After my radio show last night, my son and I drove up to our home in rural Pennsylvania to retrieve my snow plow pick-up truck. The weather all day yesterday, forecast that the New York City area would get "rain and some snow." But last NIGHT, the forecast changed to 2" to 4" of snow in the city, with more in New Jersey.
I said to my son, if we don't go get the truck, it will be plowable snow, and then we'll be screwed because we'd have to drive to PA in the storm to get the plow. That would likely change the three hour drive each way, to a four or five hour drive each way. Then, we'd have to get the truck, put the plow on, turn around and drive directly back. That's a LOT of driving for one day.
He agreed, saying if we get the truck tonight - it probably won't snow.
So we left North Bergen at 10:37 PM and cruised into the PA house about 1:30. Cranked the heat up because it was set down to 60, and started a fire in the wood burning stove. House got toasty warm fast.
Went to sleep around 2:00 this morning.
In the middle of the night, I guess around 4:00 AM, I was woken up by animal sounds outside. Sounded like dogs yelping. Loudly. Very VERY close to the house.
I got out of bed, walked to the bedroom window and saw nothing. I went out into the living room, looked out the sliding glass doors onto the rear deck. Nothing. Walked to the bay window overlooking the lower half acre, nothing.
I could hear the yelping; must have been half a dozen or more out there . . . but NOT dogs. Coyotes! Had to be less than 50' away from me.
This is the first time in the forty years my family has owned this property, that I had coyotes on the property near the house. And they were HERE, on this property. But with the trees and such off the rear deck, I couldn't catch a glimpse of them down below. Heard them loud and clear. I was NOT gonna go outside to look.
This morning, when I got up a little while ago, I looked out and can see plenty of tracks in the snow. They were here!
This was unexpected.
I expect to be back in NJ this afternoon once we attach the plow and salter to the pick up truck and drive back.
