Ice Ice Ice

Todays trip to snack rock took three times the normal number of steps. It was just Drew and I today, and he thought we could make it despite my warnings that it was going to be very slippery. Wow, was it ever slippery. There were maybe three inches of snow, then a solid half inch of ice on top that was almost impossible to break through. We slipped and slid and held hands most of the way to keep from falling over constantly. It was a challenge, but the snacks at snack rock tasted extra good.

Taking a break- walking on ice is very tiring.




















Looks like a camera trap picture of some wild animal approaching the stream for a drink...




















This is my favorite shot of the day. While I was messing around trying to get to a spot to take a couple pictures of snack rock Drew somehow made it across the stream without getting wet, which was a minor miracle. I still have no idea how he managed to do it. By the time I noticed he was even trying he had already crossed and plopped down on the ice to take a look around.

The snow and ice really isolated the senses. Normal winter forest smells of wet leaves and mold and rotten logs are suppressed. The normally loud stream was mostly underwater so all we could hear were the fastest bits. The sounds we could hear was a muted bubbling with a muffled echo- and the unusually loud chirping of birds.

After taking this picture I crossed the stream and we sat together for our snack of apple juice and a couple miniature Hershey's bars. Then we slipped and slid our way back to the truck. It was 24 degrees when we left the house, and only 26 when we got back home. We didn't mind the cold though, we were dressed for it and stayed plenty warm. Needless to say, we had the whole place to ourselves.