When you were young, what fun outside winter activity/activities did you like to do? I liked to sled.

[debm55]

[pandr32]

1. Anything but getting a snowball in the face.

Snow forts, igloos, snow slides, snowmen, and snow angels were the best fun. We did some sleighing and skiing as well, but those activities meant a trip up the mountain. If it snowed my brother and I couldn't wait to involve grown-ups. They usually had to drink a pot of coffee first!

[debm55]

5. Thank you very much pandr32. It sounds fun.

[electric_blue68]

57. A snow slide?! How tall was the start at the top?

Last edited Sat Dec 28, 2024, 08:39 PM - Edit history (1)

[electric_blue68]

77. ??? I'm nissing something.

[debm55]

78. Sorry, I had just taken a pain med for my leg. I will delete.

[electric_blue68]

79. No problemo! 👍

[pandr32]

90. It was on a hill, so it was not so high.

Wetting it with water made it really slick! Fun!

[electric_blue68]

91. Ah, got it. Wheeeeeeee! 😄

[SheltieLover]

2. Ice skating & building things out of snow.

[debm55]

6. Thank you very much, SheltieLover.

[SheltieLover]

18. Sledding too

How could I have forgotten sledding?

[debm55]

19. Thank you. SheltieLover

[MiHale]

3. Snowman building, sledding, tobogganing...

Snowshoeing, x-country skiing, snowball fights, hiking, kayaking…love winter. It’s all about the gear. Prepare.

[debm55]

7. thank you very much MiHale. That sounds like so much fun.

[electric_blue68]

58. Snow shoeing? Cool!

[cloudbase]

4. Skating, when Panther Hollow lake froze over.

Sledding around Schenley Park. No shortage of hills to choose from.

Alas, none of that here in Houston.

[debm55]

8. I live in Pittsburgh. I know Schenley Park. thank you cloudbase.

[cloudbase]

14. Just for you, Deb.

?w=762

[debm55]

16. Thank you very much cloudbase.

[hlthe2b]

9. Sledding, making snowmen, playing with the dogs in the snow!

As an adult (besides skiing) one of my best memories was during a MASSIVE March, 2003 snowstorm in central Denver (more than 3 feet) and trudging a couple of blocks to nearby Cheeseman Park where there was a beginning high snow-walled trail into the park. The big dogs were jumping and exhausting themselves getting through it, while the little ones would go a little way and wait for a patient person to pick them up. Around the park were scores of igloos made by enterprising teens and others for the purpose of just hanging out (and a few other things--obvious from the clear smell of pot permeating at a time when it was not yet legal in Colorado). All who ventured out had an experience likely unmatched for the rest (or much of the rest) of their future. And what exhausted, happy dogs!

No cars in that neighborhood for days because there was just no way that anything but the most major thoroughfares were going to be plowed. And that year those parking lots that served to receive the plowed snow had stories high snow for many weeks.

[debm55]

10. Thank you very much, hIthe2b. what an interesting post.

[electric_blue68]

56. Igloos! 😍👍

My cousins and I built a ?2ft+ icy snow wall, never as ambitious as an igloo! 😄

[no_hypocrisy]

11. Sledding down a long steep hill.

But not toboggans. My sister was on one when they hit a rock. It split down the middle, and she got one bad-ass chunk of wood in her ass and had to have surgery to have it removed, replete with stitches.

[debm55]

12. Oh my. sorry for your sister. Thank you for sharing, no_hyprocrisy.

[if..fish..had..wings]

13. Backyard rink

Ice skating, nothing like it.

[debm55]

15. Thank you very much. if_fish_had_wings.

[Ocelot II]

17. Skating, mostly. There were a lot of ponds and lakes in the area,

and there was an outdoor hockey rink at a nearby school we could use where you could put your skates on without having to sit in the snow. Some of the lakes also had shelters for skaters. I've never skated indoors; that would seem kind of weird. We did a fair amount of sledding as well. It's kind of flat around here so if we wanted excitement we had to go to a golf course that had some pretty good hills. We had regular sleds and a toboggan, and I also recall a round aluminum dish kind of thing big enough to sit on that would spin around as you slid down the hill, which was a lot of fun. If there was enough snow we'd build big snow forts and hose them down so they would freeze hard and not collapse. We were outside in the winter all the time, the more snow the better. Good times.

