 2:30, while we ran into the thrift store to look for new(er) boots for everyone. Fat damp clumps that stick do not count as "light snow".
So we hopped on the highway, driving nice and slow. I think we did 45 at best, 5 at worse, but never really stopped, until we got off and found traffic backed up by a semi that had issues taking a corner and going up hill at the same time. We tried turning off to take the back roads, but they were in worse shape. The first street we tried was so bad we couldn't get up the hill. We got turned around easily enough and tried the other way, but we got to the base of that hill, peered up, and said, "Screw that." Turned back, went all the way back to down town (this 7 minute trip itself has now taken an hour, mind you), in the hopes that the bridge has cleared.
It hasn't, but the semi is worked over to the side enough that the cops are letting 1 lane at a time pass while they wait for the city plow to show up. We were the last one allowed through (Thank the gods!), and the rest of the way was (relatively) plowed. Snow still falling thick and heavy, plenty of people who didn't know how to drive while fishtailing, and my poor husband is pissing and moaning because he's up a good 4-6 hours past his normal bedtime, and hungry to boot. XP
We made it home safe and sound, however. Our only mishap was when we got stuck trying to get up the hill without hitting anyone and had to turn around. Saw plenty of idiots who were bound and determined to get over whichever hill was defeating them, making a complete has of everything in the process.
We only saw one crack-up, though: 4 cars on the other side of the highway, but they were already up on trucks by the time we drove by. A lot of people spun out and off to the side, both on the highway and off, including a Mustang in front of that semi downtown (don't know if he was part of the SNAFU, or just got stuck trying to get around it), and a Mitsubishi sporty (I think a Lancer? Hard to tell under all the snow) that was 3 cars in front of us and didn't quuiiiiiite make it to the top of a hill. And one semi-tanker in a ditch on the highway. Well, he was trying to get on the highway, through one of the access points, but didn't quite make the turn. I'm guessing he was a fuel truck for the public works station that was right near there.
But, like I said, safe and sound, we had a modest little car survival kit (candles in coffee cans, matches, lights, etc. We're still missing the spare blankets that're in the wash), cell phones were charged and had signal the whole way, and I spent most of it laughing at the ridiculousness of it all. 6" easy by the time we got in, and it's supposed to keep snowing until at least dawn tomorrow, maybe with a few clear spots.
My brother sent a text asking if it was snowing yet (he's in Boston). I had my husband take this and send it. (This was between getting off the highway and our happy fun trip to end up back down here.)
Got home to this:
(Kids didn't waste time, did they?)