Past Road Reports

and Great Pictures!

Boyd has been doing such a great job sending frequent road reports throughout the winter that we just had to save them with all the great pictures so that those who never make the winter excursion can still see the beauty and also appreciate the amount of work that Boyd has put into keeping the road open.

Enjoy! And Thanks, Boyd!

Report from Boyd

Apr 5, 2009

It rained all day Friday, BUT, it snowed most of Saturday! Many farms were flooded on the way up, and all the streams and rivers were overflowing. For some “good” reason, our road held up very well, better than expected in my opinion.

The “Miller’s Lake” portion has a few more potholes, dips and a few rocks showing, however. There is a “huge” fast running stream running under this, so we may need to look at a (better) culvert here later.

I set up an official “Preacher’s Point Department of Transportation” warning flag around a rock, just before the Miller’s Lake “big hill”. I would have taken it out completely, but my Swiss Army knife and fingernails were getting worn out…. I’ll bring real tools to remove it next weekend.

Apr 19, 2009

Boice Bradley gets a F, Miller Lake portion gets a combo B to D in a few spots, Preachers Point gets an A on the limestone crush areas and a B minus for the rest, with a C at the top of the first hill near Bill H.'s driveway entrance.

I spend over 4 hours working the road yesterday and today. I got rid of the big rock that I had stuck the flag on, and filled in several big potholes. I also filled in the "gulley" over the culvert the best I could. I used the leftover pit run that Blair left at the gravel pit last year.

I need some more Advil.

So, generally the road is in good shape for now but the

Miller section will need some proper work this year, as expected. Four neighbours were up this weekend.

It was sunny today but a little cool (11 degrees) and the ice is still hanging around but is going quickly.

Apr 28, 2009

We had a crazy storm on Saturday (Apr 25/09) with about an inch of rain in 45 minutes. This time, the gravel portion held up quite well, the the hills with the limestone crush took a hit. I was surprised how much of it was washed away. I am confident that this will get fixed with a proper heading, and its OK for driving, but the rain was horrendous!

I need some more Advil.

So, generally the road is in good shape for now but the

Miller section will need some proper work this year, as expected. Four neighbours were up this weekend.

It was sunny today but a little cool (11 degrees) and the ice is still hanging around but is going quickly.

Report from Boyd, March 22, 2009:

Mini Road report: still a few messy (2” to 3” deep in one or two ruts) areas at the top of the first “big hill” (near Artesian Lane cut off), and at the top and bottom of the last hill before “our” place. Not bad enough to stop driving however.

The usual rules apply: 4 wheel if you have it, don’t spin tires, don’t stop on hills, drive slowly.. Apparently it’s supposed to snow again up there, but not too much. The more the road “slowly” dries out, the better it is. So far, so good.

Report from Boyd, Dec 14-15, 2008:

Sunday: about 3' of snow, with over 6" of heavy snow on the road. Plowed to Artisan Road only. It was an interesting drive in, and took two tries to get up the hill.

Monday:Six hours of rain, 8 degrees, 35 KMH winds....Has anyone ever tried to drive on a giant barrel covered in butter? That was what it was like driving out this afternoon!!!! Not as lucky in that direction. Otherwise, heaven as usual...

Report from Boyd, Saturday December 13th, 2008 (05:09 PM)

There has been over 2 feet of snow in the last 10 days. It should be good snowmobiling, skiing, and cross country skiing this year. The lake started to freeze last Monday (December 8th), but it is supposed to get warm again next week. Still WAY too early for playing out there!

Brian is plowing every few days, when necessary, but we may need to get a "big truck" (with a plow) in there soon. Brian will get Barry Boice to plow, as he did last year on occasion, so there shouldn't be a problem here.

Winter 2008_11 (Boyd).jpg (122248 bytes)

Report from Boyd, Nov 27, 2008:
All is well and there is LOTS of snow up north already. We got over a foot last night and today!. Fox, wild turkey, woodpeckers and blue jays are all over the place, plus lots of deer tracks. Heaven, as usual....

Here's the picture from the road last week. It's not great because it was from my phone, but you get the idea......Luckily the trees "sprung back" once I knocked the snow off, sometimes by me, mostly by my Land Rover. Good thing it's an old one. My front bumper (and fog light) wasn't so lucky when I hit an 18" diameter (dead) tree that had fallen right across the road at the bottom of a hill. I pushed it about 25' before I could stop the car, backed up, pushed it off the road with the car, then kept going. Brian and Jodie moved it off the road the next day.

And this was all from the "light" snowfall!! Can't wait to get back up for the real snow!