[debm55]

20. Thank you Ocelot II for sharing all the great things you did in the snow.Sounds wonderful

[electric_blue68]

59. At one cousin's we did the Golf Course Hill for sledding, too. It was otherwise flat, and no parks near by.

I guess it's a thing in the right spots!
We called the aluminum round things saucers.

I'm glad I kept mine "steady", and not spinning around = queasy!

[KitFox]

21. I still feel lucky that we lived where there

were months of snow! We loved to sled. Our house was right by the best sledding hill in town. We went Ice skating at the mill pond or gravel pits but were not allowed to skate on the river because of the ice depth inconsistency. We built snow people and snow forts for neighborhood snowball fights. At school we stomped down the circle and paths and played fox and goose. My third grade teacher was my favorite. She took us out early for recess so we could get the paths stomped and have more time to play the game. If it was a deep snow she would take us out early and help us build a snow family right next to our classroom windows facing in so we could see them looking in at us all day. Thanks , as always Deb, for stirring up wonderful memories.

[debm55]

23. Thank you very much KitFox. You had a very good teacher that loved to have as much fun as her students did. Back then

the snow and cold didn't bother me. It seems it didn't bother you either.

[berniesandersmittens]

22. Watching cars slide off my road

I live on a hill and it's always been fun to watch cars try- and fail to make it up the hill.

A neighbor gets his four wheeler out to give the unfortunate travelers a lift.

Hours of entertainment!

[debm55]

24. Thank you very much, berniesandersmittens.

[Squeaky41]

25. Winter fun

Climbing hills on bear paw shoes

[debm55]

31. Thank you very much Squeaky41.

[Polly Hennessey]

26. Rolling around in the snow, building snowmen,

going inside for hot chocolate.

[debm55]

33. Thank you very much. Polly Hennessey. It sounds like fun.

[dutch777]

27. Sledding, building forts, snow ball fights and coming in for hot chocolate and a change to dry clothes

and maybe some cookies

[debm55]

34. Excellent, thank you dutch777, Sounds great.

[MaryMagdaline]

53. Hot chocolate! Forgot about that

[debm55]

61. Thank you MaryMagdaline. Hot Chocolate was great as a break in playing in the snow.

[Jilly_in_VA]

28. I really didn't

I was a terrible skater and I hated cold weather and snow. Still do.

[debm55]

35. Thank you Jilly_in_VA . I hate the winter and cold now.

[Elessar Zappa]

29. I liked tubing in the snow.

We only had like three deep enough snows a year, but it was fun. Now, in the same area, we’re lucky if we get one snow above 2 inches.

[debm55]

37. Thank you Elessar Zappa. We would tube in the water and use them to sled in the winter.

[surfered]

30. I took up snow skiing at 45. That definitely seems young to me now.

[debm55]

38. thank you surfered. Do you still ski?

[surfered]

43. I skied 27 years in a row, but Covid closed the slopes one year and a medical procedure sidelined me for a second year.

After 2 years off , age and living at sea level made it too hard to do it again. Still surfing though.

[debm55]

46. Thank you surfered. surfing sounds interesting and enjoyable.

[surfered]

54. Winter conditions and cold water might curb your enthusiasm.

I was never as cold skiing as I have been surfing.

[debm55]

71. Don't you were a surf suit?

[surfered]

74. Yes, a wet suit, which restricts your paddling and is very difficult to get off after. Ski clothes are dry.

Skiing, you don’t have to hike up the mountain. You can ride up in a heated gondola or chair lift.

Surfing, you have to paddle out thru breaking waves that are trying to push you back to the shore.

But surfing is cheaper. A one day lift ticket at Vail, CO is $250 this year

[debm55]

75. Thank you for the information. I have never surfed.

[FuzzyRabbit]

32. Snowball fights and sledding!

We had only a few days of snow every winter, but we made the most of it with sledding and snowball fights after school and all day when school was closed. And ice skating on Ellis Pond.

[debm55]

39. Thank you FuzzyRabbit. You enjoyed playing in the snow, So did I.

[displacedvermoter]

36. Ice fishing

And sledding, of course

[debm55]

40. Thank you displacedvermoter. Sounds like fun.

[CanonRay]

41. We played football

as long as the snow wasn't deep.

