Above Essex Center the woods around Indian Brook go silent under a heavy fall, and the roads off Saxon Hill load up fast. Direct Plow Service LLC runs the blade through it — driveways, private lanes, walks and lots pushed open and kept open for as long as the storm lasts. Chittenden County snow can turn wet and dense within an hour, which is exactly when a driveway stops being optional. Getting there before daylight, and again after the town truck throws a windrow across the apron, is the whole point. Clear pavement, squared banks, and nobody late.