At 10:25am this morning it was a balmy -25C; -33C with the windchill.  The sun was out and the sky was cloudless but the wind whipped between the buildings creating a dangerous situation to be outside.  

The blowing wind rocked the glider deck furniture back and forth.  The gusts made the bird feeders sway back and forth like the pendulum of a clock.  

As I sat at the kitchen table, I watched the chickadees at the feeders.  They had to have perfect timing to land. 

The wind kept me inside except for the brief time that I went out to fill the feeders and the grain tub.  I was out for only a few minutes but the wind made my head feel like I had an 'ice-cream- headache'.

The deer came by a couple of times through the day.  I was grateful for the wildlife coming to visit me today since I wasn't venturing out.

Tonight at 8:45pm it was -29.4C.  The forecast says it is supposed to dip to -38C overnight.  As the temperature is dropping, I can hear the creaks and cracks of contracting wood in the house.  I'm hoping this is the last blast of winter.  These windy, cold days are robbing me of my outdoor time.

I didn't pay any attention to the backyard when I opened the door this morning.  As I stepped onto the deck, I noticed some movement.  My deer friends were in the back yard, eating their breakfast bright and early today.  That was a great way to begin the day.

That little inner voice of mine told me to keep the camera handy this morning so I placed it on the front passenger seat when I left.  It also told me to leave for work a bit earlier.  I'm glad that I did.

I came across a moose about 8 kilometers from home.  It was busy munching on the tasty branches at the Strathcona Wilderness Centre.  I ended up driving by and then backing up.  When I stopped my vehicle and rolled down the window, the moose glanced up but didn't move.  It stayed put the entire time that I snapped my photos.

It was a great beginning to a sun-shiny day.  The air was warm and the sky was blue.  It was the kind of day that I'm hoping for at the end of the week.  Looking at the forecast, I don't think that is going to happen.  I see an overnight low of -39C.  I better re-stock the wood box.  

 



 

The last three nights have had temperatures dip to the low -30Cs.  Brrrr.  If we were going to be hit with a deep freeze again, it happened during a good week.  I've been busy with an event at work so have not been able to get outside anyway.

The daylight hours have been filled with sunshine and blue skies.  With the sun being higher in the

sky, the daytime temperatures have been decent.

The forest creatures have been coming out more often.  I haven't seen moose for a few weeks but over the last 4 days, I've seen 7 of them in addition to a couple of porcupines and coyotes.  As I drove down the range road toward home today, a moose crossed in front of me from one ditch to the other.  It joined a second one in a willow thicket.  I love watching those clumsy creatures!

The deer in my backyard have been doing overnight raids.  They must know that I have not been home during the day to see them.

There is no power in my garage.  I got home early enough today for it to still be light in there.  I noticed a pile of sunflower seed shells on the garage floor.  Beside the bag, a hole chewed through the wood floor.  The backyard squirrel has found its way into the garage again.  The last time a squirrel made its way into the garage, it constructed a beautiful nest from the pink insulation in the attic.  In the middle of the nest was the food store.  I filled a construction size garbage bag with the chewed insulation.  At that time, I plugged every hole there was in the garage.  Looks like the little rodent was persistent to gain entry again.

I'm looking forward to some outdoor time this weekend whether the temperatures are frigid or not. 

 

During my recent road trip to Jasper National Park, I had some free time to drive the scenic highway to Maligne Lake.  All the visitor amenities at the lake were closed but the views along the drive were worth the trek anyway.

I came across a beautiful mule deer in the middle of the highway.  It was licking the snow/salt mixture on the road surface.  I pulled over to watch.  It did not move until it was ready to.  Eventually it made its way to the embankment on the west side of the road.  The snow was so deep that the deer sank up to its underbelly as it made its way to the forest.

There were a number of spots that had avalanche warning signs posted.  That did not deter visitors from heading out on the trails with skis and snowshoes.  There were a number of vehicles in the parking lots along the way.

The evergreen branches held up a layer of snow.  The mountain tops in the distance were covered in white.  The scene was as beautiful as a Christmas card.

I pulled into the parking lot at Medicine Lake.  In the distance I could see three park visitors on snowshoes trekking across the lake.  Without the use of binoculars, they looked like little ants on a white blanket.