[debm55]

45. Thank you very much, CanonRay. That sounds like it would fun.

[Mr.Bill]

42. I loved snowball fights.

We also played tackle football, but we changed one rule. When you got tackled, you weren't down until you stopped sliding. Adds a whole new element to the game.

[debm55]

44. Thank you very much, Mr. Bill. that sounds like fun.

[wnylib]

47. Making snow angels and snowmen, sledding, ice skating

There were hills near our house to slide on.

Each year on the Sunday before Christmas, we joined my father's 8 siblings with their spouses and children at my grandfather's farm for a buffet dinner that we all contributed to. The farmhouse was at the top of a steep, long hill. After dinner, all the cousins spent the afternoon sliding down the road from the house to a winding curve at the bottom.

One year, two of my cousins had home made skis, made by their father, with straps to fit over boots. We took turns skiing down the hill. Another year, my brother poured water on the road which froze while we ate dinner. Then we competed to see who could slide down the entire hill on foot without falling over. This did not go over well with the adults when it was time to leave and their cars slide into the ditch.

One of my brothers took me, with our sleds, to an empty lot a few blocks from home (where we were forbidden to play). The lot had a narrow creek running through it and steep banks on each side of it. There were also several saplings on the creek banks. We slid down one bank, steering between the trees, trying to get enough momentum to go across the creek at the bottom, which never had more than a thin layer of ice on it. Sometimes we made it and sometimes we didn't. But at least it was a shallow creek.

I went ice skating on Presque Isle Bay at Erie. Had to wait for local weather reports on the depth of the ice. Went with my brother and his friends who were there for ice fishing. Had to clear off an area from snow, first. Also ice skated on a pond at my uncle's house.

We formed teams with neighborhood kids to build separate snow forts near each other. Then each team got inside their forts and had a snowball war. All in fun, no real hostilities.

[debm55]

48. Thank you wnylib. Your winter outdoor activities sound absolutely ideal. What a great memory,

[applegrove]

49. We sledded, downhill skied and built snowforts. The snow

on the street corner on our property would build up to 10, 15 feet. When they plowed then, they just piled the snow up on the street corner, again and again. Now they take the plowed snow away so snow banks are not as high.

[debm55]

63. Thank you very much applegrove. Your winter activities sound great.

[sakabatou]

50. Ice skating

[debm55]

65. I always wanted to ice skate. My ankles were always to weak.

[electric_blue68]

51. Oh, a bunch of stuff. Sledding, ice skating, snow ball fights at my cousin's...

Last edited Sat Dec 28, 2024, 06:13 PM - Edit history (2)

suburban house's yard. Once we even started to build an ice "fort". Snow was hard enough to make bricks! 2ft?

Sledding we had a park across the street with a mild to medium incline of a long hill. I had one of those saucer disks.

At one cousin's we had the medium hill on the HS grounds but we had to be careful not go down the second shorter hill that led to the street.
Brought my saucer. My cuz had the sled.

At our other cousin's we had the loooong golf course hill, and a real sled. One time my 1 cuz on the bottom, me in the middle, and our slender cuz on top of me. Got about all the way, and hit a dip hole. Off we fell, all ok.

I wasn't very good at one skating bc weak ankles, high arches - pronation. Super tight lacing, still would feel a bit wobbly.
I took Tai Chi decades later, and my ankles strengthened up!

ETA At the first cousin's there was a quite well off family pretty close to the highway into town. They had some acreage, and a pond.
So I think my first ice skating was on a real pond! I also skated a couple of times waaaay back in Central Park, and pretty far back in Bryant Park - west of the famous (central) lions library.

I never did a snow angel, wouldn't like getting cold and damp.

[debm55]

68. Thank you very much electric_blue68. You did a lot of winter activities in your youth. Thank you for sharing.

[MaryMagdaline]

52. I grew up mostly in the South and I hibernated during winter.

I could barely skate on ice.

I do remember being pulled on a sled as a toddler in Michigan. Those snow suits must have taken 20 minutes to put on. My older siblings showed much love by including me.

[debm55]

72. Thank you MaryMagdaline for sharing your memories.

[Glorfindel]

55. Winter wasn't (still isn't) much fun here in the southern Appalachians of north Georgia. Mostly dreary,

dismal, and rainy. Maybe twice a season, we'd get some snow. If it were deep enough, I'd go sledding and/or make a snowman, but that very seldom happened. Keeping the two fireplaces going with wood from the woodpile was my job.

