Monday February 1

Welcome to February folks!  Hopefully we will continue to build momentum for a great 2021, a year that will be much better than 2020.

The weekend was very cold, with yesterday quite snowy here on the mountain, with significant accumulations.  Today we remain under a winter storm warning, with snow, possibly mixed with freezing rain, becoming all snow after 7:00 am. High near 28 degrees and an east wind around 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Tonight additional light snow, with a low around 20.

Here’s a great photo taken by Hanna Clodfelter Saturday morning.  Yes, that’s the moon still out in the morning.  Note the crisp, clear skies before all the fluffy stuff started coming down on Sunday.  Thanks very much for sharing Hanna.

morning moon hana glodfelter

Moon in the Morning

I have been hearing that some visitors have booked visits to Deep Creek Lake area lodgings only to find out that all of the reservation slots for skiing and tubing at Wisp have been taken by the time they arrive.  To avoid dissapointment, I urge all to plan their vacation in advance during the pandemic and to make needed bookings in advance if they plan to ski or tube. And remember, if you come and should be “locked out” of some local attractions, there are plenty of things to do around the area to keep you and your friends and family busy.

While the natural beauty and the people of the Deep Creek Lake area anchor the foundation of our community’s success, our small businesses are the life blood of the area. The U.S. Census Bureau’s Small Business Pulse Survey (SBPS) started asking businesses in April of last year when they expect to return to normal levels of operations, a crucial indication of how they are adapting to the pandemic, social distancing, and other public health strategies. The latest release shows 16.5% of businesses experienced little or no effect from the pandemic, while 55.3% expect long term challenges.

Don’t forget to check out the February Cover Story. I wrote it with the intent of highlighting some of the activities still available to us here on the mountain during the winter months.  I hope you enjoy and that it gives you some ideas or maybe even a gentle push to get out and about safely during the pandemic.

Here’s a nice photo taken a few days ago by Dot Sissler.  The photo really captures the crisp weather, the winter fields and also shows an interesting sky.  Thanks for sharing Dot!

dot sissler 1-31-21

Winter Fields

 

Here’s a reminder that the Deep Creek Lake Policy Review Board will hold its first meeting for 2021 at 4:00 pm on February 8th. The meeting was rescehduled from an earlier date due to inclement weather. Note that public Attendance is virtual only.  You can join on Google Meet by going to meet.google.com/ebd-cxyi-bte, or by phone: 978-484-0550 (PIN : 465087870)

The Garrett County Health Department reminds everyone that our county is currently only vaccinating members of Phase 1A and 1B due to the limited number of COVID-19 vaccine doses distributed to the county. I have heard some mixed rumors and stories about the best way to get on a list for the vaccine. The vaccine timeline released by the Health Department is available at garretthealth.org and on their Facebook Page. The timeline will be updated as the county progresses through the priority groups. The Health Department is not keeping a pre-registration list.

Additional information for Garrett County as of friday includes: A vaccination rate of 9.6% of county residents for first doses of COVID-19 vaccine; A 7-day case rate of 19.20 per 100,000 Garrett County residents;  A 7-day positivity rate of 7.10%; A total of 1,789 COVID-19 cases; A total of 57 deaths due to COVID-19 or its complications.  Things are looking better, especially with the vaccines becoming available.

Have a wonderful Monday dear readers…

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