A Winter We Will Never Forget

Poll residents at The Jersey Shore and ask if they own a snow shovel, and you will get about a 50% yes and a 50% no. The reason for this is because on average, The Jersey Shore only gets a few inches of snow each year. Surrounding areas are known for much more, an average of up to 20+ inches, but at the shore, a little more than 2-3 inches and everyone is talking about it.

The reason for the lack of snow along the Jersey Coastline is because the ocean temperature is normally above freezing so that helps make the snow turn to rain. Go inland any distance and the rain then turns to snow. The 2009/2010 winter season has been an exception.

The first major snow storm of the season started five days before Christmas. Everyone was talking about some substantial snow coverage, but we at the Jersey Shore figured we would be spared the agony of shoveling, and driving on treacherous roads. We were wrong. We received over 15” of snow, which literally brought us to our knees.

Being a novice when it comes to large amounts of the white stuff, I waited until all the snow piled before I attempted to shovel. Big mistake. My Home Depot plastic shovel could barely withstand the weight of the snow and the lower levels of snow were slush and ice. So I quickly learned that by attempting to pick up from top to bottom the whole 15” at a time, my back was going to break in about 3 minutes. And it did. Three minutes into the job, my lower back was hurting. So I stopped and waited until the pain subsided. And then I tried again. After a half hour, I decided to let the snow melt naturally, which works well when you only have a few inches. Three days later, the snow was still there, so I went out and pushed the snow around to make a path along the sidewalk.

Following in January and February, we received two more major snowfalls and one smaller one. By February 10, 2010, we have broken all previous records along the Jersey Shore. With over 40” on record everyone I know was sick and tired of this white fluffy stuff that makes kids jump for joy. I often wondered why my father was such a “Grouch” when snow was coming. I couldn’t wait to make a snowman, sled, or get into a neighborhood snowball fight. But all dad did was grumble and complain. I’ve become my father’s son and I know exactly where he was coming from.

With over a month and a half left before the Winter season is over, my solution to the problem was to “Get Out of Dodge”. So I packed my bag and my wife and we headed South for a reprieve. As I write this article, I’m sitting in Sunny Florida and life is good. Unfortunately we will be back in five days to deal with Mother Nature at her worse. All I can do is count the days until April Showers take over the snowy days of the Winter of 2009/2010.