The drive to Maligne Lake and back took almost 1.5 hours.  It was a great way to enjoy the winter scenes and the majestic Rocky Mountains.

There is truth to the statement that you learn something new everyday.  I found out what muskrats do during the winter season.  In the summer, they can be seen along roadside ditches, munching on fresh grasses and reeds.  In the winter, they are busy as well.  They do not hibernate.  If you drive by a snow covered pond and see small mounds on the surface, they are probably the

handiwork of a muskrat.

I wouldn't want to find out how sharp those little teeth are.  Obviously, they are not only capable of chewing up the reed stalks, but they are also capable of chewing through the ice that forms on lake and pond surfaces.

I was on a pond surface today.  There were numerous mounds

on it.  I took a closer look and saw that the dark areas of the mounds were underwater plants that the muskrats had brought to the surface.

There were many animal tracks in the snow today; coyote, elk, bison.  They criss-crossed the open area like roadways on a map.  The coyotes had checked out all the muskrat mounds.

I took my skis out today.  I use adventure skis that are made for either groomed trails or breaking trail.  They work much better when I'm breaking trail.

I created a large loop that started along the shoreline, went south up to a beaver lodge and then back to where I began.  There is the perfect amount of snow on the pond for x-country skiing.  I went around my loop a couple of times; soaking up the sun and admiring the blue, cloudless sky.  

The temperature was above zero again today.  When I got back from skiing, I enjoyed a cup of coffee on the back deck.  The chickadees, nuthatches and woodpeckers were busy at the feeders.  A squirrel chattered up in a tree.  A couple of magpies were raiding the grain that was put out for the deer.

It was so beautiful that I looked for more tasks to keep me busy outside. I took down the decorations from my backyard Christmas tree.  I chopped a bin full of wood for the indoor stove.  I could hear water dripping off the garage roof and the snow on my neighbor's metal roof was sliding over the edge; landing in a big bank on the ground.

It sounds like there will be some fresh snow this evening. Another few centimeters would make for excellent skiing in the days to come.  

Sunshine and melting snow was testament that the temperature made it to the plus-side today.  The day was beautiful and many people were out enjoying the extra day off.  I've never seen so many vehicles driving through or parked in the lots at Elk Island.

I pulled into the parking lot of the Amisk Wuche trail and found 6 vehicles there.  I'm usually the only one.  Keeping that in mind as I put the snowshoes on, I decided to break a trail on the lake surface.  

There was a packed trail down the embankment to the shoreline.  That's where it ended.  I could see there had once been another trail that went across the ice but the wind had drifted it over.  I created a new trail along the shoreline.

That turned out to be a really good choice.  Nobody else was out on the lake but from my vantage I could see numerous hikers on the trail.  That is one reason why I opted for the open space but it

wasn't the only one.  When I hike in the trees, the upper canopy does not allow the sun to shine through.  On the lake surface, the sun was bright and warm.

I created a big loop on the lake.  In some places, there was very little snow.  In others, the wind had created drifts but they were hard-packed and it was easy to stay on top of them.  As I made my way round the shoreline, I planned what I was going to do tomorrow.  The day is supposed to be sunny if the forecast is correct; making it a perfect day to try to snowshoe out to the island at Astotin Lake or take the skis out on the lake surface.  

I'll have to toss a coin to decide what to do unless I head out early which means ample time to snowshoe in the morning and ski in the afternoon.  That way I wouldn't have to decide!

I was planning on taking the snowshoes out today.  That didn't happen.  I drove into the Wilderness Centre parking lot and drove right back out again.  The parking lot was full.  The overflow lot was full and people were beginning to park on either side of the driveway.

I had my skates with me so decided on some ice skating.  My first location was a bust.  The parks staff had not cleaned the snow from it.  I tried the snowbank rink by the local elementary school.  It was perfect.  I had the ice all to myself.  I love skating there.  There's nothing quite like skating on an outdoor surface.  This one is well maintained; cleaned and flooded on a regular basis.  I'm always amazed at how little it gets used.  There are picnic tables set up beside it so families could make a morning or afternoon of it.

The ice surface that wasn't cleaned off is at the Cooking Lake - Blackfoot  Recreation area.  It is larger than the one that I skated at.  There are picnic tables and outdoor fire pits with wood provided.  There is also a large picnic shelter with a wood stove inside.  Both are perfect locations for a family outing.

