Traveling in Winter

We love traveling at every time of the year and that includes the winter season as well. When it comes to traveling at this time of year there are several considerations. Whether traveling by plane or traveling by car, weather conditions can change quickly and you need to be aware of road conditions. Obviously snow and freezing rain can cause havoc with air travel and it doesn’t even have to be where you are flying out of. Flights being cancelled in one part of the country can lead to flights being delayed or cancelled throughout the rest of the country. It doesn’t have to snow to cause delays, sometimes just the freezing cold can be enough to cause a delay as planes de-ice prior to take off, causing flights to spend extra time on the tarmac. When traveling during the winter, it is even more important to make sure that you don’t choose flights with short layovers that don’t provide any buffer if your flight does take off late. Finally, we all want to pack light these days, but cold temperatures during winter don’t make that as easy as normal. It is important to use layers and perhaps wash clothes during your trip so that don’t have to take a suitcase full of sweaters. Fortunately there are many brands of clothing that provide lightweight clothing that keep you warm without being bulky. We definitely took advantage of clothing made with those materials during our trip to Iceland in February a couple of years ago. Here are a few photos for Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge, Cold, that just might have you reaching for a blanket and a cup of hot chocolate.

Snowing in Aspen, Colorado
We Were Very Cold in Iceland

 

Driving in a Snowstorm
Stream Surrounded by Snow and Ice
Standing in Reykjavik, Iceland
Frozen River from the Michigan Street Bridge in Chicago
Snowmobiling in the Mountains

 

Springtime in the Rockies

So, technically we’re in the front range and not in the mountains, but March and April are our snowiest months.  On Tuesday, it was sunny and warm and then yesterday we were in the midst of a blizzard with over a foot of snow and sixty mile an hour winds.  When we talk to people who aren’t familiar with Colorado, they assume that getting snow like that is pretty common, but really it isn’t.  Normally we get a couple of inches of snow and then it goes away the next day, so this was definitely unexpected.  In fact, the storm was so bad that it closed Denver International Airport for only the third time since its been open.  All highways between Denver and Colorado Springs were closed as well as from Denver and Colorado Springs to Kansas were also closed, stranding hundreds of motorists.  The national guard was called out to rescue stranded motorists as this storm caught everyone off-guard.

It Didn’t Start Out Too Bad
But as We Drove, It Got Worse
And Worse

During a storm of this magnitude, it is recommended that you stay off the roads unless you absolutely have to go someplace.  Unfortunately, we had to get on the roads for a short while and it was a harrowing experience.  We thought that driving in Iceland was white knuckle driving, but compared to yesterday, that was a walk in the park.  At times the wind and snow was causing true whiteout conditions where we couldn’t see more than a couple of feet in front of the car.  In fact, we almost missed the turn into our neighborhood because we literally couldn’t see the intersection.  Fortunately, we made it home safely and were happy not to be on the road anymore.

Then It Was Down Right Dangerous
We Couldn’t See Anything – There Are Cars Ahead of Us
We Couldn’t Wait to Get Home
It Was Quite the Drive