Cold and Ice. I like ice.

I waited for a 'warmer' day to go hiking and check out the Ice Falls and the Rock Shelter on Wintergreen Trail. I thought I dressed properly. 

Thought being the word of the day.

The worst part was my mitten - gloves. I chose the very wrong ones. I thought the polar fleece ones would be plenty warm. They are thin and work in most of the weather but apparently not in temperatures in the low teens with a slight breeze. I should have worn my little cheap thin gloves and my hand made mittens with the double palm.

Lesson learned. I balled up my hands inside the mitten gloves and stuck them inside my jacket pockets in an effort to warm them up.

Charlie and I went on regardless of the cold fingers. I was smart enough to add a scarf to the contents of my backpack so I could use that to protect my face from the breeze off the river. I generally pack a spare pair of gloves or mittens too. Ach. Lesson learned.

We made it without any trouble to the place where there is a Rock Shelter that turns into an Ice Cave by February. I wanted to see how the warm weather, fog, and rain, affected the building of the ice. Was it all gone? Was it there?

It was there and it surprised me. The Rock Shelter itself is huge. The ice was long and but I couldn't get a good shot of it.

Here is a shot from 2019 that a friend took of me hugging the ice.

The cooler parts are not the rock shelter itself, but the area that it drains down into. 

There are actually 2 areas of Ice Falls in this one spot. Water drains constantly from across the ridge and flows over this area and out to the river.

Here is a wide view from the bottom. 

This view is stunning. I don't think many people get to see this because the climb down is pretty intense. The Shelter I was pictured in .. is in the top right of this photo. So it is quite a distance that the water flows.

To the left is an ice falls. To me, it is one of the prettiest ice formations I've ever seen.

I always climb down to view it in the winter. I just can't help myself.

Along the trail there are a few other interesting places to see ice. This one is a bit treacherous if you are not paying attention and try to walk over it when snow covers it.

We made it to the end of the long bluff and got a shot of the river below us. In many places it was frozen over. However the river is dangerous when iced over because the water is flowing underneath it.

We made the trip safely despite getting a bit chilled along the way. I did end up using the scarf to keep my chin and face warm while walking back into the slight breeze. It was nice to get in the car and turn on the seat heater.

I'll be back to all the places I can get to as many times as possible throughout this winter.

Sunday Stills #33 ~ Handmade

The first thing I think of when hearing the words Handmade are my Grandmother's incredible mittens. 

Lucky for me, I was able to get a box of mittens that she and my Aunt had made. Often I wear the double layer mittens to do chores in. When the weather gets very cold, nothing is better than homemade mittens.

Bear models a child's pair here:

The knit mittens have wool over them. Often I wear mine with those tiny stretchy gloves you can get that are cheap and three for a $2.

This week I had some waiting around the house to bid my time while the winds blew down limbs and whisked anything that was not tied down away...

I cut up Elderberry stems and cut them apart. I made my own Lincoln log cabins for my toys to enjoy.

Homemade log cabins and glittered pinecones for decorations:

And last but not least my handmade button bears. They love to play in the woods and chase Elf on the Shelf.

But today they posed for him on a log.

That's my story...

and I'm stickin' 

to it.

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