Ice Storms

We have had two different ice storms already this winter. The following photo illustrates what essentially every branch and twig on every tree and bush (and every power line) currently looks like.


Naturally, this adds quite a bit of weight to everything, but it can also add some beauty to the overall scene.



In addition to power outages and slippery conditions, some of our trees have taken quite a hit. Our big white pine suffered some damage in last February's storm, but it recovered fairly well. This time, however, the damage is pretty severe. Most of the upper branches have broken, and there are broken stubs all the way down. Lots of the broken pieces are still hung up on branches that survived (for now), and there is a huge mass of bent and broken limbs at the ground. These are currently frozen down, so until it warms enough to melt the ice, I can't really clean up the mess.


On the other hand, the bush that I decorated with four strings of lights is now completely encased in ice and drooping to the ground, but when the lights come on each evening, it is quite the sparkling show.