Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Winter Snow


I want to show you some winter scenes from the nature park today. I'm doing this because I had the same opportunity to show you some spectacular fall pictures a few months ago, but I was so not ready for fall that I neglected to share them with you. One of those pictures came up on my computer background today and took my breath away.

I'm not going to do that for my winter photos. I don't want to let the beauty of winter go by without sharing it, so I have these for you today. Maybe I'll share the fall pictures with you in a few weeks anyway. There really hasn't been much snow here yet, but it's enough to cover the ground now, and it's not going away.

This first photo was taken at the front of the park, right at the point where I walk around a bend and can't see the parking lot anymore. This is the first place I begin to feel that I'm away from civilization. If I were to turn around here we would see the very spot where I saw my first male deer only a few weeks ago.


Here is a typical trail in this forest. I was really surprised to see how white the trails were here, considering there wasn't really much snow out here at all. I'm not sure there was much more than an inch of snowfall, but the forest floor was covered, and it hasn't gone away yet.

Usually whenever there is snow or rain of any kind These trails seem to shed all of it very easily. They made the trails only a little over a year ago, and they made sure that moisture of any kind runs off of them easily. Even when it's pouring rain the trails stay dry enough to hike. I guess nobody told the snow to stay off the trails.


I really don't know where I got this picture, but it must have come from somewhere near the front of the park at that first trail before it branches into two. This thick brush in the front of the picture is only at that front trail, and it's very hard to get through. I've never tried to do it, but one of these days I'm going to go for a journey into that part of the forest.


This is a picture of what the lake looks like right now. It's the first time I've seen it covered with snow. Always before there has either been only ice or water. The white of the snow on the smooth surface of the lake makes everything look so clean.

The best thing I've noticed about winter is that my pictures seem to come out much better. The light seems to be distributed more evenly. Look how blue the sky looks in the picture, while the ground and everything else is still bright enough to see clearly. This never happens in the summer. Back then I only get either the ground or the sky to come out right. Not both.

I hope you liked this post for today. I'm working on something special for Christmas Eve right now. It will be a little more creative than this one, and totally unique. I'm not sure if it will come out right yet, but if it does everybody will have fun with it. I know a lot of you may not be able to read it that day, but it will be worth going back to later. In the meantime, I'll see you tomorrow with my regular post.

15 comments:

  1. Let's hear it for virtual snow...Hooray! Gorgeous photos and I agree wholeheartedly that the winter sky is a fabulous shade of blue, especially against all that white. I always loved the first good snowfall and how pristine everything looked afterward. Thanks for sharing the scenery! :o)

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  2. Beautiful photos, Ratty, in your winter wonderland.

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  3. Those are terrific pictures. Glad you shared them. We don't get much snow here in SC so it is nice to see pictures of it. The lake snow is gorgeous.Can't wait for Christmas Eve.

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  4. I love the shadows in the second and last pictures! It's indeed beautiful winter scenes!

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  5. The snow always makes everything look so different, doesn't it Ratty. And it does look clean and fresh when it comes too...I went out yesterday too and took some shots. Can't wait to get my main computer back so I can download my pictures!!!

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  6. The last picture is fantastic, I specially like the shadows of trees on the snow.

    Winter is cold, but it looks beautiful sometime.

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  7. beautiful photos again ratty! i also love the fallen snow when there aren't any tracks or anything to mess up the cleanness of it. have a wonderful day...hugz!

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  8. I love the pic of the lake..and I'm looking forward to reading the Christmas eve post..here in England Christmas eve is a normal day so I'll be able to check it out straight away!! :-)

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  9. I love how the snow makes things so uniform. I love variety too, but sometimes with the background so clear and simple, other things show up. Looking forward to Christmas Eve with you.

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  10. Last week I was jealous of everyone's pictures of snow. Now we have 14cm of our own :-)

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  11. Beautiful photos. Love that blue sky against the white snow. You've got me very curious about your Christmas eve post. Can't wait to see what you've got up your sleeve.

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  12. What a beautiful nature park! You capture its essence so clearly in your photographs and descriptions. It seems so devoid of people which means more wildlife for you! I'm curious is this a town park, state park, or other?

    Bill:www.wildramblings.com

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  13. Thank you all for your comments and your feedback. I really appreciate it! I'm still having trouble finding time to be online right now so I'll make this short. I'll just answer questions for now. I know there have been some questions left in other posts comments, and I'll do my best to get to those as soon as I can.
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    @Bill
    It's a city park. The cities all around here are setting aside land to make these hiking and nature parks. Even Detroit is beginning to get the same idea. It's a wonderful time for places like these in the Detroit area.

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  14. Your last photo of the lake was wonderful! I think winter photos always look better because of the lower indecent light angle. There is that time of day in the morning and afternoon in the summer and the "golden" light occurs when the sun is just rising or setting, and in winter the regular light is more like this all day.

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  15. Beautiful photos Ratty, everything always looks so beautiful with a fresh coat of snow.

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