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Friday, January 6, 2017

Winter Crushes our World

We had a true winter day yesterday. We woke up to at least a couple of feet of new snow and a temperature of -8°F. This was the view out our bedroom window.
Those are R's chairs for his "speed crawling" exercise that we did until his most recent surgery. I'm guessing that they'll now be in the snow until April.

When I saw the temperature so far below zero, I went back to sleep. I really hoped that the air would warm up fast. It didn't. After much procrastination, it had reached a balmy -5°F later in the morning. That's when Shyla and I headed out for some snowshoeing.
Look at how she even has snowy eye lashes!

Shyla wore her boots and stayed comfortable for almost all of our walk. Of course, she rarely walked - top speed porpoising through the snow was her favorite mode of movement.

Absolutely no one else had been out on most of the trails we traveled. That meant that the powder was completely uncompressed and bottomless from the point of view of Shyla.

At one point, she stopped in her tracks looking ahead over a rise that I couldn't yet see over. However, I recognized the "serious look" that Shyla had which means that there's someone or something ahead that she thinks is scary. I called her back, and guess what I saw when I topped the small hill she'd been on?
I was glad that I had a sensible dog who didn't go zooming over to these giants but stopped to warn me of danger ahead. I was also glad that I had a long lens so I could take photos of them.

They mostly ignored me after Shyla did a sit-stay behind me. Of course, I like the photos from when they were looking at me best so those are what I have here.

You can see that it was snowing hard so I didn't hang around for long. One more photo, and we turned around to avoid going near this mother moose and her calf.

I thought that I'd hit the jackpot for the day but then I saw a pair of elk too! I love how the wild animals get "snow face" just like Shyla does.

Fortunately, we weren't far from home after seeing the wildlife. Shyla seemed to get chilled while I snapped photos.
Can you blame her? She was covered in snow.

It was amazing how quiet it was today. I didn't see another human or even another human track during our entire outing. Then, I did a short bike ride on the road (for the first time since our last huge snow storm six months ago) because the trails were utterly impassable. I didn't see any vehicles. Almost everything was shut down today due to the snow so I guess that everyone stayed home.

One thing that I adore about winter is how the crowds of visitors from down lower in the biggish cities don't visit anywhere up here in the mountains but a few popular spots like the ski resort. We locals get to enjoy our little trail networks in complete solitude.

Happy Winter!

21 comments:

  1. OMD, and we're cold here when it's only 20!

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  2. Wow! You must be having a blast! There is a report that Mammoth,CA is suppose to get 20 feet of snow! Nutty
    Lily & Edward

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  3. So much snow, that's insane. Seems like everywhere in the north is getting slammed.

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  4. I relate to so many things in this post...the waiting for a few degrees of "balmy"...enjoying the snowy faces of wildlife...the special treasure of a landscape without other humans in it...and even Shyla only realizing she was cold once she stopped for a minute. I'm so glad you are getting out and reveling in your snow world :)

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  5. When I lived in Steamboat, a couple of feet of snow was nothing. Business as usual. But here in upstate South Carolina if we get an inch we can't even get out of the driveway to GET to the pretty and remote places. It's ridiculous! They are calling for 2-7" here starting tonight. The town is freaking out as if the sky were falling. sigh. Enjoy your snow for all of us and stay safe and warm.

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  6. wow... we howl around and refuse to leave the house with our -6°c (21F)... that screams for warm blankies :o)

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  7. Looks like SHyla was having fun in the snow! Mom says she is done with winter.

    Your Pals,

    Murphy & Stanley

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  8. Amazing photos. Loved seeing Shyla's snow face.

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  9. That is such a big bunch of snow and Shyla sure is having fun!

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  10. Just looks magical. Solitude and quiet....plus wildlife. A wonderful outing in our opinion.

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  11. What great shots of the Moose and calf and the Elk. So much snow; we got quite a bit on Thursday morning-about 6-8"; it has been so cold out that I've been hankering down inside. Hope you have a great weekend; the sunshine and blue skies are glorious even with the low temps.
    Hugs,
    Noreen

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  12. You look like you are having so much fun in your powder snow, Shyla!

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  13. I love the photo of Shyla with her sweet face covered in snow. We got a little snow here in Texas today.

    Aroo to you,
    Sully

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  14. Crikey ..... how beautiful!! I could look at those photos all day. Shyla sure loves it, aye??

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  15. What a beautiful sight...the one thing I miss about heavy snow is the blanket of quiet that seems to accompany them!

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  16. Simple beautiful and Shyla's expressions are
    making us laugh. She is so sweet.
    Astro

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  17. CAnt stop smiling. What a wonderful day for you. The moose and the elk look healthy as well. I still worry about my little calf that was born so late (October) in the year and hope her mom has brought her down the mountain to survive. It will be tough for them as we too have had a fair share of snow this year. Not like yours though, but still..... I love the quiet of a snow storm that you talk about. The air has a special softness too it. Shyla cracks me up with her snow face. Thanks for a happy ending to our day.

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  18. oh my goodness! we can't hardly stay out long enough to potty with the temperatures this cold!
    hugs
    Mr Bailey, Hazel & Mabel

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  19. Those pictures are fantastic. You didn't have to worry about the moose and the calf. The mama was saying "stay away from that crazy lady and dog. They have a warm house and they choose to be out here." (BOL) or (MOL) Moose out loud

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  20. Love these photos!! Just look at that Shyla!
    love
    tweedles

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