The natural world, life, and dogs.
Late December in Idaho's Salmon River Mountains means snow, some years more than others. This year, so far, is a little below average, although I'm not sure there is such a thing as "average" anymore. With climate change, I've noticed that the snow arrives later in the fall - December rather than November - and… Continue reading Fences III
I've written about the fact that the period between my birthday on December 18th through Christmas is not my favorite time of year. Soon I'll have more to offer on the topic of family. I wish I could say it will be happy stuff. So tonight - Christmas Eve - I reflect on my families… Continue reading Choosing Family
Take it from someone who knows: it sucks to have a mid-to-late December birthday. Mine happens to fall exactly one week before Christmas. Three days before Winter Solstice, the shortest, darkest day of the year. Like many with birthdays so close to Christmas, I grew up hearing, “We got you something really special, so we’re… Continue reading December Birthdays
As I warned in my recent post Fences, I have tons of photos of rural fences and gates, most taken while walking my dogs in the valley. Since it's 2F this morning, rather than venture outside, here's a group of photos from last year, December 21-25, 2018. Except the last two photos, which I just… Continue reading Fences II
With a long meeting scheduled for midday, I decided to take the boys for an early morning walk and add another at the end of the day. Our morning outing featured a sky with high wind-strewn clouds painted with the rising sun's gentle orange and pink hues. Our late afternoon walk was completed just before… Continue reading Combustion
It was a déjà vu kind of morning. I was following the boys along an old Forest Service road, a couple inches of fresh wet snow on top of the ice, snow and slush mix left from the last snowfall a few days ago. We were walking an out-and-back route near home. Early on Conall… Continue reading Same As it Ever Was
In the rural West, fences are ubiquitous. Love them or hate them, they're everywhere, marking property boundaries, keeping livestock in or out (or not). Some fences are all wood planks or posts, others wood or metal posts with barbed wire. Wooden gates are quickly being replaced with metal tube gates (and fencing) which aren't nearly… Continue reading Fences
Winter is beginning to show signs of arriving in Idaho's Salmon River Mountains, my home. I love winter. I love snow, almost as much as my dogs do, except I don't roll in it. Having real winters with snow - as opposed to Seattle's dreary constant drizzle with the occasional snowpocalypse that brings everything to… Continue reading Tracks and Bones
Recently I’ve been scheming with fellow blogger Arionis of Just a Small Cog about sharing stories of things going wrong out on the trails, whether hiking or running or whatever activity one enjoys (could also be biking, walking, kayaking, climbing, skiing). I had enjoyed reading one of Ari’s posts about a long-distance hike on the… Continue reading Trail Fails – Minor and Epic
One of the delights of living here is the ability to see so much wildlife. This morning, bald eagles were putting on a show. Driving home from caring for cats of friends who are out of town, I saw some large birds flying over the snow-covered country road, near where cattle were feeding on hay… Continue reading Bald Eagles
Wild Sensibility 