We're lucky and we know it

K and I rolled out into the rising sun, me on my snowbike and K romping along side me. I need to pinch myself – I cannot believe that we have our daily ritual back. I fully realize how lucky we are.

We headed up to Hug Hill where we enjoyed a brief lull in the wind but no mountain views. Storm clouds have shrouded the peaks for days.

As we rolled downward from our local peak, I spotted some pine drops that looked like beacons in the otherwise white, blue, and pine green world. These still stand tall despite the onslaught of wind and snow.

Close-up, their beacon-like quality becomes more obvious. Red is a rare color in wintertime!

We then slogged through windpacked snow onto a favorite trail. The Runner and R had trotted along the trail a little earlier, and then a bobcat had walked in the Runner’s shoe prints. I wish that I had video of the little bobcat carefully placing two paws into each of the running shoe tracks and then leaping to the next shoe track. It must have been exhausting but I guess that he found it easier than breaking through the windpacked snow himself.

The bobcat stood stationary in one running shoe track, leaving imprints of all four paws.

Before I knew it, I needed to take K home. She seems so strong and exuberant that it’s tempting to take her for longer rides than I should. I resisted temptation today.

Then, I headed out for a solo snow bike ride, planning to try to ride a route that is often impassable in the winter. I started on the easy part of the ride, up on a ridge where the relentlessly rushing wind has blown the snow eastward.

After finishing the easy part, I started up a hill where that same relentless wind whooshes straight down the trail, depositing blown snow in bottomless piles with an almost unbreakable crust on top. At the start of that hill, I was optimistic because a forest service ATV had packed a trail yesterday. However, soon, I reached the end of the wide wheel tracks and became mired down in slabs of deep snow.

It turned into a much longer trek than planned as soon as I hit the snow drifts. I pushed on and eventually made it home, albeit utterly depleted of every iota of energy. I won't try that route again soon!

Despite my fatigue, the Duo still needed an evening hike. I let them burn off energy while I was relatively lazy, practicing sit-stays and then long recalls.

We saw the majestic vision of the last burst of color fading from the sky.

Now, I can rest...