Crazy weather here in Fargo lately. After enjoying skiing on the barest minimum of snow, the temperature warmed up to well over freezing and the snow began to melt. Then a storm came in, bringing rain. It was very sad walking around campus, watching the snow being washed away. I was at work, from 7:30am until 8pm, so I wouldn't have gone out for a ski anyway, but I wondered what would be possible after all this. As the storm picked up, the temperature dropped precipitously, and the rain turn to freezing rain, and soon everything changed to ice. Then the snow began. I went to bed wondering if the snow brought by this blizzard would make up for that lost by the melting.
In the morning, the skies were clearing as the tail end of storm retreated to the south, leaving gusts of wind in its wake. I wrote a facebook posting about my intention to check out the skiing this morning, and before I could finish my coffee, there was a message from John Wheeler pointing out there would be ice under the snow, so I decided to go for a snowshoe first. I put the waistbelt and bungee line on, but I didn't put the harness on Noko, but rather the plastic collar we use for walking him. I wanted him to get some exercise, but not have any funny ideas about pulling me on snowshoes.
It felt pretty awkward at first, and I was glad the snow was not too deep, for I needed to re-learn how to lift up the tips a bit with each stride. Yes, I had one awkward fall that made me glad I regularly stretch my groin muscles! Although the bitter cold and wind were not pleasant, I was treated to a gorgeous sundog, just faintly visible in this photo because of how bright the sun was. You can find one side of the sundog in the trees on the right, and the other is equidistant in the opposite direction.
When I got to the large field on the oxbow before you enter Lindenwood Park, I was treated to a dustdevil, but instead of dust, fine grains of snow were whirling around.
All around, the snow had been shaped by the wind as sand is by the sea. There were undulating waves of snow and ridges, and fine layers curving around nearly imperceptible changes in topography. I like observing these little details, partly because then I am not thinking about how darn cold I am! Noko was a bit uncomfortable today too. Sometimes he would step into what he thought was soft new snow, then his paw would puncture through a layer of crust and down into the hard ice below. The first time it happened he lifted up his paw in disgust, like a person who has stepped in dogshit. Then he looked at me, as if to ask, "You really want to go out in this?" I assured him that I really did, so he slogged on with a resigned air. I needn't have worried about him pulling too hard--I was mostly occupied with not tripping over the slack line.
Once we made it to the rocks, Noko crouched to relieve himself, and I realized I didn't have any plastic bags with me. I had chosen a heavier jacket because of this cold, and this one wasn't stocked up. I would have to make a second trip to clean up after him. Just as well, I also wanted to try out the skiing today.
When we got back, I realized I would have to do a complete change of clothes because everything was sweat-soaked (except for my face mask, which was snot soaked. I dressed more lightly this time, and put Noko in his harness so that he could pull if he wanted to. We headed back out. I might mention, I had seen no one thus far and no tracks or anything. All the people and animals were sensibly holed up in their warm spots. Oh, it felt so good to kick and glide after being on snowshoes! We quickly retrieved the poop and headed back. I could see my skate ski marks from earlier in the week. The indentations were filled with snow, but there was no new accumulation. So--my assessment is that the loss of snow from melting was kind of evened out by the new snow. I can still see grass in some areas that are windblown, and a few spots that are drifted over are more pleasant to ski on. Bottom line--we need more snow for the cross-country skiing to be truly enjoyable.
In the morning, the skies were clearing as the tail end of storm retreated to the south, leaving gusts of wind in its wake. I wrote a facebook posting about my intention to check out the skiing this morning, and before I could finish my coffee, there was a message from John Wheeler pointing out there would be ice under the snow, so I decided to go for a snowshoe first. I put the waistbelt and bungee line on, but I didn't put the harness on Noko, but rather the plastic collar we use for walking him. I wanted him to get some exercise, but not have any funny ideas about pulling me on snowshoes.
It felt pretty awkward at first, and I was glad the snow was not too deep, for I needed to re-learn how to lift up the tips a bit with each stride. Yes, I had one awkward fall that made me glad I regularly stretch my groin muscles! Although the bitter cold and wind were not pleasant, I was treated to a gorgeous sundog, just faintly visible in this photo because of how bright the sun was. You can find one side of the sundog in the trees on the right, and the other is equidistant in the opposite direction.When I got to the large field on the oxbow before you enter Lindenwood Park, I was treated to a dustdevil, but instead of dust, fine grains of snow were whirling around.
All around, the snow had been shaped by the wind as sand is by the sea. There were undulating waves of snow and ridges, and fine layers curving around nearly imperceptible changes in topography. I like observing these little details, partly because then I am not thinking about how darn cold I am! Noko was a bit uncomfortable today too. Sometimes he would step into what he thought was soft new snow, then his paw would puncture through a layer of crust and down into the hard ice below. The first time it happened he lifted up his paw in disgust, like a person who has stepped in dogshit. Then he looked at me, as if to ask, "You really want to go out in this?" I assured him that I really did, so he slogged on with a resigned air. I needn't have worried about him pulling too hard--I was mostly occupied with not tripping over the slack line.
Once we made it to the rocks, Noko crouched to relieve himself, and I realized I didn't have any plastic bags with me. I had chosen a heavier jacket because of this cold, and this one wasn't stocked up. I would have to make a second trip to clean up after him. Just as well, I also wanted to try out the skiing today.
When we got back, I realized I would have to do a complete change of clothes because everything was sweat-soaked (except for my face mask, which was snot soaked. I dressed more lightly this time, and put Noko in his harness so that he could pull if he wanted to. We headed back out. I might mention, I had seen no one thus far and no tracks or anything. All the people and animals were sensibly holed up in their warm spots. Oh, it felt so good to kick and glide after being on snowshoes! We quickly retrieved the poop and headed back. I could see my skate ski marks from earlier in the week. The indentations were filled with snow, but there was no new accumulation. So--my assessment is that the loss of snow from melting was kind of evened out by the new snow. I can still see grass in some areas that are windblown, and a few spots that are drifted over are more pleasant to ski on. Bottom line--we need more snow for the cross-country skiing to be truly enjoyable.
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| My skate ski tracks filled with new snow and wind-carved patterns of new snow on top. Snowshoe and dog tracks on the left. |
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