Walnut Street Hill

My mother used to say that Iowa had two seasons: Winter and August. And she disliked them both. But for a young boy like me I loved them. August meant freedom, no school, long days, play, play, and more play!

But the season I loved the most was winter. Winter in Iowa came early and stayed late most years, and that meant lots of snow on the ground and ice on the pond. Nothing could have been better than that.

We all waited patiently for the first snowfall of the winter. It didn’t take long. And finally Walnut Street hill was open for business. The city workers barricaded Walnut Street and all the side streets and lit the kerosene flares. We were in business once again. Out came the kids all bundled up in hooded parkas, snow boots and at least two pairs of mittens.

Walnut Street hill was just a block from our house and it took only a minute to get there. At first we would check the snow cover to make sure we had the fastest track, and cover our sled runners with wax to remove any rust. That would make the sled go faster. I would always slide the runners back and forth a couple of times and I was ready to go.

My first sled was a hand-me-down. It was old and small and not very fast. I asked Santa for a new sled for Christmas when I was about nine years old. Santa was kind. We were at my grandmother’s farm for Christmas. We had finished dinner, done the dishes, and were opening presents in the living room. I hadn’t seen a package that was big enough to be a sled and I was beginning to feel hopeless. My dad had excused himself to go to the bathroom (which meant going outside to the outhouse), and when he returned he was carrying a long package which he put down in front of me. I couldn’t open it fast enough.

It was a brand new Silver Streak sled. The best of the best! WOW!! I was ecstatic.

The next morning I tried to go sledding down the hill next to Gramma’s house but the snow was too deep. I would have to wait till we got back home and Walnut Street hill. I couldn’t get back home soon enough. I knew there were other kids on the hill without me. So, when we arrived at home and had finished dinner I bundled up and headed up to the hill.

Now there are several sledding techniques. The first is sitting on the sled and steering with your feet. The second is to lie down head forward on the sled give a little push and off you go. But the best technique was the belly flop. Now the belly flop required a lot of skill. You picked up the sled, held it tightly while running as fast as you could go, and then dive onto the sled at breakneck speed. It guaranteed a thrilling ride.

Now Walnut Street hill was two blocks long. But with a good start and by avoiding being ditched by another sledder you could easily go four blocks farther. But what that meant was that you had to carry your sled back to the top of the hill. With a dry mouth from the cold and wind there was always a temptation to lick the runner for some relief from the thirst. It was too much to resist no matter how many times you had done it. Your tongue would freeze to the runner. Oh stupid me, I would think, I did it again. Same result, a large layer of my tongue froze to the runner. Nothing hurt as much as that did.

Some time later the city fathers closed Walnut Street hill to sledders due to safety reasons. It just didn’t seem fair. But times had changed. No more sledders on Walnut Street hill. What a shame.