snowstorm of November 2006

Back in November 2006 there was a snowstorm that started on the 20th and continued through the weekend. That was my first year in British Columbia's lower mainland after moving out here from southwestern Ontario. When the snow stopped falling, I took a series of photos which you see here. Back east this sort of thing is normal, so the snow can be moved and cleared within 2 - 3 days and in a lot less time if its a minor snowfall.

I did some research on the internet afterward and found that this sort of thing was normal about 50 years ago. People here have been lulled into a false sense of acceptence by higher than normal temperatures and the lack of snow. So with the lack of equipment to move the snow, side streets remained snowbound for over a week. The parking lot where I lived was never ploughed and the management left it for nature to melt the snow. Such scenes were common in the area.

I was living in north Surrey with 104th Avenue and 148th Street being the main intersection nearby. That's where this series of photos was taken after the snow stopped falling. I'll let the images speak for themselves.

I allowed a blogger friend in San Francisco to post the you see photo above. This was before I started blogging myself in February 2007. There first few photos show a rather dull looking landscape but the mood changes once the sun makes an appearance where it shines through a break in the cloud cover to the south. So are we ready to handle such a storm if it happens during the winter olympics? I rather doubt it but we'll see. Enjoy the photos and feel free to comment! - V.