Sunshine for week has brought out the first of the little flowers. I thought I’d share them with you. 
Little Flowers
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Tag Archives: mountains
Feb photos
Little fungi looking like Dr. Suess trees
View from the mountain behind the little cabin.
Febuary 5 photos
Growth on an Old June Berry
Early Morning Fog and Rain
The Old Bent Tree in the back yard. He is much bigger than he looks.
Misty Mountains
rain in febuary
A few winter pics from the hike with Oz
Old Tamarac
Last Berry of the Year
Thor
James (Oz) turned 13
The plan had been for sledding and hot coco, but with sleds in hand we discovered that the 6 inches of new snow was too soft. We sank in and went nowhere. Discarding that plan idea for another we wandered off to make a new one.
Oz thought it quite fun to try and knock snow off the trees onto his mother, and if not me then the dog.
After a few near misses we decided maybe we should hike up and see if we could find a better spot to sled, something much steeper where soft snow would be a benefit not a game ender.
We both discovered that we had out cell phones in our coat pockets… bad idea when sledding, shame on us both,… and thought it might be fun to see if we hiked all the way up to the top if we picked up any service.
Oz took the led and we headed straight up a very steep slope. Knee deep and having to hold onto trees to keep from sliding and crashing backwards we hiked, and hiked and … crawled is a better word… up the mountain.
Soaked and starting to feel the strain in the claves Oz decided it was time to head back down besides, cake was waiting! Of course his method, which I advise against especially if you are alone or not in your own back yard, was straight down!
He learned that there is a lot of hidden ‘treasures’ in the snow, and not all of them feel so great when you slide over them.
If you look real close you can spot the Little Cabin
At the bottom snow angels were attempted but of course Thor thought Pounce a more fun.
and of course more snow had to come down.
A change of clothes, dry socks and a bit of standing near the fireplace and the presents and cake came out. As we are a board game kid of family I had to fill in a few gaps, Clue and Monopoly had too be added to the basics. The games ensued.
For the first time ever I was the first one out, but Oz and Shane played for hours. Heading to bed Oz flopped down and before falling asleep… almost at once… he said “thanks, mom, that was a fun day.” What a great way to end the day.
dec 25th morning walk
With Oz gone to visit his dad for a couple weeks I had planned to sleep in late but woke up before the sun and a new layer of snow. Thor and I went for a walk.
The temperature was above freezing and there was not a breathe of wind, making for a beautiful morning.
Thor was thrilled to go for the walk down the road. His delight with the snow is almost infectious.
The transforming of the forest under fresh snow is always magical.
I hope everyone had a morning as peaceful and reaffirming as this morning was for me.
early morning mid december
First light hitting the clouds as they swept off the mountains this morning.
Sun creeping up a bit further.
Clouds in the mountains
Clouds pouring down between the peaks
Early morning view as I took the boy to Q’s woodshop. The photo doe snot do it justice but thought I would share anyway.
Walk to the Creek
Oz convinced me this morning, because its warmer now at 20°, to go for a walk with him down to the creek. It might say 20° at the house but it is much colder down by the water. The sun is far behind the mountain so deep in the valley so the creek is cast in a chilled twilight.
The frost in the shadows here builds up nightly, making some rather fantastic creations.
Once under the cedars and next to the creek it felt as if the temperature dropped even further than is was just in the mountains shadow.
As expected the first thing to happen was the boy and the dogs went skidding across the ice.
Only then did they set to exploring.
Most all of the creek is frozen over. Only a few pockets remain open.
This hole stayed open last winter until it was nearly -40°.
At this point my camera was getting cold it enough it kept an error reading. I managed to get a few more shots before heading back up the mountain to the Little Cabin and the fire place.
Photo Walk
Having it planned and ready we headed out to the photo walk early. We met up on the river bank for an easy walk. The weather was stunning with a day overcast but just warm enough to be very pleasant. http://quietwalkblog.com/ came with hand outs and several cameras. Brooke from Barnibee photography also came along. We hiked and about a 1/2 mile along the river, taking our time and clicking pics as we went.
Once we got back to the car it was decided that we could pull together a scavenger hunt in a way to compare and share our walk and our photos.
1: a pair
A pair of rose hips
2: Open
Open Water. The ice will be here shortly. Time to pause and listen to the sound of the unhindered river.
3: Curly
curly vine
4: Black
Black Raven Feather
5:Fuzzy
Three small fuzzy little clumps of rock moss
6:Dead
Dead leaves on the trail
7: Reflection
reflection of the mountains and trees on the Clack Fork River
8:Autum Colors
In every direction the leaves each became an individual piece of art as the colors seemed to each vie for attention
For both homeschool parents and any parent or adult who wishes for a way to interact with a teenager or young adult, I think the photo walks are a perfect opportunity. They offer a chance to be artistic in their own outlet and while Oden has an actual camera most kids now have cell phones with cameras that can achieve amazing images. Build a list, borrow a list and go for a walk out the front door, take a short drive to a place you have never been or head out to a young person favourite place. Let the hunt begin start your own blog, share on Facebook, or print up for the wall.
I encourage all my friends with kids old enough to not drop the tool they use to join us on our scavenger treks. Thanks to Quitewalkphotogrphay and to Barnibee Photography for taking the time.
Two Ravens Garden and Permaculture Site 