Winter Pix

Winter has never been my favorite season. The damp-cold gets me as it sets off the Raynaud's Syndrome or Phenomena that I've experienced for 25 years. The effects include sudden numbness or pain combined with a complete lack of circulation in my hands and feet. It's not pretty when they go funny colours but it's a cool way to freak people out. I try to avoid exposure to temperature extreme's this time of year and stay indoors, but then I can miss out on a lot too.

There was a light dusting of snow last evening. The dark red sumac blossoms still held the fluff.

Beautifully formed snow crystals, large and glistening.

The fir limbs held the snow as if it were angel hair, while the snowshoe hares traced paths hither and yon.

Sunlight streamed through the woods casting light and shadow on the old beech tree. The young beech will try to hold their fall colours till spring.

A little Chickadee, New Brunswick's provincial bird, makes its stand on a seed laden table.

A red squirrel, a favorite wild pest, that can be coaxed to be quite brave when they know that there is a regular food supply, especially if it involves peanut butter. We call all reds by the name 'George' after a red-headed friend we had. The human George could be equally entertaining.

Winter really can be quite lovely as evidenced by this photo with warm pastel colours from the sun washing across the snow.

Winter ice has the ability to cast an ethereal effect on trees.

Deer Picnic

The joy of living in the woods is that we moved in with the critters. As in the spring, when the beans get mowed by rabbits, and the roses are pruned by the deer and the Asiatic lilies are lunch for both, the fall brings its own activity.

As of late we have had the chipmunks storing as much seed as possible. The beach nuts have been stripped from all the beach trees by the jays (blue & grey) and squirrels (red & grey) and any sunflower seeds that have been put out in the feeders have disappeared in mere minutes with jays, chickadees, squirrels and the chipmunks.

Like the country critters, we have been stockpiling for the winter too. I always like to get a big bag of mixed windfall apples which are very cheap and great for the freezer. The apple peelings offer another treat for the denizens of the forest as the cores are loved by the squirrels and the peels are grabbed and carried off to the tree tops by the jays in their expectation that they will remember where they left them.

This morning brought the visual delight of 3 deer having a picnic at the old table at the back of the garden where I put the peels yesterday.


It started with two...


and then a third joined in...


It looks as though there was a single and a doe with her fawn judging by the size difference and the fact that the single didn't go exploring the rest of the garden like the two

Enjoy!

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