When I got home, I filled the bird feeders.  I heard a very loud, hollow tapping sound.  The pileated woodpecker was at it again.  Rather than coming to the old rotted stump or the suet feeders, it was rat-a-tat-tatting on a power pole.  

My backyard deer friends showed up during the late afternoon.  I had the pail of water back outside for them.  Only a couple of them came for a drink.  The others preferred to grab mouthfuls of snow.

The forecast shows sunshine for tomorrow.  I hope it is correct.  I'd like to take the skis or snowshoes out for a couple of hours.

I've been dog-sledding in the Canmore area a couple of times.  What fun I had watching the excitement build in the dogs when they saw the harnesses coming out. 

Today, I drove out to Pigeon Lake to watch some dog sled races.  The local sled dog club hosted a weekend race.  There was quite the assortment of dogs but they all had one thing in common.  They LOVED to run!

The race began with a ski-joring event.  It looked like such fun.  I do believe if that was me on the skis, the dogs would have been dragging me behind them.

In the sled categories, there were two-dog (juniors), four-dog, six-dog and eight-dog races.  The dogs were so excited to race.  They howled and jumped and barked until the starter gave the go ahead to begin.

As the sleds came in through the finish gate, the dogs were grabbing mouthfuls of snow to quench their thirst before getting some nice bowls of water back at their kennels.  There were a lot of very long tongues hanging out as they ran by. 

The youngest racer on a sled was only 4 years old.  She had a smile from ear to ear when the starter gave her the go ahead.  What a little trooper!

The sun was shining in the blue Alberta sky.  The temperature was great.  The dogs were entertaining.  What a great way to spend the day!

As I browsed through my canyon photos today, I kept returning to those of the frozen ice falls. Each brought me back to the time spent there.  I could have spent the entire time looking at all the different formations and colors.  Some of them were white as the snow.  Some of them were different shades of blue/green.  Other formations were light brown in color.  
 
There were different thicknesses of ice.  Some of the 'icicles' were solid while others were crystallizing from water seeping over/under them.  Some of the ice was so clear and thin that you could see through it like a pane of glass.


When all was quiet, I could hear water trickling from the canyon walls.  That, combined with the sound of the birds in the forest, would have made for a great relaxation recording.

The large ice wall that the climbers were traversing, was beginning to deteriorate at one end.  Water was dripping from the mid-section.  The icicles that were melting were becoming clear in color as they melted.

Our group consisted of people from Australia and Belgium.  The Canadians in the group were from Saskatoon, Victoria and Calgary.  I was the only person from the group that had been on a Maligne Canyon Ice Walk before.  Even so, I was just as mesmerized with the ice formations as the other participants.  That is one tour that you can take year after year and not see the same things.  The sound of the trickling water will not change but the seasonal temperatures determine the formation of the ice walls and they will be different each winter.

2014

2013

I was in Maligne Canyon last year and stood beside Bridal Veil Falls.  It was not frozen at that time.  This year, due to the temperatures dipping to the -30Cs last week, a layer of ice had formed on that wall as well.  I think it added to the beauty of the trickling water.  As the morning sun shone on the ice, it sparkled like diamonds.

From the comments heard as the other participants chatted on the bus, the experience is something that they will remember for a long while.  The scenery, the sounds, the pristine landscape contributed to a very relaxing and memorable morning.

Someone got creative with some ice blocks.

 

The day could not have been better for a trek through Maligne Canyon.  The temperature was perfect.  The sun was out and the sky was blue.

After the tour bus picked up all the hikers, we headed to the 6th bridge parking lot.  Here, we put our cleats on and crossed the temporary bridge.  Beautiful, clear mountain water flowed under it. The guide took us to the trail at the top where we hiked east to a point where the water no longer flowed on top of the surface.  We entered the bottom of the canyon where thick ice covered the canyon floor.

The ice was soft in places.  We had to tread carefully so we didn't end up with boots full of water.  Two of my fellow hikers ended up breaking through the ice.  As one of the guys broke through, he ended up taking our guide down.  She ended up soaked!

As we proceeded forward, a number of frozen waterfalls clung to the canyon walls.  At the largest one, two ice climbers were getting their gear ready.  This water froze with a hollow space behind it.  The space was large enough for us to walk behind.  What a beautiful, behind the scenes view we had!

