Canada House Sitting Photography Prince Edward Island travel

Introduction to East Coast Winters

We have enjoyed an exceptional fall and an easy pace into winter here on Prince Edward Island. However winter arrived in force over the last week. We thought the first snow storm of the year last weekend was impressive, however this weekend another storm demonstrated that Mother Nature was just getting going.

The access road to our current house sit. About 600 metres of adventure in the snow. Fortunately there is an awesome fellow who comes and clears it for us.
It was almost idyllic after the first storm with the sun shining.
The boys were ready to enjoy the snow.

We were warned to be ready with ‘storm chips’ and fuel for the emergency generator for last weekend’s storm. Admittedly we were a little disappointed when it wasn’t as epic as we thought it was going to be. Not to worry, we got our fix one week later.

Our normal view out the backdoor.
Our view over the weekend. With winds steady at 90km/h gusting to 105km/h and over 35cm of snow, the visibility and snow drifts were amazing.
When we awoke Saturday morning to no power we knew we were in for a more authentic experience. The first order of the day was digging through the drifts to access the emergency generator and getting the house powered up.
Sunday morning brought a delightful example of beautifully carved snowdrifts all around the house. What the photos don’t show is how incredibly solid the drifts are. I now have a true understanding of why the locals call it heart attack snow.
Later in the morning the gentleman who has our tractor arrived to help dig us out. He informed me it took him 90 minutes to get to our house up the 600 metres of drive. We are very appreciative of the fact he got through..

We are very happy that house sitting’s main requirement is to look after the pets and home. In that way we are able to stay inside and deal with this type of weather on our own terms. It brought back many memories of working outside in similar conditions, and I am glad those days are past. Watching the storm through windows and sipping a warm drink is a much better way of experiencing this type of event.

Between tractor mounted snow blowers and gas powered generators these kind of extreme weather events make for a memorable and enjoyable experience.

Welcome to our travel blog. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to say, "I'm out of here?" Well we did, and in 2013 we made it a reality. We sold or gave away all of our possessions other than what fit in our luggage and we set off on an endless adventure. Part of our goal is to share our experiences with others and hopefully provide some information, motivation, or just a moments escape. The general idea was to look for a place that would be ideal to settle down in. However in the meantime it is about experiencing life in different countries amongst different cultures and learning how to understand and appreciate each other. A large part of our time is spent housesitting which provides an excellent opportunity to experience more of the "normal" neighbourhoods as opposed to the tourist locales. Though we make sure to enjoy those as well. So through plenty of photographs and a running commentary come and share with us our life on the road.

3 comments on “Introduction to East Coast Winters

  1. Russ McKeage

    Peter, I do enjoy reading about the adventures that you and Karen write about. I also like to see the photos of all the places you have been. I am really glad it’s you digging out of that storm and not me. Lol

  2. lol It warms my heart to hear you are looking forward to the authentic shi,,,, storms that life has to dish out.
    It makes me smile to think back on the stuff we got to do together and glad i missed out on the Randy, Brian cabin aka shed in the bush you could see through , Oh Randy. Plus the back of the truck ride out the next morning. Oh the joys of not asking enough questions. Enjoy the coffee Peter.
    Luck, when preparation meets opportunity. Bet you already topped the genie.

    hugs
    Kp

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