The Solstice is Coming!

It's amazing how motivated I am to be outside for sunrise at this time of year. It's a bright shining part of a winter day. The extra pain from the injection the other day is dissipating so I was feeling almost chipper this morning! I still can't tell if the steroids did any good...

I think Shyla feels chipper every single day. She's in that amazing prime of life when her energy and enthusiasm seem endless. When I call her to come to me, she leaps small buildings and gallops like a maniac to get to me as fast as possible!

Sunrise is our special time together, and she seems to enjoy it as much as I do. We've had a lot of wind lately (gusts up to 75 mph) so we like to hide in the forest near sunrise some days to avoid the incredible force of the wind which can literally knock me over. As you can see from the look in Shyla's eyes, she doesn't like it when the wind grabs her ears and flaps them around.

While we've taken refuge in the forest, I've discovered that taking photos pointed toward the rising sun, filtered by the forest, can make some surprising images! The spots of light behind Shyla in the next photo are the rays of the rising sun shining through the trees.

Our wildlife activity has changed over to winter mode completely. I see coyotes frequently (they are not as active in the area close to our house in the summer as in the winter). I have to be very careful with the dogs around sunrise and sunset so that they don't tangle with any coyotes. When I'm on my bike, Shyla stays in a heel in the morning until the sun is well above the horizon. This beautiful coyote visited our clearing next to our house.

I've been fascinated to see how driven Shyla is to "mark" in areas where the coyotes mark. In fact, Shyla is my first female Lab who has ever lifted her leg to urinate in the forest, and she seems to do it only in areas where coyotes mark. Isn't it odd - Shyla is my least confident Lab yet, but she is the first female leg lifter?

Bobcats are another animal who are active near our house and trails in the winter. They love to walk in my snowbike trails so I see their tracks all the time. They also come very close to our house in the winter. One bobcat has an obsession with a rabbit who lives under the wooden walkway that leads to our front door, and I'll share some fun video of his stalking of the rabbit in the future. Here is a photo of a bobcat that I captured before the snow was here to stay.

Last but not least, with the arrival of the elk herd for the winter, more mountain lions have been patrolling our area. I'll save my trail camera photos of them for a future post.

Although I enjoy some aspects of winter, I am excited that the solstice is only a few days away. I always want to have a huge celebration on that day because I know the days will start to get longer. Somehow, knowing that the light is glimmering at the end of the winter tunnel cheers me immensely!

Just a few more days until the days start getting longer here in the Northern Hemisphere!