News-Record.com

There's a mess o' snow out and the challenge is getting from High Point to Greensboro for work.

This is the first significant snowfall since I started with the N&R in April 2004. Before that -- for example when we were hit with a 10-inch-plus snow during winter '04 -- I was able to walk to work in High Point.

TV says roads are in bad shape, not surprisingly. I've got a small, front-wheel-drive car without snow tires, so my first preference is to take the bus.

Is PART operating today? No word on its Web site -- no breaking news under its "Breaking News" heading. So let's give a call ...

At 6:02 a.m, the customer service number yields a recording with the info that no one is available to take the call ...

At 6:05, someone answers the phone at Hi tran, the High Point bus service. He tells me they're not running yet and will decide after it gets light out whether to go at all today. I ask if he knows about PART and he tells me he heard they may be on a two-hour delay but he's not sure about that.

I'm going to throw on some boots and see if my paper carriers got through ...

6:20 ... Neither N&R nor HPE carrier has gotten through yet. Normally, both deliver before 5:15.

It's very quiet out. I didn't hear any traffic up on Chestnut Drive, the busier road just up the hill.

"Up the hill" is the problem. That's the direction I need to go to drive out of here. If I can get to Chestnut, I might be on my way. If I try to drive ...

6:58 ... The Fox8 site lists "no morning services" for Hi tran, meaning I'd have to walk about a mile-and-a-half to the downtown depot to catch the PART bus. But is PART running? No listing on Fox8.

7:03 ... Someone answers the phone at the PART hub and tells me they're on a two-hour delay, which should mean departure from High Point at 8. Sounds like a good option to me.

So that's the plan: a snowy hike, catch the 8 a.m. PART bus, arrive downtown Greensboro at 9.

I'll update.

10 a.m. ... I arrived a bit before 9:30, but no thanks to PART. To recap:

I left home at 7:20 to hike to High Point's bus depot, where I expected to catch a PART bus at 8. The first car that passed me on Chestnut stopped. Driving was accountant Dan Odom, who offered a ride. Great. Thanks, Dan.

A couple of city employees were shoveling snow at the depot and looking enviously at the North State Communications lot where two plows were clearing a parking lot.

The guys with the shovels said they were prepping for tomorrow. They didn't think Hi tran would run at all today. They didn't know anything about PART.

Eight o'clock clock came and went ... no PART bus. I called and was told they'd decided on a further two-hour delay. The earliest I might see a bus would be 10. "It's bad out there," the man commented.

Yeah, well, it was cold out there, too. The bus terminal waiting room wasn't open. So I decided to walk home and take my chances driving.

The hike was kind of enjoyable. What a pretty snow, covering all the branches with gleaming white velvet. A few cars were creeping along downtown streets, which had been cleared -- although the plows often exposed underlying ice. Along Ferndale Boulevard, a few kids were beginning to venture out to start what promises to be a fun day or three for them.

My drive took only about 40 minutes, not much more than usual. Going slowly, I encountered no problems along Kivett or Business I-85.

The worst moment occurred on 85 in Greensboro when an 18-wheeler barreled by at maybe 65, throwing a sheet of slush over my windshield, blinding me as it froze to the cold surface. Fortunately, I was able to keep it steady until the defrost and wipers could clear my view.

There were a couple of vehicles spun out along the way, but light traffic and mostly cautious drivers held the toll to a minimum.

I guess returning home this evening might be tricky, and tomorrow morning might be really bad, as cold as it's supposed to get.

Let's all stay safe.