Let it Snow, Let it Snow... (SLIDESHOW)

The photos seem to capture more than just the image; a bit of the ambience and inner beauty revealing the essence of Salem, Oregon came through too.

Photos by Kevin Montgomery and Tony Lones Salem-News.com

(SALEM, Ore.) - People seemed a little surprised, like they were caught off guard in Salem today. Weather reports indicated that the city would see snow today but I think most people still didn't quite believe it.

Maybe a lack of confidence in the weather man is to blame. Or maybe they were hopeful, and didn't want to have those hopes dashed, should the snow never arrive.

But come it did, and it still hasn't stopped. For folks who "grew up in this kind of weather", here in the mid-Willamette Valley, it seemed odd how few were apparently practiced drivers.

It was obvious there were several people out there who didn't know how to drive in the snow, they were soon surrounded by red and blue flashing lights and the friendly neighborhood tow truck, throughout the city.

But some do understand the dynamics of driving in the snow. In fact, we saw one big Dodge truck down the street playing in the snow, fishtailing and spinning back around just for the thrill. I could imagine a big adult going "whee!" like a kid on a playground. He was in a parking lot and clear of people and obstructions.

Traffic was really backed up on the Marion Street bridge going into west Salem from downtown. Some motorists were unable to make it up the hill. In one case, the Salem-News.com 4x4 truck had to rescue a pair of stranded ladies at the bottom of Glen Creek Road.

Sonny Goldman and her friend Norma McKenzie, had been at the Afterglow party which is the follow up for the Holiday Lights Parade. Floats are on display at the State Fairgrounds for the special event. Sonny and Norma had been selling candy and chocolates for the local Kiwanis group, raising money for Doernbecher Children's Hospital.

They were glad to receive a help out of the fix they were in, as the night became increasingly colder.

In addition to myself and assistant photographer Tony Lones, other people were out and about enjoying the opportunity to document the year's first snowfall. It isn't every winter that Oregon's capitol city is blanketed in beautiful snow.

Some winters mean the snow will last for several days. Sometimes it only sticks around for a day or so, and sometimes you don't see it at all. I have been lucky to see the last several here in Oregon.

Frozen hands make camera operation tiring after a while. I'm a Californian by birth, so I still have thin blood. I think it makes me more apt to be cold in Oregon weather. Or, so I've been told. My thermostat is adjusting with time, and eventually perhaps I'll be out there throwing snowballs with the homegrown Oregonians with nary a whimper. I'm working on it!

WATCH THE SLIDESHOW BELOW, AND ENJOY!

By Photographer Kevin Montgomery, with Tony Lones