Early Saturday morning, when I took Benny for his walk around the pond, the temperature was an uncomfortable -16C (3F) with a windchill of -26C (-14F). Needless to say, neither one of us wanted to be out there for very long and there wasn't a single thing that caught my eye which I thought worth photographing.Walking later in the day is different though. Temperatures rise to a balmy -6C (21F) and the sun's rays are warm and inviting. That's when Frank and I wander around the nearby paths with our favourite accessory. No, I mean aside from Benny. On cold days like this, we usually fill a small flask with a mixture of potables. This time it was coffee-flavoured Bolivar combined with Fireball Whiskey - a strong cinnamon liqueur. I've decided to name this concoction Boliball. Have a sip to warm yourself, and join us on our walk around the park.
Every spring, a small stream of melted snow forms along this mini valley which used to attract ducks, until coyotes began to wander through the park some years ago. The water is usually long gone by summer unless we have a particularly heavy rain. Here you can see that the thaw from warmer weather of ten days ago has recently refrozen.
The recent thaw also revealed a small thatch of moss growing at the base of this tree. It looks like spring. Birds sing, and so it sounds like spring. But the icy fingers that snapped this photo tell me that it still feels like the depths of winter. Let's have another sip and keep on moving.
That's ice all along the pathway, making this part of the walk a bit tricky. Luckily, the recent thaw melted the icy portion which covered the slope to the left. Up until then, there was always the risk that sliding off in that direction could result in a close encounter with the lake below.
Glancing down that slope, you can see a small cuff of ice formed around the base of one of the trees.
Enjoy another sip while we take a closer look at it.
As the sun begins to set, its gilded rays bathe everything in gold. If it wasn't so cold, I'd suggest we have a seat on this bench, but I know you'll want to move on.
Golden sunshine shines like a beacon on the water, and creates a metallic sheen upon the hilly shore.
Frank's shadow shimmers below, as his hand appears to be outlined in glowing sunshine. He was quite happy to pose like this long after I took this shot. Perhaps Frank has had a few too many sips...These last two mystery images were taken indoors. Do you know what they are? I'll have the answers for you in a few days.
Mystery image #1.
Mystery image #2.
