Winter In Toronto

This is my third winter in Toronto and 2023, 2024 were not really that wintery, in 2023 there was hardly any snow at all and last year we got only one bad snowfall. But it appears that Toronto was just lulling me into a false sense of calm, because this year the city really got a winter! The snowstorm on January 25th dumped enough snow to break records for not only the single day’s snowfall but also for the entire winter. And we still have a few days left in the season. 

Now I am not new to winter; I grew up in Moncton New Brunswick and we regularly got snowdrifts of over 6 feet, and I recall digging snow tunnels through them that lasted for weeks. One year when we lived on a farm outside of Moncton we got so much snow in one storm that they were unable to plow our long driveway with a regular truck, and we had to wait days until a farmer down the road came with a new-fangled thing called a snow-blower on the front of his large tractor, and even with this he had to dig into the drift, back out and let the snow collapse and run at it again. So although I did know how to deal with lots of snow, years living in Nova Scotia I got used to snow that fell, froze, melted and then repeated, never really amounting to much. 

But as I get older, I have discovered that I do not really like winter; I have definitely become a summer, hot weather person, so the move to a 9th floor Toronto condo where snow became someone else’s problem, and, I could just ignore it and stay inside while I waited for spring to arrive once more. I do not own a snow shovel, all 10 of them in various sizes and configurations were left behind in Nova Scotia. My car does not have snow tires, because it is a little convertible that sleeps all winter in the warm underground garage and does not emerge from hibernation until all traces of salt are washed away by spring rain. 

But of course I can’t completely ignore winter, as I do have to go out for groceries and wine, so I have winter boots and warm clothes, and if you dress appropriately winter can be weathered.

Now with the heavy snowfall of the latest winter storm, I watched from the comfortable warmth of my condo as the roof next door got piled with snow and even my balcony developed drifts of the white stuff. Of course the newscasts were making a big thing of how bad the conditions were, so when the snowstorm stopped the next morning and the city’s crews had started cleaning up, I found I wanted to go out and see just what Toronto was like after a serious hit of Winter, so I dressed warmly, put on my L.L. Bean Slush boots and decided to go for a short walk to have a look about. 

Well, that short walk turned into a long 8 km hike through the city. I found I was really enjoying walking and experiencing the city as it dug itself out from the 60 Cm of snow. As I walked the streets I glanced around and saw things differently covered in snow. Long Icicles hung from building, and everything looked cleaner covered in a blanket of white.  I ended up walking not only my neighbourhood, but right down to the Waterfront. 

I discovered some streets were cleared nicely but others were a complete mess and had not been plowed yet, and sidewalks were every possible configuration. If there was a responsible business on the sidewalk it was likely shovelled, and sprinkled with ice-melt so was completely clear, Neighbourhood sidewalks in front of ordinary houses were a mix of careful cleaning to minimal pathways and on occasion when I came upon deserted or abandoned building I was required to walk through deep snow, actually breaking ground to create a new pathway for others to follow. 

Back in Nova Scotia if it snows, all vehicles have to be removed from the streets to allow cleaning, but here in Toronto, they sell street parking passes and some cars sit incased in ice and snow until everything melts in the spring. I saw whole streets solidly lined with snow covered cars. Their owners must have decided that Public transit was a better option than digging their own cars out. 

When I got to the waterfront I discovered that the lake was completely frozen over and looking from Sugar Beach I wondered what those folks who actually live on the island do when this happens, but a walk down to the ferry terminal showed that somehow they had broken a pathway through the ice and the ferry with struggling through heavy packed ice towards the island probably delivering those needed groceries and wine. Even the subway ride home was different with warnings about sections where trains had been cancelled because in places the subway was not submerged the snow buildup had not been cleared yet so buses were the only option. 

So I did have an interesting walk through Toronto’s  winter, but seriously . . . bring on spring!