I always think kindly of the man of snow when he visits on a cold winter day.
His life and mine, while equally real, are separated mainly by 66.6ยบ F and a good pair of hiking boots. He is, however, much more beneficial than I in a re-cycled state.
Happy New Year everyone!
Every winter we look forward to seeing “winter waterfalls”, which are fairly common in this area. This one is beside a minor highway which runs next to the Clark Fork River where it cuts through the Coeur d’Alene mountain range. The vertical bars in the rock are from holes that were drilled so that explosives could be placed to blast through solid rock. This small fall is about 40 feet high.
After yesterday’s hike, three miles still remained to make my goal of 1,300 miles this year. Those last three were the hardest. I walked them today on two feet of snow:
The last time I used snowshoes was in the late 50’s and they certainly have changed. Back then they looked like something Paul Bunyan and his wife might have used at Wimbledon and felt as though you had tied small boats to your feet. Today’s version are a vast improvement. They are awesome!
A winter trail atop Loneman Divide.
Snow country in western Montana’s Cabinet Mountains.
Looking back on my trail. “Leave nothing behind but tracks on the snow: bring nothing back but memories and photographs.”
Merry Christmas everyone!
(Photographed December 24th along trail 372 through the Teepee- Spring Creek roadless area in the Cabinet Mountains of western Montana.)
This was the only photo I brought back from today’s hike,
but it sure reminded me of this one taken back in July.
Montana Outdoors 