The Winter of 2017

I picked a good week to be gone! Every time I called home, Michael was whining about all the snow.  Plus the old red truck broke so he was using the snow blower to keep the road open.  I got out today and got a look at it all, helped move some snow, and took a hike in snow shoes.  Clearly he had reason to be unhappy!!

Munger Mountain, across the river and our view to the west, has giant swaths of avalanches.  One wonders how many deer and elk were buried when the snow ran.  Some paths go all the way to the river. 

This will be a winter to remember.  And we aren't even close to being done with it either.  The wildlife are burrowed in and food is scarce.  It is hard to watch them lunge through the deep snow, knowing the huge amount of energy that takes and how little there is to eat.  A doe and her twin fawns were caught pruning my sour cherry trees this morning.  They worked hard to get up the hill from our house.  I imagine they will be back.

Here are some images.  One ponders the flood potential, come spring.