Friday, January 21, 2011

Snow, Sunshine and shadows

Snowfall ended early last evening and the day awoke clear, cold and sunny.
Above is the daytime view of last night's snowy Big Creek Valley.

The back field with the old tobacco barn and Payne Janes hill beyond to the north.

There were lines of deer tracks in the fresh snow.
Willis, my inevitable outdoor companion, sniffed the tracks with interest and then followed his shadow along the trail to investigate.

The back yard is criss-crossed with the tracks of humans doing our chores this morning; under the blue tracery of tree shadows rabbits, kittens and birds have left the record of their wanderings.

Three of the four eggsacks deposited by the summer spider are still clinging to the porch post.
The sedum where the spider hung her web wears caps of snow.

Snow held in the leaves of the magnolia tree.

Beyond the magnolia tree, Pebbles takes a drink from her water tank.  The water heater has been turned off during milder weather so there was a crust of ice this morning.  J. broke the ice but Pebs didn't like how it was done and applied a handy hoof to the job before sipping.
Willis the kitten stands under the tree.


Willis is everlastingly underfoot--or overhead, as the case my be.  Here he clings to a snowy branch of the old apple tree.

Sally joins Willis in the apple tree.  She is rarely still long enough for a photo and not as interested in my every step.

The tracks of a rabbit have caught Sally's attention.
She circled the tree trunk taking suspicious sniffs of rabbit scent.


J. refilled the feeder in the maple tree.  It swings in the wind and dumps seeds on the ground where usually jays, cardinals and juncos are happy to pick for their meals.



Old reliable Snort'n Nort'n ready to head down the road with a load of hay for Dory the Cow.

3 comments:

  1. Willis sure is an adventuring kind of cat -- almost like a dog, following you everywhere.

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  2. wonderful snowy pictures! Willis is such a character. Your snow never got here, but some intense cold sure did. I laughed at Pebbles breaking the ice on the water tank to fit her own specifications of how it should be done. Don't know much about dairy cows...is Dory still producing milk? is she pregnant with a calf to be delivered in the Spring?

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  3. That looks lovely hay (can almost smell it). Willis is obviously a people-cat! Our horses used to break the ice on the water if they needed a drink and we'd not got out there with the hammer, but Itsy would love to dip her hoof in even in the summer.

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