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By Morning Sentinel Staff 01/09/2008

How do you spell relief? This time of year, it couldn't be simpler. Yards that were iced up and roofs burdened with 3 feet of snow are bare, thanks to the January thaw that happens just about every year.

Not to mention the fact that you can actually go outside without gloves. Even the daintiest of dogs that normally wouldn't consider going on a walk this time of year are rarin' to go.

This particular January thaw -- a record-breaker in Portland -- came a bit early. Lasting a full week, it has been sustained.

On the heels of a snowbound December that hearkens back to the 1950s, residents say the mild weather is most welcome, indeed.

"It just gives you a second wind," said Keith Blackwell, a lifelong Madison resident. "It's a mid-winter breather that we most always get."

Blackwell, 69, said his driveway is now bare.

The timing of the thaw, of course, varies from winter to winter.

"It may not come until the last of January or early February, but a midwinter thaw is almost a given," he said.

This year, Blackwell is concerned about a "freshet," as he calls it -- a thaw that could lead to winter flooding. An early-February freshet knocked down the old bridge between Madison and Anson early in the second decade of the 1900s, he said.

"Should we get two or three days of warm rain right now, we'd have hell to pay, because the ice would come right out of the river," Blackwell said.

Eric Sinsabaugh, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gray, says flooding is unlikely. Not much precipitation is expected today or Thursday, when the weather is expected to turn cooler, he said.

Sinsabaugh agreed that a thaw is common at some point in the winter. But it's not particular to January, he said.

"That's folklore more than anything else, I think," Sinsabaugh said. "But we're getting quite a thaw today."

Sinsabaugh said Portland recorded a temperature of 60 degrees at 1 p.m. -- a full 9 degrees warmer than the previous record set in 1949. It was even warmer -- 64 degrees -- outside his Gray office. Waterville recorded a high temperature of 59 degrees at 1 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. The previous high for Jan. 8 was 44 degrees in 1990.

Sinsabaugh said there is nothing unusual about this particular installation of the January thaw. "It's nothing more than the usual swings," he said. "There's a large ridge in the jet stream pumping warm air to the Northeast. It's been a fairly good stretch since Saturday."

Gloria McElroy of Unity has seen many January thaws. This one is a bit warmer than others she can remember, McElroy said. "It puts a smile on everybody's face," she said. "I went out for coffee this morning with a bunch of ladies, and everybody was happy."

McElroy said she and her husband, Rodney, dressed a little differently as they took an afternoon drive to Waterville.

"We can walk around without our gloves and hat, and I took the lining out of my coat," McElroy said. "Now that's a blessing. I love it."

Larry Grard -- 474-9534, Ext. 343

lgrard@centralmaine.com

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