Since I moved to this property, I have hoped to find some antler sheds. Today, just crossing the property line, nearing the end of our morning walk, I looked down and there it was. I am so used to seeing sticks and rocks and it took a moment to register that I was looking at an antler.
Karl is not interested so it is safe with my other finds of turkey and raven feathers and a heart shaped rock.
Another sunny day and we were all out enjoying…eating grass
…watching the birds…
…heading for the old watering hole…
Ice water!
“Stay away from my treat, Bob!”
Karl had a good and comfortable day after a much better night for both of us.
And then….and then!!! – I saw the first Robin!
***In the cold climate regions of the U.S., Robin’s are one of the first migratory birds to return in the Spring. Not a favorite bird of mine at all, but the first sighting is a sign that Spring is on its way.
Last week we had several days of temperatures that stayed in the single digits and a few nights just below zero. Not as cold as the arctic cold we sometimes get in November, December and January, but still cold and unusual to have the very cold in late February.
Sunday, when I took these photos from Wayfarer’s Park, it was in the upper 20’s with the occasional sun break.
This is the most ice I’ve ever seen on the Bigfork/Somer’s Bay area of Flathead Lake. I grew up near Lake Erie and skated/ice boated on Maumee bay. The pattern of ice on a lake, how it works with water movement is fascinating. The strength of the ice and its potential for distruction are evident along the shoreline. There was a lot of groaning and booming from the bay and looking at the ice from the shore level, you could see movement from the water underneath.
I wouldn’t want to go for a swim, but it was not as cold as it looks!
It looks pretty.
Karl likes it.
Karl likes it so much he was out in it most of the day!
The truth is, it was a heavy, wet, slushy snow. It was like being in a snow globe as it was falling. It fell so hard and heavy that I had to lower the blind behind my computer – it was making me dizzy to have the volume of large moving things in my peripheral vision.
It is pretty, but kind of a yucky mess :)!
Not everyone was fooled by appearances.
These two were keeping an eye on Karl who was keeping an eye on them. It was a watching standoff. Finally, Karl remembered that he had a treat in the snow and he went looking for that. The girls trotted on.