With a name like Fireweed, one might think the flower would throw off some heat, but there was no warmth outside this morning and the blossom wouldn’t have survived the winds yesterday. The common name Fireweed came because it can quickly colonize open areas after a forest fire. It needs plenty of space and light and will die out when trees and brush take over, but their seeds remain viable for years and will germinate when land is cleared or after another fire.
Fireweed Blossom
The wind is blowing and swirling the snow around causing a blanket of white at times. And shoveling the snow in sub-zero temperatures has me wishing for summer and watching waves crashing on the rocks creating a different kind of white blanket.
Wave Meeting Rock
The majority of very cloudy days have made it hard to get colorful sunset this winter and if there are nice sunsets, I am too chicken to brave the cold.
Pine Tree Sunset
This old shed has been patched a few times in the past but it still may let some wind blow through the cracks especially in blizzard conditions although it would provide some shelter behind the wooden walls.
Patched Shed Door
With the recent snow and frost on the trees this morning under cloudy skies, everything outside looks rather white with very little color showing like what there would be on an autumn day. And I prefer this type of fall scene than when I had a ‘fall scene’ when I discovered unexpectedly a patch of ice under the snow the other morning.
A Stroll Down an Autumn Path
The ice crystal monster dropped a lot of snow on Tuesday night into Wednesday morning and it was a hassle to clear the roads, driveways and sidewalks. And the snow monster dropping snow flakes again!
Ice Crystal Monster
These seagulls braved the waves and high winds while on the shore of Lake Superior during a nor’easter but at least they weren’t out in the blizzard yesterday with blowing snow.
Seagulls Braving Nor’easter
Well since it was cloudy this morning because of the snow storm coming, Jimmy the Groundhog from Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, did not see his shadow so supposedly spring will come early. Although by tomorrow morning he would have to climb up through a lot more snow.
The more famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, also sees early spring, but Jimmy received more notice last Groundhog Day when Jimmy bite the mayor’s ear when the mayor leaned in to hear the weather prediction. Afterward, authorities told Jimmy’s owners they needed a license to own a groundhog and the decision was made to release the groundhog back into his native habitat.
But a new Jimmy, Jimmy XII, made the prediction this year, as someone with a license for a groundhog, brought a groundhog for the celebration, but Jimmy stayed in the cage this year so no chance to bite the mayor’s ear for waking him up early in the morning.
Groundhog Predicts Early Spring
Yesterday, the end of January was greeted with an above freezing temperature, so there was some snow melting off the roofs and compacting the blanket of snow. My pond had a new layer of water on top of the old ice from the melting but there wasn’t enough melting to cause it to overflow and no rushing water like the Eau Claire River flowing over Big Falls in the late summer, especially since it dropped to below freezing over night. But this morning, the fog from the melting snow covered the trees in a pretty frost again.
Flowing Over Big Falls
