It’s a cold, gray time of the winter –  but today, finally, the sun came out.  It’s so nice to see blue sky and sparkles in the snow. 

We worked on our fall savanna clearing project until there was just too much snow.    This was the last day before the snow came.  The pink tape marks trees that we didn’t want to cut – mostly they’re aspens that need to be girdled, but a few are small Burr Oaks, Serviceberries or Hawthornes that we’d like to keep.

 

This is the older cleared savanna, looking back into the newly cleared area.  It’s not finished, but it’s getting more open – we can see all the way to the planted prairie now.

 

Mike mowed our upper walking path twice as wide, so it will be easier to keep open for walking this winter.

 

A bobcat on one of the trail cameras

 

This view startles me every time.  The old piece of birch stump that sticks up looks like an owl.  It always takes me a minute to realize that it’s just a stump.

 

Then came the snow.

 

The savanna project in the snow – no more work here until spring.

 

Pine Point with snow sticking to the trees

 

Northern Shrike hunting at our bird feeders.  I didn’t see it catch anything.

 

This is an unusual view of our house.  It’s looking down from a new path that our friend Todd is clearing for us – an old logging road along the edge of the woods.

 

Finally – the sun

 

Sugar Maples on Maple Ridge

 

Cattails

 

Water-hemlock

 

Tall Sunflowers