Icy

Hm, we said to each other... "Only a few degrees below freezing today, it's a perfect day for a long ramble in the woods, cameras in hand and a toboggan full of grain, apples and seed for the birds. There is no sunshine, but we can cope with that."

Verily, it was only a few degrees below freezing yesterday if one factored out the wind, but what a wind it was and the real temperature was "way down there" somewhere. The wind went shrieking over the hills and through the hollows, sweeping slopes clear and piling the snow in odd places, flash freezing everything it touched as it passed through. That winter wind went through parkas, ski pants, thermal underwear, boots, headgear and mittens as though they were made of paper.

It was far too cold yesterday to doff the mittens and take more than one or two photos, but we filled up the various bird feeders and left grain and apples for the deer in the usual places. I paused by the stream for a moment and feasted my eyes on the icy fractals being formed by the wind and abysmal temperature, but I was happy to leave the icy deeps and return home to make tea. We shall try again today.

The ice fractals (of course) were wonderful, elaborate spirals and outward expanding swirls of glossy frozen water, crunchy leaves and ice crystals, wonderful textures everywhere.