Dashing Through The Snow...

... on a no-horse pair of skis, a few days after Christmas.

The sun is trying to poke through the haze.
It hasn't been cold enough to freeze the flow.

It's not quite freezing and the wind is not quite whipping.  A good day for a trek through the woods.  But since the snow has just a tad of melt on top, it's very slick, so it's also a good day for a healthy amount of caution when headed downhill through the trees.

Enough snow to ski upon, but not enough to bury the rocks and logs.
Also worth consideration are roots and buried limbs
positioned perfectly for arching over fast-moving ski tips and grabbing ankles.
None found this trip, thankfully.

Water gurgles below thin ice.

The large paw prints show that others have also used the trail.
Maybe not all the bears are sleeping.

It's always nice to stop and appreciate the microforest
under the spreading hemlock tree.

The woodpeckers and milli-mushrooms are fond of this tall stump,
sill upright though long past life.

A major mass of milli-mushrooms.

There are many wind-assisted deadfalls in the woods.
The route must be adjusted when a big one has fallen across the trail.

It looks like there has also been a deadfall on the deck.
Ice chunks coming off the roof may have caused this,
but the sleigh marks and hoof prints found
indicate a poor landing caused by overloading.

The metal roots failed to hold this stump upright.
I should probably get right to fixing it.

But I think it's better to plan the fix
next to the nice warm fireplace,
thus preventing rash mistakes.