Winter Signs a New Lease

Things were dry for a while, but a good storm during the week freshened the snowpack.  It meant that I had to break a new track, but it was worth it.  The ridge was wintery and the snow was soft.  May summer never come.

I Don't Hit Deer

Deer hit me.  I know little about the psychological state of the average deer, but I do know one thing:  Depressed?  Maybe.  Anxious?  Probably.  Suicidal?  Definitely.  It isn't like I am coming for them.  In fact, I don't see them coming.  Suddenly they jump up out of the ditch and throw themselves under my bumper.  It is frustrating:  I don't care if you want to kill yourself, but do you have to wreck my truck?  The bumper has been twisted and the lights have been jacked-up since I hit that cow a couple of years ago, and it keeps getting worse.

Along the Price River

We continue to seek dry hiking in the low country.  Today we went out south of Wellington along the Price River.  Nope.  Still too snowy and slippery.  We walked for a while on the road in the beautiful late winter light.  It was muddy, but manageable.

Two Hikes

This is the story of two (failed) hikes.  It was so bright and sunny that I thought we could probably enjoy a short canyon hike.  Sure, there would be snow, but it would be crusty in the shadows and melted in the sun.  Um, no.  It was neither crusty nor melted, but deep and unconsolidated.  We post-holed for 20 minutes and then gave up.  Back out on the pavement, I noted that the south side slopes were snow free and that we should try to walk the old railroad line.  Well.  It was a mix of ice and mud so slippery that I, usually sure-footed, nearly ate $#!T at least thrice.  When we once again reached the safety of the oil, I said to VSO, "I tole ya we shoulda stayed home."

Snow Pit

We went out on the skis again yesterday and this time we carried the probe and the shovel.  We made our way to a northwest facing bowl and dug a snow pit.  I started digging and VSO finished.  We found about 46 inches of snow; not as much as I'd expected.  With the exception of a thin sugary layer along the ground and a couple of inches of wind slab at the surface, the entire snowpack has consolidated into a solid block.