Rained in the night. Awake to see the ground white with snow, and it is still snowing, the sleet driving from the north at an angle of certainly not more than thirty or thirty-five degrees with the horizon, as I judge by its course across the window panes. By midafternoon the rain has so far prevailed that the ground is bare. As usual, this brings the tree sparrows and F. hyemalis into the yard again.
H. D. Thoreau, Journal, April 11, 1855
The sleet driving from the north at an angle of certainly not more than thirty or thirty-five degrees with the horizon. See December 14, 1859 ("Snow-storms might be classified. .. . there is sleet, which is half snow, half rain.")
This brings the tree sparrows and F. hyemalis into the yard again. See April 23, 1854 ("A rain is sure to bring the tree sparrow and hyemalis to the gardens").
Sunday, April 11, 2015 around 8 PM we hike up to the view with the dogs most of the remaining snow up yesterday is gone and it is icy only in a few spots where the trail was worn by footprints
At the lower view the horizon is saffron a perfectly clear night with the stars shining brightly we trek onward pass the junction where the stream is deep in places a danger that solid ground will break through into a puddle we detour off the trail and soon we are at the view admiring the stars the Big Dipper is upside down in the north Cassiopeia in the Northwest Venus of course directly west and orion tilted to the right nearing the horizon
Next we are going to the double chair I stop to P and catching up get a little bit of the experience of being alone in the woods trying to find the trail wearing my baseball cap headlamp so do not have that much light arrive at the saddle and she's already down the trail to the east land
Then it is a bit of work hiking up the gully because of the even more trees have fallen across. near the wetland there is plenty of snow sometimes quite deep it is soft and the trail is marked with tax
Eventually we are on the north ridge there is a view of Burlington and Williston to the north very clear night with the lights shimmering and then to the double chair where my bench collapses or at least starts to collapse I eat a sandwich and drink a bottle of water
And here is the best view of the big dipper upside down with the arc to Arcturus directly in the East --usually Arcturus is remembered as a western star just after sunset
On the way down we bushwhack and arrive in the little Valley heading first for the pond but then bushwhack again straight over the cliff and end up in the ravine of the headwaters of our stream where heading downstream we first hear noise of running water and then discover on the cliff to our left a a waterfall frozen making a wonderful sound--a spot we never noticed before kind of an amphitheater with a spring bursting in bubbling out of the cliff.
From the little ridge trail take a right onto the shortcut trail and where a pinetree has fallen Jane starts to hack away with her new machete and eventually she pokes herself in the eye with a stick her eyebrow bleeds profusely and at 10:30 at night we end up that Dr. Giroux’s office fortunately she did not need a stitch
A long night and lots of new ways to travel around the woods
This brings the tree sparrows and F. hyemalis into the yard again. See April 23, 1854 ("A rain is sure to bring the tree sparrow and hyemalis to the gardens").
Sunday, April 11, 2015 around 8 PM we hike up to the view with the dogs most of the remaining snow up yesterday is gone and it is icy only in a few spots where the trail was worn by footprints
At the lower view the horizon is saffron a perfectly clear night with the stars shining brightly we trek onward pass the junction where the stream is deep in places a danger that solid ground will break through into a puddle we detour off the trail and soon we are at the view admiring the stars the Big Dipper is upside down in the north Cassiopeia in the Northwest Venus of course directly west and orion tilted to the right nearing the horizon
Next we are going to the double chair I stop to P and catching up get a little bit of the experience of being alone in the woods trying to find the trail wearing my baseball cap headlamp so do not have that much light arrive at the saddle and she's already down the trail to the east land
Then it is a bit of work hiking up the gully because of the even more trees have fallen across. near the wetland there is plenty of snow sometimes quite deep it is soft and the trail is marked with tax
Eventually we are on the north ridge there is a view of Burlington and Williston to the north very clear night with the lights shimmering and then to the double chair where my bench collapses or at least starts to collapse I eat a sandwich and drink a bottle of water
And here is the best view of the big dipper upside down with the arc to Arcturus directly in the East --usually Arcturus is remembered as a western star just after sunset
On the way down we bushwhack and arrive in the little Valley heading first for the pond but then bushwhack again straight over the cliff and end up in the ravine of the headwaters of our stream where heading downstream we first hear noise of running water and then discover on the cliff to our left a a waterfall frozen making a wonderful sound--a spot we never noticed before kind of an amphitheater with a spring bursting in bubbling out of the cliff.
From the little ridge trail take a right onto the shortcut trail and where a pinetree has fallen Jane starts to hack away with her new machete and eventually she pokes herself in the eye with a stick her eyebrow bleeds profusely and at 10:30 at night we end up that Dr. Giroux’s office fortunately she did not need a stitch
A long night and lots of new ways to travel around the woods
Saffron horizon
perfectly clear night with the
stars shining brightly.
April 11, 2015 zphx
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