Snowshoe with Callie Lou

After tending to Harley, I took Callie for a snowshoe up to Orris Falls. By 4:45, the parking lot was empty as the sun slid behind the hills. Callie ran for all she was worth, galloping up the trail with frequent stops to sniff under the hanging boughs--deer, mice, other dogs--all those interesting things dogs like to smell. By the time we neared the trail head, Callie was beginning to drag, worn out, but still having a grand time.

President's Weekend just around the corner...

...And with that comes tree tapping. I'm trying to talk John out of a big run this year. The top shelf of the fridge is still half full of syrup from the past two years. Every now and then, I pull them out to compare colors and determine which one to sample next. Will it be the golden amber, or the rich tobacco brown? Maybe half and half?
As much as I love maple syrup, the collecting and cooking can be hard work--lugging gallons of sap to the cooker and boiling, boiling, boiling it down to that single mason jar. But dang, it's so good!

And yet another snow day!

This storm brought another 10 or 11 inches with only a smattering of sleet mixed in ever so briefly. Yup, poor man's fertilizer is re-hydrating the well and giving the gardens a lovely topcoat. We may be shaping up for a stellar sap year the way this winter is shaking out.

John and I shoveled the drive twice and I cleaned off the garage and house roofs again. After all that work, I deserved a little play time. So I donned my venerable E99's and tromped out the ski trails again. If I'm really ambitious tomorrow morning, I may try and head down to Vaughn Woods before too many people pack it down with snowshoes.

I refilled the bird feeders before the storm--just so I could feed the squirrels too. Check out the level of the snowbanks! Compare with the picture on the January 22 posting.