Neighborhood Walk in the Snow
/I bundled up in snow pants, hiking boots, scarf, coat and gloves for a walk in our neighborhood after the snow had stopped; it was afternoon, but the temperature was still below freezing. My phone was on a lanyard and the Bluetooth clicker was in my hand….all set to take pictures along my route. Our driveway was still pristine when I walked through; we had opted not to shovel since we didn’t need to get out for a few days and it would melt before then. Our street had not been plowed yet, but cars had made tracks.
The evergreens were flocked with snow. I liked the way the long needles looked from underneath…more green showing. The cedars were heavy with snow, but I didn’t see any broken branches. There was a little breeze that would cause small amounts of snow to fall; the temperature and the wetness of the snow kept most of it in place.
There was a large tree that had many large branches starting a couple of feet above my height; the snow seemed to highlight their juncture. I wondered if the primary stem had been damaged when it was young.
The pond was surrounded by cattails holding snow. It appeared that erosion has reduced the size of the pond since it was dredged a few years ago.
I photographed a branch from a small tree from underneath. The branches were close enough together to hold a lot of snow….the cohesion of the crystals in this particular snow were impressive. A little breeze came through, but the snow stayed in place.
The fire hydrants in the neighborhood sported snow on every surface that was even a little horizontal. The roughness of tree bark also held snow.
When I got to the main road – I saw that the clouds were beginning to clear…great blue – yellow – orange color for the late afternoon.
I took one last picture before I turned back toward home. Someone had been out with a snowblower to clear sidewalks…preparing for the neighborhoods school children catching the bus the next day….or the day after.
There were some crepe myrtle pods from last fall holding mounds of snow. Two boys were making a small snowman nearby.
As I walked by the pond again, I noted that there were no sled tracks down the hill that my daughter thoroughly enjoyed 20 years ago. Have the neighborhood children not discovered it, or do they stick closer to their own yard and siblings because of the pandemic?
