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The last time I went out on our road, which is more than two miles over the hill to the hard road, it looked like this:
We were on our way to pick up Mr. Pibb. Someone else was driving. I haven’t driven myself anywhere in a week and a half. It’s not just the driving on snow that scares me, but the hills and curves and steep dropoffs without guard rails. I have this massive terror of sliding off the road and careening down 100 feet. I grew up on flat land where it doesn’t snow. I learned how to drive in southern California. The last time I drove, it was to take Weston to the airport for a trip to family in Texas. This weekend, he flew back. And for the first time, I had to drive again. HAD TO. My child was going to be at the airport. By himself. That, or someone’s eyeball popping out of their head, would be about the only two things that would get me behind the wheel of a vehicle in this weather. Our road, going over the hill, was impassable this weekend after so much additional snow. That leaves the only other choice to be going across the river ford, which is a much closer access to a hard road.
I haven’t had my car parked up at the house in weeks. This is what our driveway looks like.
See? No cars at the house now. Just a tractor, which at this point isn’t going anywhere, either. (Though it has gone up and down a few times.)
It’s a long walk down the driveway, and an even longer walk back up.
Morgan came with me because she was STIR CRAZY by this time and wanted me to drop her off at a friend’s house on the way.
Going out the river ford still means you have to drive on the snow-covered road, but only for a couple hundred feet.
I was hoping the hard road across the river ford would be better. It usually gets snow plow attention, which our road does not. The only real scary part about getting to the river ford is this one narrow bit of the road where it’s close to a dropoff to the river, a deep spot which in the summer is the swimming hole.
I don’t think anyone has ever slid off the road into the river there but WHAT IF?!
I inched past that spot in my Explorer and finally arrived at the river ford. On the other side of the ford, you have to get up a short but somewhat steep bank to get to the road. I knew I’d need to take it fast or I’d get stuck. I hit it and crossed the ford just as a truck I hadn’t seen coming drove past. And I had to stop. And I got stuck. And started sliding. AND CRYING. Because I am TERRIFIED of driving in snow. I managed to stop sliding backward, but I knew I couldn’t get up the bank. There was no going forward! That would just be followed by MORE SLIDING BACKWARD. And possibly some more SCREAMING. And hysteria. Don’t forget the HYSTERIA. I told Morgan to go find Frank!!!!! Frank lives in the house across the river ford.
Frank’s son, Denny, lives in the house next door, which is an old converted one-room schoolhouse. It’s the old schoolhouse where my dad went to school and my grandmother taught.
Morgan came back with Frank AND Denny. Denny started giving me directions about how to get my Explorer up to the road. I said, NO, YOU DO IT!!! And cried some more then Denny got behind the wheel and got my car out of the river ford for me.
Only the hard road that was I hoping would be so much better than our road looked like this:
And Denny said, “Oh, you’ll be FINE!” He told me how he’d driven back and forth to town a half dozen times. I sniffled and said, sure, right, and went inching off down the road.
Inching.
It’s seven miles to the two-lane main road where surely it would be cleared. But first I had to get there. Which seemed less likely with every inch.
A truck came barreling up behind us and I told Morgan, “These people are gonna LOVE me.” Because this is a narrow one-lane road. There was no place to pull over and I was going -10 miles per hour. The people behind us flashed their lights and waved their arms out the windows. The heavens opened and light beamed down. It was Frank and Denny! Riding to the rescue! I stopped the car. Denny jumped out and said, “I’ll drive your car for you.” And I could not scramble out of the driver’s seat fast enough. He drove my car all the way to the main road like he was on the Autobahn and it was nothing while Frank followed behind to take him back home.
Country neighbors are the best.
Weston brought a fiddle home with him, by the way. (Don’t tell him I told you that.) I’m fascinated that my child spent some of his Christmas money buying a fiddle from a pawn shop in Waco. Teenagers are so mysterious.
I called 52 from the interstate. “I CAN’T GET HOME!” I left my Explorer in a church parking lot near the main road where he met us and took us home.
It’s still there. I have no vehicle at the moment. At least I think it’s still there. Unless somebody stole it. From a church. Which would make them a very bad person.
But I don’t think I’m ever going anywhere again SO IT DOESN’T MATTER. I can’t drive in the snow.
