Specks of Green

We basked in the sunlight most of the day. Cleared some fallen trees from around the pond to use as firewood next season. My husband spotted our resident otter, but he had vanished underneath some remaining ice on the pond before I could see him. The forest and pond are beginning to come alive again...we can see bits of green here and there amidst patches of crusty snow. No bugs...our favorite time...in between the cold of winter and the swelter of late spring and summer.

Last Flash of Snow

One more flash of winter stenciled on the trees. This morning before driving off to St. Paul’s in Concord, we took some photos of the dusting we received last night, knowing when we got back the scene would have returned to earth tones.
We walked up the hill through the woods and then down and around the wetlands and pond. The beaver has been out again, gnawing at trees, leaving a shaving here or there on a rock. There was evidence of him on the ice that remains unmelted, tracks leading up to an open expand of water near the dam. My husband longs for green. He would like to plant more evergreens this summer…perhaps a cluster of greens in the woods to break up the even tones of whites and greys during the winter months.
Some of the bulbs I planted in the fall are starting to poke up through the cold mud. I know others are on their way, but we can’t see them yet.

Blue Snow

Last week - higher temperatures quickly melted the snow and ice around the pond. We had not seen the water in the pond and wetlands for two months. Friday a Nor'east swept in, refreezing pond and brooks, glazing field and forest. 12 inches of new snow. The snow is hued blue, looks edible.
Another thaw will come soon enough, but I am not quite ready to let the winter go. It arrived late this year. Still I have planned our vegetable garden and the seeds have already arrived in the mail. I can taste the harvest, determined this year our garden will bear fruit.

New Day, New Snow

Winter Thaw

The great melt has begun! After record cold March temps last week, the mecury is up and it was in the 40's and low 50's this weekend...that combined with some bright sunlight today made for a lot of melting. The ice on the pond is breaking up and the drive is turning spring soft. We saw some men out at the sugar hut down the road, getting reading to tap the Maple trees.
I snow shoed down to the first station of our meditation trail, down to a piece of wood that resembled an egret...which I had placed there last year after adding some wire to outline the Egret's head and neck. The sculpture had survived the weather and is till upright.
Today Daylight's Sayings time began early so more light now at the end of the day.

Again, it snows!

Another snowstorm this past Friday...this one wet and heavy. 10.5 inches..according to our town's web site. The day of the storm it was rough going on the snow shoes...I kept sinking way down past this storm's snow and into last's. Today it is chillier and the snow has compacted so that when I walk with the snow shoes I only sink 3 inches or so.
The snow is almost all the way up to the bottom of our BBQ---we are hopeful it will be summer again sometime.