Cold fresh air, pure white snow of a Maine winter can do a body and mind good.
I remember as a kid the joy of bundling up, putting on hats and mittens hand knit by my mom. To head outside to dig impressive snow tunnels, to make snowmen with brothers, sisters, the neighborhood kids.
Playing in the outdoor fresh clean Maine winter air kept us healthier.
We did not, still don’t hibernate inside over a Maine winter.
Maine winters. Not counting the days on a calendar like a prison sentence sitting in a iron bar small space.
The crisp cold Maine winter air purifies and stimulates our white blood cell production. It is the shot in the arm that boosts our immune system.
Let’s snowmobile out to the lake ice shack and see what everyone’s up to this weekend.
Get off the couch, turn off the television, put down the cell phone device.
Go sliding with the kids. Support a local ski mountain or local ice rink.
The shoveling snow off the steps and clearing walkways, opening up driveways provides physical exercise that boosts our energy levels. Gets those endorphins pumping while filling our lungs with crisp clean fresh air.
Playing in the white flakes of snow, moving and handling it around our Maine homes got us outside.
Look what happened over night while sleeping. Wow.
Rotate slowly 360 degrees around you at the sparkling crystal outdoor landscape.
You become very aware of the World around you spending time outdoors in a Maine winter.
Living in rural areas of Maine. Growing up, we all had family jobs and responsibilities in rural Maine. Snow handling was one of them. But we also played in the fresh Maine snow powder.
There is self-satisfaction pitching in and being needed as a family member no matter which of the four seasons growing up in Maine.
The natural beauty of a few inches of new fallen Maine winter snow transforms the backyard overnight.
The lower temperature, whitewash frozen splash of pretty much one primary color. Mother Nature performs a one-color chip instrument solo of white.
Winter white on white. In stark contrast from just a few months earlier.
When Jack Frost waived the baton. Conducting the vivid harvest color explosion light show with a huge orchestra of peeper popping hues.
Bundle up and go outside in the Maine winter landscape.
The endorphins you create and natural feeling of wellness and contentment from crunching snow on a brisk walk improves the mood.
Look up, take in the Maine winter night sky light show of stars on the black velvet backdrop.
That natural beauty can not go unnoticed.
Develop a short walk habit and embrace not fear a Maine winter. Burn some calories just easy does it on the chunky sweater and too many clothing layers.
Anyone in a northern tier state, with Scandinavian country heritage who loves to ski or snowmobile, ice fish and snowshoe knows how to dress.
All can agree if you are cold, you’re not dressed to match the Maine winter temperatures of the day.
And when you turn off the light and head to bed, cracking the window a tad.
There is nothing to compare to winter slumber and restful complete sleep during a Maine winter with some bedroom fresh air. (Unless you are not prepared for winter and have nightmares about not being ready.)
Stay caught up, don’t fall behind is simple Maine survival 101.
If you are new to Maine, welcome. If just visiting during a Maine winter, there is lots to do and enjoy. Native Mainers are outdoors every day and just change up the wardrobe.
Attend a local community homemade supper, a very affordable snow sled club breakfast.
Climb into the stands of an ice hockey or local high school basketball game.
And definitely hit the recreation trails to witness wildlife, the smell of the woods and sheer expanse of Maine.
Clear a lake or pond and skate on the sheet of smooth frozen water with fish swimming below. Down hill or cross country ski in Maine to take in the natural unspoiled beauty. Fill your lungs with clean fresh Maine air.
Being prepared for a Maine winter creates heighten anticipation and erases any fear and regret.
Insulating a Maine house to tighten up the cracks of cold air. Shortening up the square feet of living space. Heating with more than one source and playing the energy market.
Less people, more space, tighter connections in small Maine rural communities.
Maine winter weather causes you to batten down the hatches and stay ahead rather than fall behind of the day to day. You become heartier and more resilient and appreciative.
The landscape shapes the local Mainer who is fiercely independent and hands on actively involved.
Chopping, splitting their own firewood, canning and preserving to fill their root cellar provisions.
Excited about the sugar bush maple sap collecting ahead during spring thaw. Boiling it down to amber sweet syrup to drizzle on your pancakes, waffles and ployes.
Getting a new garden seed catalog to plan what to plant and where when spring renewal happens again.
Maine farmsteads with empty storage houses plant again. Work the soil, prepare the dirt for cultivating and planting another homestead crop on a Maine farm.
Summers on the waterfront, riding and hiking the recreation trails. Then another Maine winter spent like the other three seasons, outdoors.
A winter in Maine that you greet and look forward to like a reunion with an old friend.
But like being nervous before you get to know someone that becomes a friend for life, a Maine winter takes effort on your part.
Take a chance. Experience a Maine winter and don’t limit yourself to one or two seasonal visits.
I know, I know Maine summer weather is hard to beat but layer up, find the value of wool and come on.
You and I are heading out in a snowy landscape in Maine to explore and discover.
Use the Maine weather to your advantage.
See how an old haunt like one of the 60 plus Maine lighthouse visits is so so different picking a different season to sample it.
Make the effort, see what happens and maybe what you have been missing during the end and the beginning of another trip around the sun.
Before you just dismiss a Maine winter as something to dread and avoid at all costs. And instead of drawing the wrong conclusion from lack of trying and a lot of Maine weather myths. Gain perspective, log some hours in Maine besides when temperatures are highest.
Try the peace, the stillness, sample the quiet and learn a lot from the solitude of Maine’s snow white outdoors.
No black flies. Not as many tourists. No traffic and we never ever have to park on the street in small town Maine.
Everyone waves, says hello in Maine, the 4th lowest crime state. The cheapest state of car insurance and lots of other great things to set Maine apart from the rest of the World..
Meg and I have skipped closing up the Maine lake home this fall. We are having fun spending the winter living on a Maine lake and blogging about the outdoor experience.
Thank you for following our Me In Maine blog posts series on living on a lake this winter.
I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker
207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |
MOOERS REALTY 69 North Street Houlton Maine 04730 USA