To hear some folks talking about our current winter, you might think it’s an abnormally brutal one, but far too many of us have rather short and uniquely selective memories when it comes to our winter seasons.

To hear some natives that live in the larger East Coast cities and nearby suburbs, you’d think this winter was the worst ever, with some claiming this has been the “Snow Storm and Coldest Winter in the Last 60 Years.” But those of us living in “upstate New York” (I smile whenever I hear that term), most would probably agree it’s not all that abnormal when compared to past winter seasons. Anyone remember 1966 or 2003? I sure do, and those two winters make this year’s seem rather mundane. I recall the snow was so deep and soft during those two, it even made getting around on snowshoes difficult.

I remember the winter of 2003 very well for two reasons. First was the snow in our driveway was so deep it caved in over top of our snowblower, the intake on which was 20 inches high. Also, I recall donning snowshoes and trying to hunt varying hare, and discovering the snow was so deep and soft that I got mired in it a short distance into the woods and had to remove my snowshoes to get out and then retrace my tracks back to the Jeep to avoid getting mired again.