Our backwoods have a healthy distribution of beech trees (I used to think these were aspen trees) that keep their leaves as long as possible. On cloudy days they brighten our walks and talk to us on quiet days as the winds wrestle with their leaves.
maine woods
Tracks of snow
A busy route along the snow machine trail in our back woods reveals the passage of turkeys (usually a dozen or more at a time), deer, and a curious one which could be dog, fox, or what?
Lonely tree trunks along the edge
Tree stumps and long shadows on a winter’s day along the edge of the bog
Winter moss
On the edge of the bog created by a gang of beavers years ago, there are mostly dead trees supporting the full range of life.
Snow geometries in the wild
Branches of snow
We have had about forty inches of snow over nine days in February. Seeing snow on everything with a blue sky background is one of the best parts of the winter season.
Downside downy
A downy woodpecker is upside down in the back woods.
Turkey crossing
We came upon a group of turkeys today when we hiked in the woods across the road. The temperature was about 40f and the snow was becoming “sugar” snow (softer and denser than usual).
Work in progress
A project started last summer out along the far bog sits idle on a mid-January day in central Maine.
High traffic trail
A mid-morning walk along the snow machine trail reveals tracks from multiple size deer, a rodent or two, a hare, and a dog that spent a great deal of time smelling it all in.
john's f-stop 