And so now you have found (at least) one thing I can’t do.
Posted by Suzanne McMinn on January 11, 2010
Oh, and that is such a cool key chain! 
Looking forward to seeing the finished results, if you don't go camping, it would be a nice She Shed of sorts 
Wow, you really have gutted this thing! It is so much fun to see the process! Keep the updates coming!
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Absolutely stunning winter scenery! I’m jealous — but not of the driving.
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Thank goodness for Frank and Denny YAY!
They’re awesome! And I am sure your SUV will still be there when you return to get it in….March?
Take care and glad y’all are safe.
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I don’t drive in winter weather either so I understand your fears! Just glad to hear everyone is safe and sound. Hopefully the snow will melt soon and you will get your Explorer safe and sound to your house!
Have a great week Suzanne!
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even though we have a four wheel drive landrover(jeep type of working vehicle) which is brilliant in all weathers, i refuse to drive in the snow – it’s the other people who scare me! I have some easy clip on snow chains for my volvo which are excellent but you can only drive at about 20mph which is a pain when you get on a good bit of road.
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Before you know it, Weston will be playing like Melvin Wine, Tracey Schwartz, and Jake Krack and competing at Clifftop (at Camp George Washington Carver). Truly the “next step” for your new lifestyle. Oh, and to have a stringband, Morgan or Suzanne will need to play banjo!!!!! Yee ha!
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A fiddle how wonderful!! So cool!!
Big Hugs!!
Granny Trace
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Now you can just relax and listen to the fiddle.
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You should get 52 and practice driving up and down your driveway wile there is still snow. You just need some confidence that you can do it. You do not have to drive fast. And most likely the car is not going to slide off the road. The key is TO NOT slam on your breaks. That is what will make your car slide and go out of control. Slow and easy it the key. YOu can do it I know you can. Just practice.
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If I can drive in this stuff, you can!! Better to be a bit nervous than over confident!!
Scaring me when learning to drive the farm pickup truck MANY year ago was the slippery red clay mud (they didn’t put rock on our road) but those 3 or 4 inch ruts in the road kept us from sliding over the hill.
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driving, lucky you have good neighbours, hope it thaws soon for you.
Hugs
Karen
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I don’t care what anyone says….SNOWY ROADS FREAK ME OUT!
Glad everyone is home safe…now bake some cookies and relax!
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Would Weston be willing to give us a little concert like 52’s sister did? I’m sure he’s been practicing!!!
7:42
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Those road would terrify me. I hate driving on a road with deep ditches on either side….I call them “the ditches of death” and those drop offs beside the road look like ditches of death to me! LOL
You are a braver woman than I am….but what can a Mama do??? When their young’uns holler for them, we run straight for them!
Deb
7:43
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Would it help to have some sort of plowing done? Surely you have some neighbor that has a blade and you could trade some amazing baked goods for that? Or a load of sand or gravel spread around the really scary curve? Do your kids drive on that road?
Anyway, I really feel for you. I have a friend who lives on a lake, with a mile long driveway through the dunes. It’s bad enough in the summer, looking down those steep drops, but in the winter it’s truly frightening.
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I’m so glad you all made it back home safe and sound. Your snowy scenes are beautiful, but won’t we love it when the green comes back and the roads are clear again?
A fiddle! What a mysteriously pleasant surprise
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Susan
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Be safe and stay warm!
9:14
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To grandfather’s house we go;
The horse knows the way
To carry the sleigh,
Thru the white and drifted snow, oh!
Over the river and thru the wood,
Oh, how the wind does blow!
It stings the toes,
And bites the nose,
As over the ground we go…
How many times have you sung that tune on your way down and around the hills….we do a lot here in Tennessee on our old road…
Suzanne, you need a sleigh..and a horse then you could just leave your car at the the Gods Speed church during the winter months…LOL
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Both of my kids play violin or fiddle depending on what you are playing. It is harder to learn that most instruments, but beautiful music for sure. I don’t know why, but when they where in school and they got old enough to be in the band or orchestra, they both chose to play violin. If you can survive until the screeching stops and the actual music begins you will love it.
Stay safe and warm
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Hang in there and keep practicing. It’ll get easier.
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I have to say yay for helpers! And how awesome it was that the neighbor’s came after you to help out again!
