Freezing river

It started maybe two weeks ago with some skims of ice around the banks. Then one morning we saw big chunks of ice floating downstream, and that lasted a few days, before the chunks started to bump against each other, move less, and pretty much just sit there.

Now, although the weekend was warm again, the Connecticut River is more or less frozen across. On the calm, shallow waters of the Retreat Meadows, people are fishing and skating already. I say already, but of course it’s very late for here. Most years people are able to stand out on the Meadows ice and watch New Year’s Eve fireworks.

This picture was taken from the island in the middle of the Connecticut River, which in fact used to be a park. Now, it’s just low-lying sand and driftwood, and unfortunately serves as a campsite for a few people with nowhere else to go. You can see our house in the upper right, not the church steeple, not the 3-story squarish gray house, but the long, low building tucked under its wing.