Tramping The Trails

We're enjoying a temporary relief of the cold we've been experiencing lately (see last week's entry). The days are sunny, and a balmy -11 C makes it perfect for one of our favourite winter activities: snowshoeing.

We love our snowshoes; they're of the traditional kind, fashioned out of hardwood and rawhide, hand-made in Montreal by a small Metis-owned company.
Okay, so they're a bit pricier and slightly heavier than their modern aluminum offspring, but at least their frames won't freeze, they provide better "floatation" on powder, make no annoying creaky-squeeky sounds, and let's face it: their design is just of a timeless beauty.

calling it a day...

Winter's thick snow blanket seems to radically change our 311 acres personality (130 hectares. And yes, a landscape has a distinct personality). There are no bugs, sounds are muffled, animal tracks everywhere (some of them pretty impressive), everything's absolutely quiet, familiar summer spots unrecognizable, bright sunshine bouncing off the snow illuminates the darkest corners. But the best part: areas that are inaccessible in the summer can now be explored on snowhoes.

It's a great workout, and for some reason an incredibly satisfying way to explore your property; I love to re-aquaint myself with places not seen for almost a year, notice the subtle and sometimes not-so-subtle changes, and work myself through knee-deep snow making trails.

In the far distance we can hear the muffled roar of some folks tearing around on their snowmobiles. I guess there's a place for those, but not on our property. We prefer our surroundings quiet and without exhaust fumes - and I'm sure the countless animals we share it with do too.