A New Years Tradition
Snowshoeing in the Darkby Dan Hartman
Jan. 1, 2015
New Years Eve, Kelly and I once again revived the old Hartman tradition of running our snowshoe trail in the dark to send out the old year. Of course, it was bitter cold, way below zero. Our snowshoe bindings were stiff from the cold and difficult to put on in the dark. Finally, we were ready and off into the night. The bright moon illuminated open meadows and cast eerie shadows under the trees. Even in the denseness of the timber we were able to make out our trail without flashlight. As we trudged along, our breath left us in frosted clouds.Reaching a high slope, Mt. Republic came into view, then off to the right, The Wall. Stars dotted the sky. A snowmobile whined in the distance. The moon shone brightly, lighting up the whole scene.
We would have liked to stay longer but the cold was seeping in through our gloves and boots. We started back down. A fox was some where just ahead of us, judging by the tracks on the trail. We circled through the trees then crossed a gurgling creek. A few more minutes and our cabin lights came into view. They promised warmth. As we approached the back door, a flying squirrel watched us from a stump under our porch light.
Kicking off snowshoes, we went inside to start our New Years celebration.
Musings: A moose visited us this morning, feeding just outside our living room window.
On the way to town the other day, we came across two otters in the pond at Emigrant.
Photos
A Frosty Night
Off We Go !!!
Snow Shoeing In The Dark
Mt Republic
Heading Back Down
Our Warm Cabin
Happy New Year !!!
New Years Eve Moose
Emigrant Otters