February 18, 2021 - A Week of Snow & Ice

     The last week has been full of snow and ice for so many. Terrible road conditions, power outages, and downed trees filled the weekend. Ridgefield NWR was not spared from the incidents brought about by the weather, and I wanted to give you guys an update on what went on at the Refuge during & after the storm. 

    This last Monday was President's Day, a federal holiday, so most refuge staff took the day off  (or teleworked if needed). The USFWS Refuge Maintenance Crew, Tod Nuffer & Eric Henson, were able to make it into the River 'S' Unit on Tuesday and began plowing the roads and removing downed trees, so that staff could more easily access the shop on Bachelor Island. Due to the hard work of our Maintenance team, I was able to make it into the shop by Wednesday to complete essential field work tasks. The Maintenance Team has been working hard to plow and clean up the rest of the auto-tour route so that we can safely open back up to the public.

    Mesha Wood, USFWS Park Ranger for the Ridgefield NWR Complex, was able to construct 2 whole snowmen last weekend during the storm. This week when I arrived to work, the snowmen were melted and droopy looking - so I asked Mesha if she could send me photos of the snowmen when they were freshly constructed. She actually did me one better, and sent me a bunch of pictures, not only of her snowmen, but also of Bachelor Island during the snow storm! I threw in some of the pictures that I took later in the week as well - as the snow was starting to melt. Please enjoy these photos of the Refuge covered in snow ❄

Snowman #1 is cute and is equipped with binoculars for spotting Refuge Wildlife. PC - Mesha Wood

Snowman #2 is decked out in FWS gear, and is masked up for Covid safety. PC - Mesha Wood 

Anybody want to guess what kind of foot-prints these are? PC - Mesha Wood

Cute little bunny footprints left in the snow. PC - Mesha Wood

Another footprint photo. After discussing what this could be with Mesha, it seems likely that this was left by a stray dog of some sort. We both think that this is a bit too large to be a coyote. PC - Mesha Wood

Opossum prints are the cutest. When I got to work on Wednesday, these tracks were left all over the place. These were found outside of the high tunnel, and lead straight up to the front door! When I opened the high tunnel for the first time after the storm, I did a search to make sure no critters were hiding out, waiting to scare me. 

This is the road to the shop covered in snow towards the beginning of storm. Fresh tire tracks were left by staff heading home before road conditions got too bad last Friday.  PC - Mesha Wood

The same road paired with a beautiful sunset. PC - Mesha Wood

The high tunnel faired well during snow storm. Due to the slanted shape of the roof, snow was able to slide off before it accumulated heavily enough to do any damage to the structure. PC - Mesha Wood

Another beautiful sunset photo captured by Mesha Wood. 

A Great Blue Heron resting in the corner of a slew off of the auto tour route. 

A mama and baby Columbia White-Tailed Deer foraging in the snow. PC - Mesha Wood

A pair of geese waddling down a snow-covered dike road. 

This was what the high tunnel looked like when I arrived to work on Wednesday morning. The snow had piled up along the north and southern walls - it slid right off the roof!

Because I had staged the potted plants outside the southern wall of the high tunnel for sunlight, they were completely buried in snow when I arrived to work on Wednesday. I spent a bit of time digging them out of the snow, and by Thursday they were visible again! Fortunately, all of the plants survived being buried without breaking or snapping. 

The snow accumulated in high amounts in the forest canopy at Ridgefield over the weekend. Due to this, any areas of the auto tour route that travel underneath a patch of forest were littered with downed trees and branches after the snow storm. The Maintenance Crew has had to spend a large portion of their time this week clearing the auto tour route so that it is deemed safe for our visitors. 

Another image capturing the carnage left by the weight of the snow in the forest canopy. This branch did not break completely, but you can see where it fractured due to the added force. 

What a crazy week of weather we have had. A special shout must be given to the USFWS Refuge Maintenance Team for all of their hard work to make sure that the auto tour route is safe and passable for our visitors. The River 'S' Unit will be reopening to the public this weekend, February 19th! I hope that you all enjoyed the snow and are staying warm.