Very specific fact: The most intense green in the world is fresh leaves on trees on a mountainside at the beginning of summer, before everything gets dry and dusty.
Category: nature
Back In The Canyon
It took us three months but we made it back to Millcreek on Sunday. While we were gone, the canyon went from off-season diehard visitors to full-on Summer Amateur Hour–and the construction started below the winter gate, too.
But nature is nature, and it was so nice to be back. And we can still get to the stream so the summer of wading is still on.
Sun! Sticks! MUD!
We got some midweek snow which had melted but not dried on the lower trails, which led to MUD (and everyone coming down warning us, “It’s muddy!” Yes, we’re aware).
But the sun was out and I took off my shirt again and even if I was tired and crabby from the time change, it was good to be on the trail. 
False Spring/Stick Season
We had above-average temps over the weekend ahead of a storm and wow, did that sun feel like spring. Of course, the sun also made it sloppy and muddy and all the trees and hillsides will be bare sticks for another couple months, but even false spring is better than no spring.
You know what else was bare? THESE GUNS. I got too hot in my black fleece (!) and told Matt, “Take a picture of my arms!” and he did.
Pretty!
Well, just a week after the gloomy hike, we got a sunny and gorgeous day. We could probably draw a metaphor for life from this, but just enjoy all the different blues instead:
Gloomy!
You know things are dire when even a hike can’t help you entirely shake the existential dread. We never regret getting out, but there were very few moments where we stopped to enjoy the beauty and a lot more moments of wading through slush and post-holing into the snow.
But the air was clean and the forest smelled good, even if it was gray. And we weren’t on the internet for a couple hours!
Snowflakes That Fall On My Nose & Eyelashes
Silver-white winters that melt into spring, these are a few of my favorite things
(That was in my head for the entirety of yesterday’s hike; now it can be in your head too.)
Ice Palaces
There hasn’t been been fresh snow in the mountains for a week or so but it’s been cold enough that the old snow has stayed on branches and collected frost, making some extraordinary crystals. I kept expecting the see the White Witch come around the corner in her sledge.
Powdered Sugar
There was a little fresh snow from Saturday on the trail and it made everything look like it got dusted with powdered sugar. (Or maybe I’m just feeling like doing some holiday baking.) Either way, it was pretty.
Snowliage
I posted this first pic on Instagram and a friend from Vermont commented, “Snowliage!” A beautiful day AND I learned a new word? Win-win.
