A Walk on the Snowmobile Trail

A beautiful, sunny day today. Five degrees warmer, and I'd have been on the bike - but the wind was just a tad too chilly for riding. Perfect walking weather, however, so I set out to further explore the snowmobile trails I discovered last month.

Out of the house, around the corner, and past the icy marsh - where the cattails are full of perching sparrows...

...into the field and up the trail towards my new favourite tree (the one in the center)...

...turn left at the tree to cross the field, and whoa! Photo op. (This is why I like afternoon walks and rides - great shadows.)

I follow the orange signs that mark the snowmobile trail, which winds through a small wood...

...and emerges at the prairie restoration project behind the local high school.

Come summer I shall return and see what these plants are:

This is why I have the trail all to myself - most of the snow melted off in last week's warm spell. Doesn't the grass look like a little wigwam?

All around are the remnants of last year's blossoms. This one is goldenrod.

I don't know what these were (asters?)...

...but they must have been lovely in colour. Even the dried blooms are beautiful.

Attenuated milkweed pods, with just a bit of ghostly floss hanging on.

Behind the prairie restoration project are more empty fields. The dry grasses mark a property line.

Around another corner and over an icy patch of field, and the trail turns right into this little wood. A solid carpet of leaves underfoot lends an autumnal feel...

...until I come out the other side to find that it is indeed winter after all. This snow has survived in the shadow of the trees.

Out in the sun again. Another mysterious dried flower.

I find myself wandering through a large field which has been sprayed with manure. Ugh! It's time to head back anyway, as the sun is sinking quickly into the west.

Clumps of these lovely ribbon-like grasses border the prairie restoration project.

The sun is even lower than I realized.

This shot seems like a metaphor for life:

I bypass the winding trail, choosing instead a straight shot towards the high school - behind which lies an icy pond...

...with a fiery reflection of the setting sun. So beautiful.

A happy week to you, and may your paths be full of beauty.

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