FIFTEEN BELOW NEAR SMALLPOX CAVE - NORTH BROOKFIELD, MASS.

Riding around in "Old Nelly-belle" just now was fun! I knew I could best my -5 reading by driving to one of the coldest spots in Brookfield: "WINE VILLAGE." The coldest I ever recorded was in my 1987 Cadillac Allante' half-dozen years ago :Ten Below. Today I bested that reading with a 15 Below on Cider Mill Road," N Brook."


Now, that territory is no stranger to me. Dad took me fishing at Coy Brook back when I was nine. I caught a Dace and said "bastard." Papa Joe corrected me for using the slang saying "Only men can use that word!" LOL


 Driving along one of the coldest places in the Western Hemisphere, Wine Village, rings my chimes. It is difficult for me to conceptualize how the Potvins (Wines) endured winters. Charlene Whitman knows just how cold living in the Valley was and is..


I began keeping weather records in 1957.The Telegram did a story on the desperate ambient readings in Ware, another very cold spot. Until our Digital Age, alcohol thermometers were the best and most accurate. Cheap thermometers given out by businesses, etc. provided readings all over the map. Today, pinpoint readings are truly amazing. My digital Atomic Clock tells all.


Now, back to 1956, the year I discovered Small Pox Cave:" I HAD THE SMALLPOX HERE APRIL 19, 1788 I. Allen" is carved in the granite ledge deep in the forest of North Brookfield. "Kizzle" and I and my trusty Golden Retriever, "Dusty"  weathered the storm where rain changed to snow. "Eureka" I exclaimed to my dad," I found the cave!" Dad smiled with great approval. Legend was passed to new generations for discovery.


Several months later, "Johnson" and I returned to the cave with a hammer and a rail spike chiseling our initials next to Israel Allen's profound message. We, too, left our marks:" RP & J."


Adventure can be there if you delve into life as it is. Historic Massachusetts affords so much for so little. Stone markers abound if only we open up our minds and our eyes. Today's record cold is for the stouthearted. Is your cup HALF FULL OR IS IT HALF EMPTY" My Cup Runneth Over.


ROBERT LOUIS POTVIN
The Adventure King
"Wine Village forever"