Category: Nova Scotia weather

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Watching the sea ice float away

Great sheets of ice have broken away and are ready to float out of the cove with the wind and tide.
Great sheets of ice have broken away and are ready to float out of the cove with the wind and tide.

The powerful north winds of the storm earlier in the week pinned the ice to the shore, even while driving cracks into it. Now there is no wind, and much of the ice that we walked on in January seems poised to float out to sea.  What will it take for it to leave?  A south wind?  Repeated tides?

The sea ice nearby is keeping the temperature down in our yard.  Much of it is still covered with snow and ice, while up the road, further away from the water, the ground is bare.  It has been a hard, icy winter.  So I’ll be glad to see the sea ice go.

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Spring breakup

Spring is coming – we know it from watching the ice disappear.  Martins River down the road is completely clear now, but outside our sheltered inlet there is a large, solid sheet of ice that goes up and down with the tide but hasn’t yet broken up, except around the edges.  When it does, the tide will carry it away.  It’s preventing the ice pans in our inlet from leaving for the open sea.  So they’re melting, and leaving a large open space of water.

2009-03-20-view
Melting ice in the inlet, blocked by a large sheet of ice from the open sea beyond.

Thinning ice pans that we were walking on a month ago
Thinning ice pans that we were walking on a month ago
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Spring breakup on Martin’s River

A jumble of ice on Martin's River as the weather turns warm
A jumble of ice on Martin's River as the weather turns warm

It was about 8 degrees Celsius today, and sunny – a gorgeous day that drew us outside.  We went for a walk along Martin’s River, which flows into Mahone Bay between the towns of Mahone Bay and Chester.

We saw quite a  jumble of ice from upriver blocked by the two bridges: the former railway bridge that is now part of the trail system, and the road bridge.  The tea-coloured water was rushing around and under the ice floes.

Looking downstream, past the railway bridge to the road bridge in the distance.
Looking downstream, past the railway bridge to the road bridge in the distance.
Looking down Martin's River
Looking down Martin's River

We walked past the bridges down one the east side of the river.  The ice is thinning but still intact.

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Derek Hatfield sails again

Derek Hatfield and Spirit of Canada, with some mutual friends, in Halifax Harbour
Derek Hatfield and Spirit of Canada, with some mutual friends, in Halifax Harbour. Photo by Ed Sulis.

Canada’s Derek Hatfield (who makes his home in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia), was forced to retire from the Vendée Globe round the world, non-stop solo sailing race in December, due to damage to his boat.  He nursed his Algimouss Spirit of Canada to Hobart, Tasmania, where he fixed the damage, and on February 27, he left Hobart, determined to complete the course of the race, even if he is no longer officially in it.  Thus he will gain valuable solo experience and the knowledge of his Open 60 equal to that of anyone who completes such a race.  He will not get the support from the race organizers that he would have had were he still in the race.  However, he will be sailing along parts of the route in the company of some other major offshore races.

The Vendée Globe is gradually wrapping up with the final three boats now in the North Atlantic and due to reach France in the next couple of weeks.

Fair winds, Derek.  Hope to see you back home safe and sound in a couple of months!

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A foggy morning on the Nova Scotia coast

Sheltered inlets are still iced in.
Sheltered inlets are still iced in.

It turned out to be a beautiful sunny day with temperatures well above freezing.  We have a lot of snow and ice for that sun to melt.  Still, it feels like spring on a day like this.  Some people find this time of year difficult in Nova Scotia, when daffodils are blooming in Victoria on the “other coast”.  Others relish the cold temperatures and make the most of it.  As for me, I’ve usually had my nose buried in my work at this time of year and this year is no exception.  And I’m grateful for that.

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Mystery tracks on the ocean ice

Mystery prints. Looks like 4 paws, then 4 paws, then something dragged for a distance, repeat.
Mystery prints

I saw these on the ice the other day.  What do you think it is?  It looks like 4 dog paws, then another set of 4 paws, then something dragged for a distance, repeat.  Leave comments below.

Seagulls or ducks? The waddle suggests ducks to me. Pretty.
Seagulls or ducks?

And these?  Looks like ducks to me; I can imagine the waddle, and there are lots of ducks right here when the water is liquid.

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Lunenburg in the glorious winter sunshine

I had to go to Lunenburg today to see a client, and afterwords I walked around and took pictures.  Twas the kind of day that puts smiles on people’s faces.

I’ve just added several of today’s photos to the Lunenburg page of the Photo Album.  I love Lunenburg – the steep hills overlooking the harbour, its history, the generations who have lived there.  It’s special.

St. John's Anglican Church and Lunenburg harbour beyond
St. John's Anglican Church and Lunenburg harbour beyond
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Soft morning light on snow

On Feb. 1, the morning sun illuminates the Bay. Photo taken from the causeway to Oak Island, looking north. Oak I. is on the right.
On Feb. 1, the morning sun illuminates the Bay. Photo taken from the causeway to Oak Island, looking north. Oak I. is on the right.

There was a soft dusting of snow on everything on Sunday (above). Then on Tuesday came the biggest snowstorm of the season so far.  Schools were closed 2 days in a row.  In a storm like that, I feel I’m in a time warp – life seems suspended somehow, even though I was in my usual place in my home office, and the power stayed on, and the internet offered my usual window on the world.  Surrounded by the energy of weather, it felt like the inside of a cocoon.