Snow Rollers

   It is always fun to see something that you have never seen before.  Such was the case this past Monday morning in some parts of western Pennsylvania.  Many of us awoke to what appeared to be snow balls or snow "boulders" strewn across lawns, farm fields, even the basketball court and softball field at Lutherlyn.  For most of us, this was our first glimpse of snow rollers.

   Snow rollers were formed by a "perfect storm" of conditions.  We had about five inches of powdery snow fall on Saturday.  On Sunday night the temperature warmed up into the 30s, which made the snow more cohesive.  A strong wind (20-25 mph) then began to blow and it was able to roll the snow particles across open areas.  The particles accumulated in much the same way that a snow ball is rolled to make a snowman.

   If you look closely at the above picture, you can even see the track left by the snow roller as it was blown across the landscape.  Most of the snow rollers at Lutherlyn were no bigger than a soccer ball, but I saw one in a neighbor's yard that was 20" long and 9" in diameter.  The majority of the snow rollers were solid, but there were a few with a hole in the middle.  These have been coined "snownuts" for their resemblance to doughnuts.

To me, it is a good lesson.  There is always something new, something that you have never seen before, if you only take the time to look and explore.  Sometimes you have to look really hard to see something new, but other times it is right there in your front yard, as big as a basketball.