We couldn't go through the entire way as the ice floor had dropped about ten feet.  It created a hollow space beneath an ice shelf that created an unsafe situation for hikers.

As we ventured back to the parking lot, I took in the serene landscape.  The evergreen branches had a dusting of snow that looked like icing sugar.  The sound of running water could be heard behind the ice falls.  Chickadees called from the tree tops.  I could see animal tracks in the deep snow, coming down from the canyon walls.

The hike was a great way to spend 2 hours outside on a beautiful winter day in Alberta!

I left the cold temperatures behind and found sunshine, blue sky and +4C in Jasper National Park.  Things never change.  That first glimpse of the mountains is always exciting.  On the drive through the park I saw two herds; one of mountain sheep and one of elk.  They were in areas along the highway where I could not pull over to take photos.  Hopefully I'll get some wildlife photos tomorrow.

I got settled in my room.  By the time I was done, the snow was melting off the roof and I was roasting like a turkey.  I had to take some layers off.  I wore only a windproof shell over a light under layer when I went for a walk. 

I hiked north on the road to the bridge that joins the shore and a little island on Pyramid Lake.  The sun was so bright.  I had to take advantage of that so I decided to walk back on the lake.  It was warm and beautiful.  I could hear laughter on the skating oval.  A family was out there with skates and a sled.  I'll be trying that oval out tomorrow.

As I walked along the shore, the wind picked up loose snow and created little snow devils that travelled across the surface.  The wind gusted now and again but that didn't deter some skiers from trekking across the lake.  I hope that I'll be able to do that tomorrow when I get back from the tour.

I have an ice walk tour of Maligne Canyon planned for tomorrow.  The weather is looking great.  It will be a fantastic way to spend some time outside in the mountain air.  I'm hoping for another blue-bird sky day.

Snow!  That's something we haven't had for a long while.  There's a couple of inches of white fluffiness on the driveway.  I believe it's falling for me since I have lots of outdoor activities planned during my week off.

There's a heavy snowfall warning where I'm headed for a couple of days.  My cleats, skates, snowshoes and skis are ready for action.  I'm going to take in as much of the crisp, fresh air that I possibly can.  

My camera gear is ready for action as well.  I'm not asking for much.  I want the sky to clear and the sun to come out for maximum photo ops! 

This morning's cold temperature amplified all the outside sounds.  The vehicles driving by sounded like they were coming through the house.  The chickadees in the tree outside the window sounded like they were inside.  When I went out to fill the feeders, the crunch of the snow underneath my boots sounded hollow.

Nasty mama!

The deer visited the yard before I left for work.  The nasty mama was particularly mean this morning.  She butted and kicked at the fawns numerous times during their visit.  

I have not been able to put the water pail back into the yard because my vehicle needs to be plugged in.  Today I witnessed how the deer quench their thirst without the pail.  After eating the grain and seeds, three of them scooped up mouthfuls of snow.

The temperature tonight is not supposed to dip as low as the past few evenings.  -25C sounds balmy compared to the -34C last night.  I'm hoping that the forecast is accurate as it shows a warming trend and more snow.  I have lots of outdoor activities planned for my week off!

I think she saw me!

The windchill this evening gave me an instant brain freeze when I rounded the first corner when leaving work.  It was worse than ice-cream brain pain.  

The deer family visited the yard so early today that I didn't even have the chance to get outside to fill their food tub.  I felt sorry for them this morning.  The thermometer dipped to -33C last night on my thermometer.  Frost built up on the tips of their hairs.  I managed to get a photo of one of them.  It looked like it must have been cuddled up to another deer on one side of it's face.   The side that was left to the elements was frosty white. 

When I tried to sneak outside, I scared the deer off.  They did not return before I left for work.  I doubled the amount of grain that they've been getting.  I checked the feeder when I got home and it was empty so I made sure to fill it in case there was an overnight visit.

The weather has been brutal; windy almost everyday which is causing some severe windchill.  I spoke too soon when I looked at the historical weather from 2013.  The coldest overnight temperature in February of 2013 was -19.8C.  So far, this year, there have been 6 nights with temperatures recorded in the -20Cs; most in the high numbers close to -30C.

