Ruffed grouse

What a glorious day! Sun and wind, just the way I love it, the 0C temperatures make it glorious. In the morning I walk up the hill here to the west, at the beginning of the trail I meet a female grouse. Bonasa umbellus

The trail supports me up to the first outcrop. After that the snow is all blown and no trail in sight. On the rocks the snow start melting first, grass and plants that grow in the cracks start showing. The gray is wild sage and the red is prickly saxifrage.
Sage
Artemesia frigida
Prickly saxifrage
Saxifraga tricuspidata

Around noon when I am around the house I spot some ungulate tracks in the snow, I end up following them all the way to moose skull lake, and there they disappear in the forest.

It’s not till 3 that I get to go on any ‘real‘ outing. With this beautiful weather I like to stay in the sun, and ski the beach trail. I go in a t-shirt, well 2 on top of each other and an under-shirt, I take my sweater with me though.
The skiing up hill is wonderfully fast. Where the trail ends it is a little soft now with the warm weather, but the snow crust just strong enough to ski on. On the ‘beach’ there is more deer or elk tracks and lots of places where they have been digging for grass.
Amazingly I come upon a skidoo trail that goes uphill to the next terrace. I haven’t gone there for a long time. Partly because it doesn’t really bring you anywhere exciting, just a treed hillside. The skidoo found that out to, and I see where he had a hard time turning around.
I see a little knoll just a little higher, i get up there and get one of those amazing panoramic views. Indeed (Sue) it is way grander than what shows in the photos. So, no photo today, you will have to imagine.
And when you have ever been on a skiing vacation in spring you know what it is like today. I was thinking of that going down hill! I did put my sweater on, just in case.
Indeed I make a few spills. One diving in the deep snow, off the trail, head first.
The crust…..crusty I guess, to break through with my face. One ski comes of and has to be retrieved. Well that is all part of the fun of spring vacation! There was a time I had to have a full time job to pay for such thing, now I am blessed to have it right at my doorstep for free. Now working actually cost me more than having fun, but that’s what I will be doing the next two days. See you Friday!