[debm55]

62. Thank you Glorfindel

[Wicked Blue]

60. Ice skating

[debm55]

70. Thank you very much, Wicked Blue

[ProfessorGAC]

64. The Municipal Golf Course...

...on the other side of town used to set of a toboggan slide in the winter. The course was pretty hilly, so there was a 250 yard run down the hill after coming out of around a 25 foot high shoot.
They ran water on the chute surface so we built speed in a hurry.
There was a creek at the bottom and they'd set up a snow berm at the bottom of the hill to stop the ride.
Went the a half-dozen times per winter.
They'd have the clubhouse open for coffee, hot chocolate, & cookies.
I loved that when I was a kid.

[debm55]

66. Thank you ProfessorGAC. That sounds great. It really sounds like a great set up for your town to do.

[ProfessorGAC]

67. Typically Packed

We could go for an hour and would be lucky to get 5 rides. Probably only 4.
But, the fun was worth the wait.

[debm55]

69. Yes, It must of been packed. But it sounds wonderful. Thanks for sharing.

[dem4decades]

87. That sounds awesome. One winter i built a luge down my yard, through my neighbors yard, and onto a flat area of my t

Third neighbors yard. It was probably 150 yards, and the only banked areas were in my yard. The kids would go down during the day and their speed would be slow enough they wouldn't go out of the track. At night the track froze and iced up, that's when the neighborhood adults would take a trip and steering was required or you were off the track and into the fence or the hedges. It was a blast.

[dem4decades]

76. Skating, tunneling in the snow drifts and sledding. A special treat were the days a layer of ice was on top of the sno

The sleds flew on those days but they were few and far between. Funny, we no longer get the amount of snow we used to and kids today have never seen the drifts we tunneled in. .

[debm55]

81. Thank you dem4decades. I could never figure out if we had more snow or if I was smaller and it just higher to me. We had

snow alwost every day. But I only remember one or two days off from school.

[dem4decades]

82. It's not your imagination, a study has shown we have weeks less snow cover on the ground in our area

Than we did 30 years ago.

[debm55]

83. Thank you, dem4decades.

[Woodwizard]

80. Sledding

And at 60 last week made a run down our hill for my granddaughter and me to have fun.
We keep her out of the house when conditions are good.

[debm55]

85. Thank you Woodwizard. That is very good you have her out in the air and doing fun activities. Most kids are always in

the house all year long.

[Woodwizard]

92. She loves being active.

She will be 5 in February she can now ride her bike without training wheels. I set up a zip line in the yard she has a blast on. Will be fun when she can fit on my tandem bike.

Her mother was a very active kid, well still is. Keeps me young.

[debm55]

93. Thank you very much Woodwizard. Enjoy the time together.

[madamesilverspurs]

84. Kokanee snagging

Kokanee is a salmon that was abundant in Colorado's lakes. We'd bundle up and Dad would drive us up to where they were running. We didn't use bait, just a lead weight with a treble hook that would literally snag the fish coming out of the spillway. Back then there was no bag limit and we'd come home with two or three bushel baskets full; cleaning all those fish wasn't fun, but we shared a lot with neighbors and still had enough for a couple meals a week for the entire winter. Nowadays there's a bag limit of 10.


.

[debm55]

86. Thank you very much, madamesilverspurs. That sounds like a real adventure.

[Clouds Passing]

88. Sledding, Ice skating on a frozen pond at night with a bonfire and hot cocoa, Skiing, Ski Club,

Building snowmen and snow forts, snowball fights, getting cold and wet going inside for warm dry clothes and hot cocoa, looking out the window watching the snow fall

[debm55]

89. Thank you Clouds Passing. Your post has many wonderful activities. Thank you for sharing with us.

[yellowdogintexas]

94. my sister and I would just romp around in it and throw snowballs at each other

We also made snow ice cream. We were out in the country so our snow was very clean.

School was usually closed when we had snow or sleet because all the kids rode buses to school and we had a nasty hill that kept about 1/3 of the high school out of school if it was iced over.

One year we had a spell of sleet followed by snow, which repeated several times and it was unusually cold. We were out of school 2 weeks.

There was this short but steep hill in town and one of the boys would hose it down every night and we would spend the day sliding down it using anything that would do the trick. Great fun.

[debm55]

95. Excellent. That sounds great. Thank you very much. yellowdogintexas for sharing with us.