Falling on ice.
Learn from my mistake.
I fell recently and that’s something that rarely happens.
I was walking my dogs and there was a light dusting of snow covering the sidewalk.
I had my head up and was looking to the right as I thought I saw something move and then BAM, I was laying on my side wondering what happened.
With the warmer weather coming during the days but still cold nights, we’re going to get ice formation for a while.
Here’s how to learn from my mistake:
If you can’t see the surface you’re walking on because of light new snow or because of packed down old snow, ASSUME there is ice there somewhere and walk like a penguin.
Keep your steps short with your feet about shoulder width apart.
Have your arms equally at your sides so if you slip you’ve got them to either catch your fall or brace for impact.
Don’t lift your feet very high.
Concentrate on WALKING first and other stuff later. After I fell, I looked at where I fell and thought “well, if I’d been looking, I don’t think I would have put my foot there”. There were other indications that there might be ice under the snow at that particular point.
Have your head up and be scanning the path in front of you.
Look for signs ice may be hiding under some snow – footprints that avoid a certain area, glossy sidewalk peeking out from under the snow, or, in my case, a downspout that pours water onto the walkway whenever there’s a melt.
If you’ve fallen on several occasions in the past, consider using trekking poles until the spring melt is done. They make you look cool and you can get spikey ends for them that will bite into ice and help keep you upright.
Certain times of the day require greater vigilance around ice.
Early morning before and around sunrise can obscure details you would normally see in full sunlight, plus everything has been frozen overnight.
At certain times during the day, the sun may be in your eyes and obscure contours and details that would tip you off about the presence of ice.
Sunset/dusk is a difficult time because we can often go from sunlight to shadow and back again. This makes it tough for the eyes to adjust and take it all in.
Hope this helps. And, hey, let’s be careful out there.
With love.
Dr. Colin