Dodged the Blizzard, But Not the Crowds (2/18-3/8)

[mickey916]

Background: DH and I retired four years ago and live in Massachusetts. Since our retirement we have become Annual Passholders and have visited Orlando several times in the spring and the fall. Last winter DH expressed a desire to skip some of the winter by heading to Florida for a shorter trip in February. However, he was a little concerned about not being home to clear snow which would make it obvious that we were away and make it hard to get back in our driveway upon our return. We figured our odds were pretty good if we just booked a 2.5 week trip.

So, we planned our trip for 2/18-3/8. We were very pleased to look ahead at the forecast to see no accumulating snow predicted for at least the first 10 days of our trip. Unfortunately as we arrived in Florida on Friday 2/20, there started to be predictions of snow. By Saturday the news was predicting a substantial blizzard! So much for no snow. Fortunately our adult sons were nice enough to move back to our place on Sunday so that they could be there to clear the blizzard once it hit on Monday. Also fortunate, they were both able to work from our home on Monday and Tuesday, as we thankfully never lost power.

Our yard ended up with 36 inches of fresh snow and there was already at least 12-14 inches on the ground from previous storms. To give you a full appreciation of the impact, here is a photo of our house after our sons cleared a path in the driveway.



We are so grateful to our sons but it was very nerve wracking to be so far away while the blizzard hit. Since they had everything under control at home, we put our concerns aside and enjoyed our days in the much better Florida weather! Please join me as I detail our latest adventure.

 

[mickey916]

Here’s our itinerary for our blizzard escape:

2/18 Depart for Staunton, Virginia
2/19 Drive to Santee, SC
2/20 Drive to Orlando, Disney Springs & dinner at Epcot
2/21 Festival of the Arts
2/22 Festival of the Arts
2/23 Magic Kingdom
2/24 Deleon Springs, Blue Springs State Park, Coronado Springs
2/25 Animal Kingdom
2/26 Jacksonville, Nate Bargatze Big Dumb Eyes Comedy Show
2/27 Disney Springs, POFQ, OKW, Saratoga Springs
2/28 Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, Winter Park, Loew’s Royal Pacific Resort
3/1 Animal Kingdom, Disney Springs, Flamingo Crossings
3/2 Hollywood Studios, Skyliner
3/3 Magic Kingdom, Contemporary, Wilderness Lodge
3/4 Flamingo Crossings, Disney Springs, Beach Club Resort
3/5 Riviera Resort, Epcot Flower & Garden Festival
3/6 Flamingo Crossings, Disney Springs, Drive to Santee, SC
3/7 Drive to Staunton, VA
3/8 Drive Home

 

[DLo]

Wow! That’s a lot of snow. Following along. Looking forward to reading more .

 

[ddluvsdisney]

Wow looks similar to my house! Haha
We still have a pile of snow on my front lawn from the plow.
Looking forward to another great trip report and some yummy food.

 

[mickey916]

Wow looks similar to my house! Haha
We still have a pile of snow on my front lawn from the plow.
Looking forward to another great trip report and some yummy food.

Most of our snow is gone except a portion near the driveway where the snowblower piled everything. We did have some yummy food (and surprisingly a couple of really bad treats we actually threw away, which we never do!).

 

[disneyAndi14]

Wow it looks my house, haha I didn’t think anyone else got snow like Minnesota, I was wrong!
Excited to hear all about your trip!

 

[Wood Nymph]

Fortunately our adult sons were nice enough to move back to our place on Sunday so that they could be there to clear the blizzard once it hit on Monday. Also fortunate, they were both able to work from our home on Monday and Tuesday, as we thankfully never lost power.

That must have been a huge relief to have your sons take care of your house. I assume that you would have had trouble getting into the house when you got home from your trip if the snow hadn't been removed ahead of time.

 

[mickey916]

Wow it looks my house, haha I didn’t think anyone else got snow like Minnesota, I was wrong!
Excited to hear all about your trip!

We don't get it as much as you do that's for sure. This was a record-breaking storm and our area was in the "bullseye". Crazy that it wasn't even on the forecast the day we headed to Florida.

That must have been a huge relief to have your sons take care of your house. I assume that you would have had trouble getting into the house when you got home from your trip if the snow hadn't been removed ahead of time.

It was a huge relief. We are very fortunate. We definitely wouldn't have been able to get in our driveway. We did have a lot of melting but not enough.

 

[disneyseniors]

Following along. I feel your pain with the snow, as I am from N. Mn. Right now we only have about 5 inches with warmer weather coming this week!