Remembering the blizzard of '78 (where were you when the blizzard hit?)

The Boston Globe ^ | 02/06/03 | B. J. Roche

[Nonfaction]

Three feet is no big deal, but ten-foot drifts packed by hurricane-force winds is a different story. I've lived in New England and upstate NY my whole life, and this was by far the worst snowstorm I've ever seen.

[nothingnew]

I remeber. I was working the night shift at a printing company in West Haven,CT. My friend and I left at 1:00 AM to go home to my house in Milford, CT to have a few beers. It was snowing so hard, my friend decided to stay over.

In the morning, the snow was unbelievable. Roads were ordered closed...and we were outta beer!

Chained up my Dodge van, put crosses on it with red masking tape and headed for the package store, which WAS open.

Never got stopped by any police...When we got to the package store, there were about 6 off-duty cops there that we knew...heh heh heh...

Got back home safely and stayed there for 2 days, with a very ample stock of beer and Jose'.

FMCDH

[nothingnew]

BTW...I now live in Colorado, and this is expected stuff here...the blizzard of 92 was a good one!

FMCDH

[Hatteras]

"...and this was by far the worst snowstorm I've ever seen."

Sounds like flurries compared to all the tall tales I heard from the northerners who've relocated to the south, that's all.

BTW, I am well aware of the storm in 1978. That's why I chuckle whenever I hear are relocated friends running off at the mouth.

[RepoGirl]

The snow drifts were over my head. brrrrrr cold.

Yeah, it sure looked cold. But, it was pretty chilly in Florida at the time, I think it was around 60. We had to wear sweatshirts...and long pants.

[aristeides]

I was living in East Cambridge near the Middlesex County Court House, on Third Street near Lechmere. I took the Red Line home from Harvard, got off at Kendall Square, and attempted to walk the half mile on Third Street to my apartment. I crossed the street, and could get no further, the wind was so strong. I had to retrace my steps, get back on the Red Line, change to the Green Line, and get off at Lechmere. From there, the direction of the wind allowed me to walk. I've never faced winds that strong any other time.

[habs4ever]

You never got over the trauma, did ya? Does this explain your why your life has never been the same since ? ;-)

[Big Guy and Rusty 99]

fargin' bastages.

[L_Von_Mises]

I was living in Bethel Maine at the time. We got a ton of snow but up there the roads were all clear the next day. Wide shoulders and good equipment. It did cause me the loss of one day of skiing because Sunday River didn't open the morning after the storm. The snow was pretty deep up there that year. I tried to take a shortcut across a field once and soon found myself chest deep in snow. Not a good idea. The only place you could walk, other than roads, was on snowmobile trails.

I have a picture in my office that was taken the day after the blizzard of '78 on the street I lived on in Boston for seven years (up to 1996). There was a ton of snow but the last year that I lived in Boston we had a lot more. In one week we had three Nor'easters. The only way you could tell there were cars parked on the street was from the antennas sticking up out of the snow. Of course this snow came from three helpings as opposed to one big dump like in '78.

Now I live in Virginia and if we get an inch the whole region shuts down. Boy, I sure do miss real snow!

[NewHampshireDuo]

I remember reading about the Blizzard of 1888. I think it was in Yankee Magazine a few years ago. A good, good read. Do you know of any books on that?

Mrs. NHD

[NewHampshireDuo]

I was in Flagstaff in the 70's when we were hit by a blizzard. All the lights went out in town and we were stuck in a cold, dark motel room for 2-1/2 days, huddled under blankets and wishing it would end. Finally, we just said the heck with it and drove out of there on the 3rd day. It was still snowing and it was like driving with a sheet over the windshieldd (the crazy things you do when you're young.) As we got down out of the high elelvations, it turned to rain. It was bad....even saw 2 semi-trailer rigs lying on their side on the desert floor. Looked like they rolled and blew up. I'm sure someone didn't walk away from it.

[NewHampshireDuo]

our local meteorologist is predicting a blizzard similiar to that of '78

Lord, I hope he's wrong. I don't think I could stay sane if we had another bad storm this season. Is he predicting it soon?

[Green Kayak]

The lizard of...? Oh wait, wrong post.

[kdmhcdcfld]

I think I was still shoveling snow from the storm before this one!

[1Old Pro]

Upstate NY got that much snow this year. Everyone is saying "This is what winters used to be like".

[AppyPappy]

They are calling for 4-8" tonight here in the sunny South.

[kdmhcdcfld]

A baby boom always happens 9 months after a major blizzard in these parts!

[iceskater]

Wasn't it after this storm that there was all this hue and cry that we were entering another ice age? I remember Newsweek covers to that effect right around that time. My how times have changed? Now these big storms are actually part of the "global warming" phenomenon. (rolling eyes, gagging)

[1Old Pro]

. I've lived in New England and upstate NY my whole life

Me too, makes me wonder how they manage in some of the mountains out West where they often get 3-4 feet of snow at a time.

[Quix]

Yeah.

I had to drive via Gallup home as the Navajo Reservation route was closed at Kayenta.

And driving the Gallup route was very touch and go quite as you described. . . though snow all the way . . . on top of snow aplenty already.

Flagstaff can be a pretty unfriendly place to strangers--or used to be too often. Which is crazy given the amount of tourist dollars it needs and gets.