Snow storm turns town into Winter Wonderland

Last week, the days where bright, the grass was still a little green, and the autumn chill was just taking hold. And yet over the span of a weekend, winter has taken over New Brunswick out of nowhere.

Upwards of 30 cm of snow was projected to fall over the weekend with it winding down by Sunday. Here in Woodstock, we found ourselves faced with an entire winter season forming overnight. Freezing rain combined with snowfall made the roads difficult to drive on, and most people in town hadn’t even put their winter tires on their cars. Combined with a power outage that lasted from 11:30 pm to 3:30 am, and winter had truly begun.

“It was an intense first storm”, said Darlene Skinner, a local teacher. “So many people were unprepared; the snow turned to freezing rain which made roads slippery and difficult to travel. This also made the tree branches heavy which contributed to a lot of power outages in our area.”

Snow plows made rounds almost every hour, as the snow built up on the roads; there didn’t seem to be an end to the snowfall with it going steady until near the end of Sunday. Even then, Woodstock had been transformed into a snow-filled sight to see.

There’s hardly a trace of grass or autumn leaves throughout the town as a soft blanket of snow covers everything that isn’t a road. Shoveling was common place during the blizzard; I had to help clear the end of my driveway a few times throughout the day.

The power outage we experienced wasn’t limited to Woodstock however; everywhere from Northhampton, Perth-Andovor and Debec saw power outages and downed lines. While Woodstock was lucky enough to have power restored just a few hours later, some locations faced outages up to several days after the storm.

Yet walking around town near the end of the storm carried a pleasant atmosphere. There was a peaceful quietness to everything once the snow was settled; roads were empty, the wind had died down into a cool breeze, and the snow fall had slowed to an almost mesmerizing pace. Stopping by the Ayr Motor Centre, I found the large gravel area surrounding its parking lot to be almost entirely covered in ice and snow. It was a little slippery and made the Haunted Drive Thru that had taken place there over a month ago seem like a distant memory.

Townsview school was covered in snow as well. Its playground and soccer field were filled with the tracks and boot-prints of students. A small path leading up a hill just near the school for kids to walk home through was frequented by students.

My street is more or less clear of snow by now. Pavement is visible, but the lawns of every house on the street were completely consumed by snow. The bright glow of Christmas decorations made the whole neighborhood look straight out of a holiday movie.

“The snow isn’t fun to clean up”, Skinner noted. “But it always looks pretty this time of the year and I can’t complain about that.”

With the storm now moving across the United States, Woodstock residents are taking this time to get settled in for the winter ahead. They may have be caught off guard last weekend, but now just about everyone in Woodstock has gotten geared up for the winter season.