Mother Nature showed us both power and beauty all within 24 hours! First, we were startled by an early morning loud, growing rumble that ended with a shaking bed. We instantly woke up! Earthquakes even if they are only 4.3 magnitude are quite an unexpected experience!
The recent rain from El Nino finally switched to snow. Within 24 hours of the earth shaking, the land was covered in a foot of snow. That is quite impressive! Maybe, for someone who lives in Montana that doesn't sound like much but for two people from the southern states, a foot is practically a blizzard!
As much as I like my big yellow shovel acquired a couple of years ago, I wish we had a Bobcat or better yet, a snowplow like our neighbor. He is our hero on days like these since without him, we would be trapped on an unplowed road indefinitely!
The best part of a snowy winter land, of course, is tromping in the beautiful powdery snow! Sure is a lot more effort when the snow is up to your knees.
Our backyard feeder has become a "hotspot" especially when everything is covered in white. The tough little Mountain Chickadees are joined by Oregon Juncos, Pine Siskins, Steller's Jays, Northern Flickers, Pygmy Nuthatches, White-breasted Nuthatches, House Finches...
and an uncommon bird for this area, the Pink-sided Junco. Seeing a bird for the very first time is quite exciting. It's even more exciting when it hits the Rare Bird alert on eBird.
Ravens are usually overlooked. These Ravens caught my eye with their obvious attentiveness to each other. Besides holding their heads high neck to neck, one offered a tasty treat to another. Winter lovebirds??
The Western Grey Squirrels are digging impressive holes in the snow trying to find buried acorns. Not a lot of success when the snow is quite deep. The birds that drop seed below from the feeders are much appreciated by them, I'm sure.
Our reward for all the shoveling, cold hands and feet, chopping of wood, and inability to drive came when the clouds departed and the magnificent mountains reappeared. It's humbling to see such beauty! If you don't have any interest in snow or wintry weather, you may want to follow our friends who chose to spend a well deserved vacation from their incredibly busy kayak business in the Florida Keys..Safe journeys!
"Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
