Snow (2017)

Greetings all,

I’ve been thinking a great deal about snow recently. Funny after 35 years living with lots of snow each winter (actually sometimes from September to May) I’ve begun to appreciate snow differently. Perhaps that’s due to spending more time actually “in” snow this winter – teaching skiing part-time at Winter Park Resort in Colorado and exploring Yellowstone National Park in February for a week. In the past during a snowy blizzard I generally stayed comfortably indoors but this winter I spent many days outside during stormy conditions: traveling from place to place, teaching skiing, or attempting to take photos. I’m no longer surprised the Inuit (Eskimo) have a hundred words for snow http://ontology.buffalo.edu/smith/varia/snow.html; ski instructors have lots of words for various snow conditions too. (A list provided by Mike Dole includes corduroy, crud, crust, powder, packed powder, slush, snow grains, snow pellets, etc. https://www.thoughtco.com/types-of-snow-3010035.) More than ever, I’m attracted to the calm beauty of snow after a storm (when it blankets a landscape) and the animals who endure it — together providing breathtaking drama and charm. Below are a few photos.

Pine Creek School – Livingston, Montana

Palette Spring, Mammoth Hot Springs – Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Bison in snow, near Madison River – Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Trumpeter swan in snow, Madison River – Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Will Creek – Willow Creek Pass, Colorado

Parkview Mountain (12, 301 feet) – Willow Creek Pass, Colorado

Parkview Mountain (12, 301 feet) – Willow Creek Pass, Colorado

Skier, Mary Jane Mountain with Parry Peak (13,397 feet) in background – Winter park Resort, Colorado

Electric Peak (10, 968 feet) – Gallatin Range, Montana

West Fork trail, Old Faithful Area – Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

West Fork trail, Old Faithful Area – Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Firehole River, Old Faithful Area – Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Bison in snow, near Madison River – Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming