Snow day means no work, lots of play

By OWEN BOSS, NICK GRABBE and DAN CROWLEY

Staff Writers

The nearly two feet of snow dumped on the region in Wednesday’s storm — what one resident called the most snow she’s ever seen — was perfect for a few things: shoveling, skiing, snowshoeing and sledding.

And people were out in full force engaged in those quintessential winter activities throughout the day as the region dug out from the biggest snowstorm of the season yet.

It wasn't as bad as it might have been, according to experts. Amherst Department of Public Works Superintendent Guilford Mooring said efforts to clear the streets in Amherst went well, in part because most students were still away, and because the snow was easy to clear.

"It's a good time to have a storm like this," Mooring said.

Mooring said DPW workers found the snow itself easy to deal with, given that it was so light and fluffy, though the rate it came down posed challenges.

• Related story: Storm brings up to 26 inches of snow, no major problems to Pioneer Valley

Amounts varied across the region, with Northampton getting a foot or more.

The city has a snow-clearing ordinance, and several residents were seen removing snow along sidewalks so that others could pass safely. Among them was Joe Henefield of Wilson Avenue, who cleared an entire length of sidewalk on his street with a snowblower as well as a large section of sidewalk on Conz Street.

"We have a lot of elderly around here," Henefield said, by way of explanation for going above and beyond the call of duty with his snowblower.

There appeared to be far more people shoveling out their driveways and clearing sidewalks in Northampton than those using snowblowers, Henefield's tool of choice.

"It's almost pleasurable," he said of blazing a path with the machine. "After shoveling for years, it's almost revenge."

Out shoveling on Chestnut Street in Amherst Wednesday morning, Kelley Hamaoui said she got stuck in a drift at one point and had to use her shovel to propel herself out onto the street. "This is the most snow I've ever seen," she said. "I'm just like a kid at Christmas. I'm totally going sledding."

While snow closed many businesses and virtually all local schools, it was business as usual at the A.J. Hastings stationery store in Amherst. Hastings was open Wednesday, just as it has been every day since 1914.

"It's a tradition," said owner Mary Brole. "People who know us expect us to be open."

Brole noted that her late father-in-law, Donald Hastings, used cross-country skis to come to the store during snowstorms when he was over 80.

This time around, employee Chris Pfohl opened up at 7:15 a.m. - a little later than usual, but then he had to drive up from Holyoke. Most mornings, there are people waiting for him to open so they can buy their newspapers, but not on Wednesday.

There were six employees at work Wednesday, and as of 11:30 a.m. they had served only 12 customers. Richard Howland said he bought extra newspapers to thank Brole for shoveling the sidewalk from the entrance to the street. She brushed his car off, too.

Brole and the employees spent the morning catching up on paperwork, doing inventory and looking at emails. The folks at Fresh Side restaurant next door brought them ginger tea.

Police reported few accidents, and said that may have been because residents heeded their calls to stay off the roads so plows could do their work.

"Thankfully, people seem to be staying home," said state trooper Sandra Habel at the Northampton barracks. "The roads and visibility are terrible. There have been a couple of accidents on I-91, but nothing serious."

Break out the sleds

About 100 people filled the slopes of Hospital Hill on Route 66 in Northampton Wednesday afternoon, many taking advantage of the snow day.

Dressed head-to-toe in colorful outdoor attire, teen-age snowboarders launched themselves off hand-made jumps and younger children used toboggans and tubes to speed their way down the steep hill.

Easthampton residents Julia and Mike Kerr, along with Julia's sister, Didi DeAlmeida, brought the couple's children, Alexa, 7, and Nathan, 5, out for their first day of sledding this winter.

Accompanying their children to the hill Wednesday were Sharon and Jim Baranowski, of Florence, who took turns sliding downhill with their 7-year-old twins, Jake and Jenna. After Alexa pleaded for one last trip down the hill, Sharon hopped onboard a two-person sled with her and the pair slid away from the crowd.

The snow, all agreed, was perfect for sledding.

"The snow is pretty deep so it took a little while to carve out a path, but once we got that done it has been great," Julia Kerr said as she watched Alexa spin down the hill on a pink tube. "The kids just love it."

The snow was perfect for other winter exercise as well. Along Main Street in Easthampton, residents seemed eager for the arduous process of removing more than a foot of snow from cars, driveways and sidewalks.

High Street resident Sherman Yell, 53, said he looks forward to winter storms because shoveling away the snowdrifts is a great way to get his blood pumping during the winter months.

"I just love doing it," he said with a smile as he threw a pile of snow from his front walkway. "I've been out here since 7 a.m. and I'll be going back and forth from inside all day."

Meanwhile, on Lux Avenue, Ingrid Flory and Audrey Hyvonen got exercise by snowshoeing.

"We're just out here to get a little cardio," Flory said as she pumped her way down the street. "We're taking turns switching with our husbands, they're back home with the kids now and earlier they were out while we were back inside."

Much earlier in the day, Flory said her husband, Andrew Foster, and Hyvonen's husband, Isaac Bromberg, had used cross-country skis to navigate the neighborhood before the roads were cleared.

Also getting fresh air Wednesday was Lee Forester, who pulled a yellow sled carrying his granddaughter Mia Mancini, 2, along the sidewalk in front of Big E's Supermarket on Union Street.

After a short walk, Forester said Mia was ready to get back to the warmth of her grandmother's house.

"She was loving it at first," he said as Mancini tasted a piece of falling snow. "But I think it's time to get her back inside."

The light, fluffy kind

Three people were out shoveling for every one using a snowblower around noon Wednesday on Chestnut Street in Amherst.

Pam Ledoux said she was getting her daily exercise by shoveling, and saw no need for a snowblower. "We can do this without supporting the oil industry," she said.

Artie McCollum and Katie Lazdowski have been in Africa for the past two years, so this was the biggest snow they'd seen in some time. They were scheduled to go to Ohio Wednesday but put off their trip.

"It's light and fluffy," said McCollum. "I remember storms where it was heavy and wet. Lazdowski added, "I enjoy it, as long as it's not all the time. It's awesome!"

But Jean Kuhn looked weary and said it was the fourth time she or her husband had shoveled their driveway. "Today it's work," she said. "Sometimes it's fun and satisfying, but this is a lot of snow."

On Northampton Road, Jack Cheney was shoveling his walkway, and the snow was a lot deeper near the road because the plows had pushed it onto his property. At 63, he still sees shoveling as good exercise, but is mindful of the potential for heart attacks and takes it slow.

"I do want to live through this," he said

Northampton resident Leon Jasinski of Fair Street said he was impressed with the response from the city's road crews.

"I think they did a great job given the size of the storm," said Jasinski as the snow continued to fall Wednesday at noon. "They were down here at 5 o'clock in the morning and they've been down here two times since."

In Easthampton, a tractor trailer truck heading down Route 141 towards Mountain Road Wednesday morning turned onto East Street and got stuck in the snow blocking traffic in both directions for some time. The road over the mountain to Holyoke was closed at 2 a.m. Wednesday and remained closed into the afternoon.