Surviving Winter in Virginia

These last few weeks in Virginia have been brutally cold.

One of my favorite Christmas gifts this year was a weather station. It tells me the highest temperature at my house since Christmas was 36 degrees on December 26th.  The lowest temperature has been 3 degrees on January 3rd.  The wind speed has been as high as 44 MPH  here in one of the windiest places in Virginia.  (I’m sure other parts of the state located between two mountain ranges are much the same and Lovettsville isn’t really the windiest place in the state, if not the world, as it often seems.) Take the wind into consideration when trying to survive winter in Virginia.  Remember it feels much colder outside than the temperature indicates because of the wind.  The last week has been brutal although rumor has it we may get above freezing by next week, after some snow on Monday.  Be still my heart.

Another thing to remember, when you decide because of the weather there are things you need from the grocery store, everyone else wants the same things at the same time and shelves can look like this:

Shop early and often.

Weather in Virginia is not always predictable.  Our weathermen can often get it wrong. What is predicted to be a dusting of snow can turn into this:

Be prepared, make sure your cell phone is charged and carry blankets and emergency flares in your car.  Remember too that not all Virginia roads are sanded, salted, and cleared as quickly as they are in Loudoun County.  VDOT does a great job in Loudoun but that’s not the case in all parts of the state.

There are fun things to do in Virginia, even when it’s very cold.  The state parks, like Grayson Highlands, are still beautiful:

Ski resorts and tubing parks in Virginia, like this one at Massanutten, are a fun way to spend a winter day:

Remember too, winter won’t last forever.  In another two months, the bulk of winter will be behind us.  Think Spring!