For roughly the 10th time in the past 3+ months, I let Winter beat me down. And for roughly the 10th time in the past 3+ months, I have bounced back like a body tossed from the top of the Empire State Building.

The weekend was full of slack, and sitting in my comfy chair under a blanket with my eyes transfixed on the TV watching football match after football match, with little regard for how bad that match might be. (Spurs have become so mind numbingly bad that it’s become laughable).

The highlight was on Saturday when B came home for the day, so we could celebrate his 22nd birthday a few days early. It was great to see and catch up with him as usual.

However, by early Sunday evening, with my ass literally taking on the shape of a La-Z-Boy chair cushion, I was becoming bored to tears, and my eyes that had once been transfixed on the TV were now glossed over with wintry malaise. At that point, I knew I needed to get back in the woods on Monday, no matter how shit the conditions might be. [place sound effect of a body hitting cement after falling 102 stories, here]

Come early Monday, I was back in the woods, and pleasantly surprised that the trails weren’t in horrible condition. The 10˚ morning air meant the walkable parts of the groomed trail were packed and stiff enough that I chose to use microspikes instead of snowshoes, which on some trails allowed for a faster pace, but on other trails had me, and my feet, wishing for the stability of my snow flippers.

About a mile in, I saw a bald eagle downriver and took a shot. As per usual, it was way too far away for a quality shot, but it was nice to at least get a memory after so many recent “almost” encounters.

After that, I didn’t see much else; the deer continued to be oddly skiddish and elusive, and even the omnipresent squirrels were out of sight. I did hear some pileated woodpeckers pecking and laughing hysterically in the distance, but nothing to show for it.

The lumber wasn’t long, at just 4.56 miles, but it was nice to get back outside and scrape my hulking bodice off the metaphorical sidewalk, and call it a bounce back. I’ll take it.

Now, let’s Tuesday.

With temps a full 15˚ warmer at the time of Tuesday’s lumber, I planned in advance to use the snowshoes, and it was the perfect choice. The snow was way softer, and the added stability from the snowshoes was much appreciated.

I did pretty much the same loop as yesterday, and while I didn’t have another opportunity to take a crap photo of a bald eagle from too far away, I did see some deer from a distance, and took a photo of a trailside squirrel that I have to say, I actually dig. Which is saying something, ’cause squirrels, like geese, are LOW on the critters that I enjoy photographing. But every so often, I take one that makes me happy.

Hoping for more miles tomorrow, and hopefully, continued good luck seeing some critters.

Later.

Photo Notes:

1. Downy Woodpecker on the deck’s bird stick.

2. My favorite kid in the world turning 22.

3. Crap photo of an eagle taken about 300 yards away or more.

4. One of my fave squirrel pics.

5. A cooperative deer from a distance.