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You need to get a snow mobile…that way you could get out and back a lot easier. It’s smaller and made for those narrow lanes.
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I agree with the others on getting some practice with 52 teaching you. There may be a time where you HAVE TO get out and drive in the snow and others may not be around to help you. Get some chains, put blankets and snacks in your vehicle. You will do fine, Suzanne. Just think of it as another thing you need to do to live on the farm. Hugs, girl!
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Blessings
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On Sunday, he got cold spaghetti for breakfast, did not say a word!! just looked at me, and hired a driving instructor the next day.
Sue something… Wolf??? Behr??? was a vicious mean horrible demanding instructor!! This was in Colorado in January, by the way… near Ft. Kit Carson, down from Rabbit Ears Pass.
She taught me to park in front of the police department!! Mean woman.
Taught me to do a 3 point turn on a gravel road with a drop off on one side and a cliff on the other in the snow… horrible woman!! The road was 3 feet wider than the car was long.
Taught me to merge at 80 miles an hour on the interstate!! LOL Anyway, thanks to her mean spirit, I can drive anywhere now. You need Sue!! I was more afraid of her than I was of driving.
Buck up and don’t cry! We can only cry if there is blood.
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We ended up backing the entire way down the one-lane “road” because there was no way to turn around and no way to proceed up. So…. GIRL! i can relate. My heart was in my throat! Next time we venture uphill, in the snow, in Western maryland or WV, we’ll have chains in the truck! (and maybe a pair of Depends for under my coveralls!!!)
Stay safe.
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Anyway, my point is… you can do it. It is totally in your head that you can’t. Get someone to take you to a parking lot somewhere and try starting and stopping really fast, then try turning and stuff. Once you feel comfortable there get them to take you to your driveway to practice there… once you get the hang of it you will feel like you conquered it and you are and awesome female driver because “look at me… I can drive in any weather!!”
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Your road is treacherous looking, but gorgeous! We have road issues, but it’s with gumbo mud!
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I agree that you need to practice the winter driving. My learning (teen) years were in Mich. in a car (donuts & slides in the empty parking lot at Kmart and chains occasionally, if you actually had to go somewhere). I then moved to Duluth, Minn. Yes, they are call ‘goat people’ because the city is built on the side of a hill leading straight down into Lake Superior. I learned about snowmobiles, how indispensable they are in winter, and not just for fun.
Since you can’t – just hold off going to hospital to have that baby in Feb, instead of April.
Safety says, to get you some chains, and learn to get yourself into town even in the snow.
I could picture every step of this story, when you were sliding and had both feet on the brake.
The shining knights in their truck behind you….the whole thing.
You have a great blog!
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THIS is why I LOVE my Nissan Armada…4-WHEEL DRIVE!!! She goes through snow like BUTTAH…Her name is Sally…she KNOWS I love
her and she takes REAL good care of my family and myself…NEVER getting stuck OR sliding…LOVE IT!!! I’m in Missouri…Kansas City area…LOTS of snow (and ICE…underneath!!!)
Never fear…we ARE getting closer to SPRING!!!
Take Care…and be safe!!!
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Winter here is from Nov 1 – June 1. it can snow in May.
I use to use a nice set of chains on my vehicle until I finally broke down and bought a used 4×4 truck. My next vehicle will be a Subaru, since 90% of all non truck vehicles, in this state, are Subarus, for a very good reason~! They will drive thru anything. Get chains and then a snow driving lesson.
With Global Warming, the southern areas WILL be getting worse winter weather.
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But driving on/in the snow in WV is a “whole nuther thing” and I won’t even ride in the car in the snow.
I stay home, safe and warm, and cook and bake and tell people to visit in the spring.
Of course, I’d have gone out in the snow for my son, but he’s in Turkey now. I miss him.
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Thankfully I don’t have to drive in conditions such as you describe, but back in the early 90’s we had one winter of ice storm after ice storm. Because I worked at a hospital, I HAD to get there. My hour commute became 4 hour commutes somedays. ACK! My bladder could barely take it! LOL!
I think a snowmobile would be a good idea, and maybe think about installing some sort of guard rail on your driveway this summer!
Good luck to you with the rest of this winter.
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I’d be just the same, hysteria, crying, moaning.
My stomach actually hurts just reading your post
anni
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