Not bad. Got about 4-5" of accumulation but it was heavy crystalline snow, so it weighed as much as a foot of more "normal" snow, or 15" of lake effect which is typically more fluffy. And the longer it sat before I cleared it off the deck and the cars, the more icy it became.
But it was manageable. Six years ago when my wife was diagnosed with multiple myeloma we moved from the remote hills of rural Richford to a more residential area east of Ithaca. I bought a top-end electric snowblower and danged if it doesn't do a great job. It would have been a bad joke in Richford, but it's just right for where we are now.
> It is pretty sparsely populated. But almost everyone around here is prepped for it. Most have generators. When we were house hunting, we were surprised at the number of people who showed pictures on their listings of their auxiliary electrical panel for use with their generator during power outages.
The Richford place was off-grid. Solar and wind feeding batteries and an inverter, with gas/propane generator backup. Up a steep winding gravel driveway through the woods a half-mile from the road, so I had a pickup and snowplow in addition to the big gas snowblower.
I enjoyed the challenge, but Lord it certainly was a challenge!
I'm now 74, with a bad back, bad feet, and a big kidney stone that threatens to come loose and hospitalize me. That place was home since my first wife and I built it when I was half this age. It's a younger man's adventure, and indeed I sold it to a younger couple who are doing well with it.
But I'm still subject to Upstate NY / Fingerlakes weather, so your posts are of great interest. Thanks, and keep 'em coming!
Sounds similar to us for rural but we’re on the grid. We do know people. though, who live like you used to. Very inaccessible and off grid.
I grew up in the Buffalo area (NORTH of Buffalo though) and moved to the Syracuse area when we got married. The Southern Tier of NY is GORGEOUS and my favorite part of the state.
Don’t miss the government, taxes, or snow with its pervasive overcast. Do miss the wonderful house we left though.