It was a chilly weekend with lots of ice around to take you by surprise as you were trying to enjoy the great outdoors.
I have been seeing a number of people talking about how they were skating over the weekend.  I didn’t get a chance to strap on the skates, but have always loved outdoor skating.  We had some cool spots for skating when we were growing up too.  A flooded field was a great safe spot for us to go skating as kids.  That and a flooded swamp in the woods made a fun spot for nighttime skating.  I also remember some very cold days and nights on the pond, but that was always more of a concern safety wise as that spot has very deep water.
So how do you know if ice is safe?  The climate shift from winters we used to have changed things a lot around here.  I remember going down to see icebreakers breaking a channel in the Lahave river for lumber boats to come up to Bridgewater to load in the winter.  Ice fishing was always huge, especially down around Dayspring and if you look back in history there used to be horses and later on cars raced on the ice.  Now those areas are all open water.
So with the constant warming and cooling, how can you be sure you are on safe ice?  The Red Cross has offered up a guide and some safety tips to go by.

Canadian Red Cross – Ice Safety

 

The other thing to consider when it comes to ice is how best to navigate around it when you are not on skates.
I remember so nasty falls when I used to work as “dog bait”, aka a metre reader for Nova Scotia Power.  What is the best thing to use to prevent slips and falls on ice?  I found the slip on rubber cleats worked well, ice creepers.  Here are the top 10 if you are thinking of investing.

10 BEST Ice Cleats of January 2022

 

I also see that boots with built in ice creepers are becoming more popular too.  Here is one example with a video to show how they work.

Retractable spikes can be deployed in a few seconds

 

Just be careful as you enjoy the great outdoors.  In case you are looking for a happy thought as you travel through the winter wonderland, 11 months from today is Christmas Eve.  You are welcome, haha.