October 27, 2025
Dear Neighbor:
The days are getting shorter, autumn leaves are now past their peak, and we will be falling back to Eastern Standard time next weekend. Most importantly, we’ve already had our first hard freeze of the season, with overnight temperatures in the low 20s Fahrenheit.
While we will see a reprieve from the sub-freezing cold during the week, make no mistake: the daytime highs are marching lower, and rainfall will soon become snowfall.
Although this is welcome news to the many snow sports fans in our community, winter weather in the Catskill Mountains requires deliberate preparation so that an unexpected situation doesn’t become an emergency or even a tragedy.
Your Home:
- Please make sure windows and doors are closed tightly.
- Make sure crawlspaces are sealed.
- Thermostats in bathrooms and laundry rooms are set at 50ºF minimum.
- Plug in heat-tape around the pipes in your crawl space.
- Clean / maintain your chimney.
- If you won’t be here for the winter season:
- Consider turning off your water at the water main.
- Drain your toilets.
- Consider the use of “RV / Marine Antifreeze” down your drains (amazon link).
- Consider our “Fall Crawlspace Service” via the RRVA website.
- If you will be here for the season:
- Please be sure you have a shovel and salt.
- When clearing snow, our maintenance crew always starts with roads, then parking lots, then walkways.
- If you intend to arrive or depart while the snow is falling, or before our crew has cleared the several miles of roadways and parking lots, you might have to clear your own path.
- If you have not already done so, consider subscribing to our “Winter Watch”, also via the RRVA web site.
Your Car:
- As a skier, I am energized by a snowy forecast. However, snowfall in the Catskill Mountains can quickly create treacherous, or even deadly conditions.
- From being stranded in one’s car to slipping and falling in the cold, I have personally witnessed fatalities in both situations.
- Please heed the following advice:
- Never step outside without being properly dressed: a simple slip and fall and bump on the head will create deadly exposure to the cold. In 15ºF cold, it can take as little as 10 minutes for hypothermia to set in.
- For your car, always have provisions to help you survive 24 hours: a blanket, water, non-perishable snacks.
- If you become stranded in deep snow, or during a blizzard, make sure your exhaust is not buried by the snow, or turn off the engine. Do not go to sleep with the engine and heat running as you might succumb to carbon monoxide poisoning.
- Also for your car, if you have the wherewithal to get yourself “unstuck”, have a small shovel, salt or sand, even emergency traction equipment like a temporary tire chain or even single use zip-tie traction straps.
- Snow tires are preferable to all-season tires; however, if that’s not an option for you, please make sure your all-season tires have good tread-depth and aren’t too worn out.
- Four-wheel-drive is wonderful for getting going and staying on the road; however, stopping is the same for everybody. Please give yourself extra time, slow down, and drive defensively.
- Lastly, don’t forget to check on your neighbor.
Winter in the Catskill Mountains is one of the most beautiful and breathtaking times of the year. Being mindful of the dangers and with a few precautions, this season can be an absolutely wonderful experience.
Sincerely,
Jeantet Fields
President
Board Of Directors
Roxbury Run Village Association