I love winter because there are no bugs, no allergies, no poplar fuzz and no heat headaches.  The only thing I don't like is the wind.  I don't like it in the summer and I dislike it even more in the winter.

The day began with a cloudy, flurry-filled sky but by the time I was ready to head out the door, the sky cleared and the sun was shining.  It was -21C on the thermometer but the sun was high enough that even though it was chilly outside, there was some melting happening on the deck rails.

The deer had visited again overnight and emptied the bird feeders.  I filled the feeders up for the little chickadees that were hiding out in the spruce trees.  They are becoming very brave.  Some of them will land on the hooks where the feeders hang and wait until I finish with the seeds.  I have not been able to convince them to land on my hand.

On the way through Elk Island National Park, I spotted a young moose amidst a tree stand.  It was munching on some young branches and paid no mind to the vehicles moving along the highway.

A little further up the road, I saw some bison in the distance.  Even though there were bare patches of grass on a hill behind them, they were in the deep snow, digging around for something to eat.

I walked the Amisk Wuche trail.  I wanted to see if the parks staff had dealt with the huge spruce tree that toppled onto the trail.  It was still there.  I had to duck even lower to get beneath it.  It's weight is bending the trees that it landed on.  I'm sure it will be almost to the ground the next time I visit.

The squirrels were out, jumping from tree to tree.  Their chattering echoed through the forest.  A couple of them were so busy eating that they didn't care that I was only three feet away.  They didn't mind having their photo taken!

I came to a spot on the trail where someone had ventured onto the beaver pond with their snowshoes.  I had intended to hike across the pond to get back to the parking lot but something kept telling me to continue on the actual trail.  I'm glad that I listened to that little voice because I would have missed seeing a herd of elk sunning themselves on the edge of the forest. 

I found a route home that takes me along the rural roads.The road runs alongside the north boundary of the park, all the way to the range road that I live on.  I've taken that route a couple of times now and each time, I see something new.

Today, as I passed by a farm with numerous rows of silage, a deer poked it's head out from the end of one row.  The silage tarp was open and the deer was helping itself to a tasty snack.

I got home and found that the chickadees had been very busy while I was gone.  They had one hanging feeder almost empty.  As I got out of my vehicle, a blue jay squawked from a tree top.  The wind was ruffling it's feathers which made it look twice as big as what it actually was.

It is supposed to remain cold for a couple more days but then it should be getting back to seasonal temperatures.  I have some time off in the near future so I've got some planning to do for some outdoor adventures.  Yippee!

What's going on under all that ice and snow?

 

 

My brown-eyed, furry friends must have known that I was at home today.  As I sat at the kitchen table, enjoying a morning coffee, all five of them paraded into the yard and put on a show for me.  I noticed that the younger ones are now tall enough to reach the hanging feeders.

Their antics were funnier than usual.  Three of them chose the feeder closest to the kitchen window.  As they tipped it sideways for the seeds to fall out, the feeder rotated around in a circle.  Their heads rotated round and round with the feeder.  It was making me dizzy just watching them.

When they left, I bundled up and headed to Elk Island for a hike and some fresh air.  I was the only person in the Astotin Lake parking lot.  It was snowing lightly and the wind was drifting the snow across the surface of the lake.

I hiked to the trail head and found the remains of a young deer.  There wasn't much left of it as the scavengers had been busy.  Ravens and magpies were in the tree tops.  There were a number of coyote tracks in the fresh snow.

It appeared that there were no humans on the trail for a number of days.  A layer of snow covered the trail.  There were no people prints; only elk, coyote, hare, deer and squirrel.  

As I made my way around the loop, the sky cleared and the sun came out.  I hadn't seen blue sky for a few days.  The wind stopped and it actually felt warm.

I was hoping for an owl sighting today but that didn't happen.  The largest bird that I saw was a raven.

It was great to get out for a hike today.  The temperature had warmed up to make for an enjoyable outing.  I took the long way home.  There were two white tail deer along the north boundary of the park.  A couple of coyotes were hunting in the open fields.

I pulled into the yard and noticed that the deer had come back while I was gone.  The chickadees were lined up on the fence waiting for me to refill their seed supply.  There was a feeding frenzy when I finished.

I'm looking forward to another outside day tomorrow.  I don't care how cold it will be.  There is one thing for sure; I'll be spending time outside.