Here is a peek at the road. Yes, this was early and those tracks were gone in about 20 minutes.
The snow was coming at about an inch and hour or a while.
It did ease up in the late evening, but the blowing snow always makes for interesting road conditions.
The wind carved some beautiful snow sculptures. Hard packed drifts!
Surprisingly the donkeys didn't seek shelter, the temps were not cold and they stayed out in it playing. Sally sported some interesting icicles on her brows.
And yes, I checked her undercoat and it felt nice warm and dry.
So today I decided to take advantage of the warmer temps and head out with my older snow shoes and my faithful dog, Morris...my photography assistant and resident clown.
No black and white for this day!
Hello sunshine!
For the first time in weeks I could actually enjoy the sunlight on my skin.
The creek was rather pleasant and I actually didn't get cold at all this visit.
I stood with the tripod in the creek and got a few nice shots which made me quite pleased.
The snow was getting mushy and clumping onto my snow shoes as we headed back. It was warm, nearly 40 degrees. A temp we haven't seen in ages.
Morris felt invigorated and decided to end our outing with some 'snow swimming' Jack Russell style.
The woman unsnapped the leash and Dixie looked up at her. First Dixie sat, then she realized she no longer had to 'heel'.
She
ran off through the snow covered soy bean field. She turned and ran
back to the woman who only smiled and let her bare fingers trace the top
of Dixie's head.
Dixie pushed her nose hard into the hand and took off again for another boisterous romp through the deep snow.
Dixie
quickly discovered that it was much easier to follow in the woman's
snow shoe tracks and let her break the deep trail. When there was a
deer path in the snow, Dixie ran ahead smelling and pushing her face
deep under the snow.
It
made the woman smile. Dixie liked that. They hiked across a large
open field. The woman kept doing something with a camera. She never
said a word except a quiet 'Good Girl Dixie' whenever Dixie checked back
with the woman.
While
going through a drift, the woman paused to catch her breath. Dixie
took that moment to stand on the back ends of the snow shoes. The woman
tried to take a step forward and ended up going face down in the snow.
Immediately
Dixie decided the woman needed help and assurance. Surely she
shouldn't be sputtering snow. Well, maybe she smelled something good.
Dixie plunged her face into the snow next to the woman and smelled.
The
woman said something quietly that sounded like 'sh...t'. Then the
woman reached out and firmly grasped Dixie's back and helped her self
up.
Then came the nice gentle hand and the trace of the finger across Dixie's skull.
Dixie was so pleased that she banged her hard long tail against the woman's legs.
The
snow fell hard, sometimes the horizon where the field met the sky would
disappear. Dixie didn't mind, she was with the woman.
Dixie
turned to eat some snow. The woman called softly to her. The woman
opened up a bottle and poured water into her palm. Dixie liked that.
Water from the nice hand.
They came across a scary place. It was an abandoned mobile trailer on the edge of the field. Dixie growled.
The woman put her camera away and carefully looked around.
Coyote tracks.
The
woman called Dixie quietly to her side. Dixie obeyed and sat in the
deep snow. The woman stood rock still and watched the woods and the
edges of the fields.
She saw it. A slinking coyote. The woman touched Dixie softly on the head and said 'Come'.
They
headed back following the broken trail. The woman watched carefully
for the coyote, but he/she had melted off into the deep woods.
When
they reached the road, the woman took off her snow shoes. She held up
the rope with a snap and clicked it. Dixie came and sat next to the
woman.
They walked down the road towards home, Dixie walking quietly and stately by the woman's side.
